Earlier this month, after a 4-8 debut season, Joe Davis and the Western Illinois program parted ways with defensive coordinator Dan McKeown and the search began for a replacement.
The Leatherneck defense ranked last in points allowed in the OVC last year, but offensively they ranked near the top of the league in scoring at 31 points per game, just a half-point per game shy of leading the conference in the category.
Three weeks after making the decision, sources share with FootballScoop that Davis is handing the keys of his defense to a former FCS head coach.
Landon Fox, the former head coach at Valparaiso (FCS - IN), is set to take over the defense at Western Illinois, source tells FootballScoop.
From 2019-2024, Fox served as the head coach at Valpo, who compete in the non-scholarship Pioneer League of the FCS ranks.
He went 21-42 in six seasons and the school made the decision to not renew his contract at the conclusion of the season.
Dating back to 2003, the Valparaiso program has had just two winning seasons, one of them coming under Dave Cecchini in 2017, and then the 2021 spring season under Fox when he led the program to a 4-2 mark.
Prior to landing the job leading Valpo, Fox had a successful run as the defensive coordinator at Dayton (FCS - OH).
A former Defiance College captain and All Conference performer, Fox previously worked with Davis at Wayne State (D-II - MI) where he worked with linebackers and coordinated the special teams while Davis mentored the quarterbacks.
Earlier in his career he spent time as a graduate assistant at Lakeland (D-III - WI), Dayton, and Ball State.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.