Jim Leonhard is putting his stamp on the Buffalo Bills' defensive staff-and he’s digging deep into his Wisconsin roots to do it. The latest addition?
Terrance Jamison, who most recently served as Illinois’ co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach. Now, he’s heading to Buffalo to lead the Bills’ defensive line unit.
This marks the third former Wisconsin Badger Leonhard has brought on board since taking the reins of the defense. And in Jamison, he’s adding a coach who not only shares a playing and coaching background at Wisconsin, but also brings a strong track record of developing talent in the trenches.
Jamison’s connection to Wisconsin runs deep. He played for the Badgers from 2005 to 2007, then transitioned into coaching with stints as a student assistant, defensive quality control coach, and graduate assistant between 2008 and 2012.
Those early coaching years coincided with the rise of a certain defensive end named J.J. Watt-so Jamison knows what elite talent looks like and how to help it thrive.
Since then, he’s carved out a steady path across the college football landscape, making stops at California, Florida Atlantic, Texas Tech, Air Force, Purdue, and most recently Illinois. At nearly every stop, he’s worked with the defensive line, and his impact has been clear.
At Illinois, he helped mold Jer’Zhan Newton into one of the most dominant interior defenders in the country. Newton earned back-to-back All-American honors and was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year-a testament to Jamison’s ability to develop top-tier talent.
Leonhard’s approach to building his staff is becoming a clear trend: he’s surrounding himself with coaches who not only know defense, but know his brand of defense. The first two hires?
Bobby April III, who was set to become Minnesota’s defensive line coach after a stint as Stanford’s defensive coordinator, is now coaching outside linebackers in Buffalo. Then came Jay Valai, the former Wisconsin defensive back who was serving as Oklahoma’s assistant head coach and co-defensive coordinator before joining Leonhard’s staff as the Bills’ defensive backs coach.
Now, with Jamison in the fold, Leonhard has added another piece to a coaching puzzle that’s heavy on familiarity, shared philosophy, and proven development chops. It’s clear he values trust, continuity, and a shared defensive DNA-something that’s often underrated when building a cohesive unit at the NFL level.
The Wisconsin pipeline is alive and well in Buffalo. And if Leonhard’s hires are any indication, this Bills defense is going to be built on strong fundamentals, player development, and a coaching staff that knows exactly what it wants to be.