One Position Coach Had a Front Row Seat to Skyler Cassity’s Rise from Engineering Major to Power Conference Coordinator

STILLWATER — It’s somewhat common to hear college coaches discuss pushing their kids to pursue other professions.

It sounds like that was certainly the case when Oklahoma State defensive coordinator Skyler Cassity let his father, Mike Cassity, know he wanted to follow in his steps and coach college football.

“When he had the conversation with his dad that he wanted to switch from engineering, he wanted to start getting into coaching and stuff that wasn’t pretty,” Oklahoma State linebackers coach Reggie Johnson said. “But anyway, he sees the game a certain way. … His intelligence, all of that stuff is off the charts with that guy.”

It might sound a little abnormal for a position coach to reference the moment his defensive coordinator decided to pursue coaching, but Johnson watched Cassity grow up, and he quite literally has the pictures to prove it.

“I’ve known that guy since he was probably 11,” Johnson said. “I worked with his dad at several other spots, so I actually have pictures of him with my kids. So I’ve known him a long time.”

The two first worked together at Missouri State from 2020-21. Cassity coached linebackers, nickels and safeties while Johnson oversaw linebackers. Then, Cassity left to coordinate defense at Abilene Christian, but he remembered the long-time family friend when he got a chance to coordinate an FBS defense for the first time.

“I got a call in ‘24, he said, ‘Hey, coach, man, I’m interviewing for this other job. Would you be interested in going?’” Johnson said. “Like, ‘Yeah, man, get the job and give me a call,’ you know, because, again, he’s a young coordinator. And so anyway, long story short, he got the job, he gave me a call, so I’m like ‘Hey man, let’s roll.’ So, but again, families, we’ve known each other for a long time, and so there is a trust factor there. A lot of positives in terms of how we think about stuff philosophically. So it’s been a good mesh.”

Johnson has been Cassity’s linebackers coach ever since following him from Sam Houston to North Texas and now to Oklahoma State.

“I’m blessed to be here,” Johnson said. “The history here and understanding that I mean, there’s a winning, there’s been a winning tradition here. I mean, you look at those banners (celebrating bowl wins) that’s hanging up in this place, so we look forward to getting some new ones up there, man.”

Cassity and Johnson coached the nation’s best-tackling defense last season, according to Pro Football Focus. Improving that area is sure to make a difference in the fall as Oklahoma State attempts to get out of the Big 12 basement for the first time since 2023.

At one point following Tuesday’s practice, Johnson was asked if he wished he knew what Cassity does when he was 31.

“Oh absolutely, absolutely man,” Johnson said. “But again, I think that I really am happy. I enjoy doing what I do, and so I don’t mind not being a (coordinator), I enjoy this.”

Johnson has experience coordinating defenses. He ran things at UAB and Alabama A&M for two years each from 2012-15. Johnson was the co-defensive coordinator for Missouri State before joining Cassity at Sam Houston.

One more fun fact about the coaching duo that produced so much success in recent seasons is that the two men happen to share a birthday on April 14.

“I’ve been doing this a long time, but that kid, man, he’s from a football family, and again, he studies it, and he breathes it, he eats it, he sleeps and all that other stuff,” Johnson said, praising Cassity. “All the cliche stuff that today you hear about young coaches. … It’s a pleasure working with him as well. Again, when we’ve been together a long time, even pre-coaching for him. So that’s been good. It’s been good for me.”