Ilir Emini '16 was recently hired as Defensive Assistant Coach/Assistant Linebacker Coach for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL).
Emini set the Prairie Fire single-season record for receptions (88) as a junior and moved into first place in career receptions (233) as a senior. His 88 receptions in 2014 are the fifth in Midwest Conference history and were good for fourth in the nation that year. He ranked in the top-10 in NCAA Division III in total receptions and receptions per game each of the last two years. He also has the Knox record for receptions in a game with 16. Emini is fourth all-time at Knox with 2,543 receiving yards and sixth in career receptions in the Midwest Conference. He was a two-time all-MWC selection.
Emini most recently spent two seasons as a defensive analyst at the University of Illinois. Emini helped Illinois reach the 2019 Redbox Bowl in his first season in Champaign, the Illini's first bowl in five years, after a 6-6 regular season that included a win over No. 6 Wisconsin and the biggest comeback in program history in a win at Michigan State.
Emini joined the Fighting Illini staff from Wofford, where he spent the previous three seasons. He helped Wofford to the FCS Playoffs in all three seasons, advancing to the quarterfinals in 2016 and 2017 and the second round in 2018. He was most recently the safeties and nickels coach in 2018, helping Wofford lead the Southern Conference in scoring defense, total defense, rushing defense, passing defense and third-down percentage. Emini led JoJo Tillery and Mason Alstatt to their first All-Conference honors and Tillery signed as an undrafted free agent with the Tennessee Titans.
Emini graduated from Knox College in 2016 after majoring in elementary education and minoring in history and business.
Moving to the NFL gives you a variety of potential future possibilities. What is your ultimate career goal?
It's incredibly exciting to be working in the NFL; it's always been a dream of mine. My next goal is to be a position coach at this level and then a coordinator and ultimately head coach.
What was the biggest change for you going from a player to a coach?
Definitely watching more tape. As a player, I watched quite a bit of tape but obviously there's a limit on how much tape you could watch as a student when academics are priority. Now that this passion of mine is also my profession, and I don't have to worry about training, class, or school work anymore, it allows me to dive into the film much more.
How did your time at Knox help shape your career?
Two people really come to mind.
Coach Damon Tomeo will always be a great mentor and friend of mine. To put it simply, I wouldn't be where I am in this profession without Coach T. He single handedly got me my first job and has given me guidance along every step of the way. He is a family man and our team was his family. Coach T was always about the team, the team, the team, and he cared about every single one of us. His impact on my life is unmatched and we will always be a team, a family.
The Estes Family (Joel, Daine, and Wrigley) took me under their wings and helped develop me into the teacher that I am today. One might be surprised how useful being an elementary education major has been for me in my profession. At the end of the day, teaching is teaching and it is ultimately about pouring knowledge into others with an individualized approach, regardless if it's a third grade class at Mable Woolsey or professional athletes in the NFL.
Knox is rigorous academically, what skills that you learned at Knox have helped you in your career?
Time management, attention to deal, thinking outside the box, team work.
What are some major takeaways from your time with Wofford?
I could go on forever! It was the best thing that happened to me in my coaching career.
1) How to play sound defense. Going against the option guru and legendary Offensive Coordinator, Coach Wade Lang, every single day in practice, you had to make sure all of your P's and Q's were in order. When it came time for the season, the Southern Conference was one of the most challenging conferences to coach in at any level. One week you're defending 3 back under center triple option, the next is air raid, then a spread read option, and then to a 2 back gun option team. In order to be successful, you need to play sound defense (stop the run, don't give up the deep ball, and get off the field on 3rd down). The offensive diversity within the conference is top notch and I believe that is where every young coach should go to grind their teeth.
2) Have the pen last. When I say that I am talking about being smart coaches. I worked under three different coordinators at Wofford, all of which are currently at the FBS or NFL level because of how they coached sound and smart defense. I'll never forget one thing that was brought up when I was at Wofford: "Have the answers on Saturday and not on Sunday."
3) Winning culture. In my three years at Wofford, we were ranked in the top 20 every single week I was there. I worked under two different head coaches. Coach Mike Ayers, is future HOF coach who coached at Wofford for over 30 years and has over 200 wins as a head coach, was there my first two seasons. Being an ex-marine, he instilled a toughness mentality across the entire program. After Coach Ayers retired, Coach Josh Conklin became the new head coach at Wofford who would later become a great mentor of mine as well. Coach Conklin continued the winning tradition at Wofford and ended up winning two more consecutive Southern Conference Championships. I am very fortunate enough to be a part of a team who finished in the top 10 of the national rankings all three years, led the conference in most defensive statistically categories all three years, made the playoffs all three years, go to the elite eight two of the years, and win two Southern Conference Championships while at Wofford College.
What are some major takeaways from your time at the University of Illinois?
1) Takeaways. The ball is everything! There is a difference between a takeaway and a turnover. It's not by chance that we were leading the nation in takeaways, defensive touchdowns, or forced fumbles during my time at Illinois.
2) Understanding situational football. Everyone knows that an underdog can win on any given day; however, underdogs win a heck of a lot more on Sunday's. This is why situational football is much more relevant in the NFL. Coach Smith, being a former head coach in the NFL for over a decade, has always instilled situational football into me. You name the situation, we ran it in practice and it wasn't only one time.
3) How to play sound football. Every call in your arsenal of defensive play calls should be foolproof. Best way to vet to make sure it is foolproof? Pull up random games to watch and see how that call would play out versus the different offensive attacks.
How has your coaching style evolved over the years? What are some things that you would say are absolutes in your teaching?
For me, it's about humble beginnings and working hard. My core values are creating a family environment where all relationships matter and working your tail off. My coaching style is constantly evolving but my core values never change.
What are some things you have learned from Lovie Smith? How has he challenged you and shown you new ways of thinking about football and life?
If only you could be a fly on the wall! I could write a thesis on what I've learned from Coach Smith; from our defense to diversity to situational football to The O'Jays, we've talked about it all, and daily!
What (if anything) drew you to working with the Texans (other than Lovie)?
Making it to the NFL has always been a dream of mine.
This is going back a few years, but what do you remember about "The Catch" and what was going through your mind before, during, and after?
This is funny that you ask. Coach Smith just found out about the catch the other day. I got into juggling the offseason going into my senior year. Coach Matt Reed, who was my WR Coach, had me doing that to increase my hand-eye coordination. I went from not being able to juggle anything to juggling everything overnight. Every single night before bed I would juggle. The night before the Lawrence game, I was in the hotel room with Armand Stricklin, one of my best friends and another team captain at the time, and we were watching tape. While watching tape, I decided to lay on the bed and juggle while laying on my back; I was struggling big time and barely got it down before I went to bed. Sure enough, the next day, it happened. I ran a double move and Matt McCaffrey threw me the ball because I was open. Side note, I used to tell Matt I was always open. Only problem was that the ball was underthrown just a bit. Initially, I tried to kick the ball to myself while still upright (I grew up playing soccer my entire life so my initial reaction was to kick it to myself). Well, that didn't go as planned. I found myself laying on the ground with the ball above me, similar to what I did the night before juggling lacrosse balls on my back in the hotel room. Everyone knows what happened next. The coolest part was Scott Van Pelt reaching out to me on twitter and next thing I know I am watching Monday Night Football and he shows it to America.
