KU assistant football coaches at a glance
Nick Quartaro

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Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks
Age: 46
Hometown: Geneva, N.Y.
Education: Iowa, 1977.
Wife: Stephanie.
Children: Andria and Tony.
Playing experience: Xavier 1973, Iowa 1974-76. Quartaro played defensive end and kicker for a year at Xavier before transferring to Iowa, where he was the Hawkeyes’ kicker for three seasons. He finished his playing career ranked second on Iowa’s all-time scoring list. He was an academic All-Big Ten selection as a junior.
Coaching resume: 1977 — Hobart College (N.Y.), defensive backs; 1978 — Iowa graduate assistant, linebackers; 1979 — Hobart College, receivers; 1980 — New Hampton High (Iowa), head coach; 1981-85 — Northwestern, defensive line, secondary, special teams; 1986-88 — Drake, head coach; 1989-93 — Kansas State, associate head coach; 1994-97 — Fordham, head coach; 1998-01 — Iowa State, assistant head coach, receivers.
Bowl games as coach: 1993 Copper Bowl, Kansas State; 2000 Insight.com Bowl, Iowa State; 2001 Independence Bowl, Iowa State.
Coaching ties: Worked with Mangino on Bill Snyder’s Kansas State staff from 1991-1993.
Noting Quartaro: No stranger to building programs in the Big Eight and Big 12, Quartaro helped Snyder and Iowa State’s Dan McCarney turn cellar dwellers into bowl teams. … Worked for former Minnesota Vikings head coach Dennis Green at Northwestern. … Prominent players coached include NFL All-Pro Steve Tasker, who played at Northwestern.
Salary: $141,500.
Bill Young

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Defensive coordinator/defensive tackles
Age: 55.
Hometown: Oklahoma City.
Education: Oklahoma State 1968; Central Oklahoma 1971 (graduate degree).
Wife: Lawana.
Playing experience: Oklahoma State 1965-1968. Young played linebacker and defensive end for the Cowboys. He led the Pokes in interceptions in 1965 and was an academic All-Big Eight selection as a senior.
Coaching resume: 1968-69 — Oklahoma State JV, offense, defensive line; 1969-70 — Oklahoma City Carl Albert High, defensive line; 1970-76 — Putnam City (Okla.) West High, defensive coordinator; 1976-78 — Oklahoma State, offensive and defensive lines; 1979-80 — Iowa State, defensive tackles; 1980-85 — Tulsa, defensive coordinator, defensive line; 1985-88 — Arizona State, defensive line; 1988-95 — Ohio State, defensive coordinator, defensive line; 1995-96 — Oklahoma, defensive coordinator, defensive tackles; 1997-2000 — Southern Cal, defensive coordinator; 2001 — Detroit Lions, defensive line.
Bowl games as coach: 1976 Tangerine Bowl, Oklahoma State; 1985 Holiday Bowl, Arizona State; 1987 Rose Bowl, Arizona State; 1988 Freedom Bowl, Arizona State; 1989 Blue/Grey Bowl, Ohio State; 1990 Hall of Fame Bowl, Ohio State; 1991 Liberty Bowl, Ohio State; 1992 Hall of Fame Bowl, Ohio State; 1993 Holiday Bowl, Ohio State; 1995 Citrus Bowl, Ohio State; 1996 Citrus Bowl, Ohio State; 1998 Sun Bowl, USC.
Coaching ties: Young worked under former Kansas assistant John Cooper when Cooper was head coach at Tulsa, Arizona State and Ohio State.
Noting Young: Young is entering his 34th season as a coach and 17th as a defensive coordinator. … He has mentored 31 players who went on to the NFL.
Salary: $141,500.
Ken Conatser

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Offensive line
Age: 61.
Hometown: Cincinnati.
Education: Cincinnati 1962, 1965 (graduate degree).
Wife: Carole.
Children: Dean.
Playing experience: Cincinnati 1958-62.
Coaching resume: 1963-64 — Western Hills High (Ohio), assistant; 1964-65 — Cincinnati, graduate assistant; 1965-70 — Harrison High (Ohio), head coach; 1970-71 — Western Hills High, head coach; 1971-72 — Massachusetts, offensive line; 1972-77 — Milford High (Ohio), head coach; 1977-80 — UMass, offensive line; 1981-83 — Syracuse, offensive line; 1984-85 — San Diego State ,offensive line; 1986-00 — Youngstown State, offensive coordinator, offensive line, defensive coordinator, linebackers, assistant head coach; 2001 — Ohio State, special teams coordinator, defensive ends.
Coaching ties: Conatser worked with Mangino in 1986 on Jim Tressel’s staff at Youngstown State. He worked for Tressel for 15 years at Youngstown State and last year at Ohio State.
Bowl games as coach: 2001 Outback Bowl, Ohio State.
Noting Conatser: Helped Youngstown State reach Division I-AA playoffs 10 times in 15 seasons. The Penguins played in six national title games, winning four.
Salary: $107,500.
Pat Henderson

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Secondary
Age: 50.
Hometown: Kansas City, Mo.
Education: Kansas 1975; Nebraska-Omaha 1980 (graduate degree).
Wife: Mary.
Children: Brian, Jeff and Kelli.
Playing experience: Kansas 1972-74.
Coaching resume: 1985-89 — Arizona State, secondary; 1990-93 — Purdue, special teams coordinator, defensive ends, defensive backs; 1994-96 — Texas Christian, defensive coordinator; 1997-99 — Tulsa, defensive coordinator, linebackers; 2000-2001 — Southern Methodist, special teams coordinator, secondary.
Coaching ties: Worked on Cooper’s Arizona State staff with Young.
Bowl games as coach: 1986 Holiday Bowl, Arizona State; 1987 Rose Bowl, Arizona State; 1988 Freedom Bowl, Arizona State; 1995 Independence Bowl, TCU.
Noting Henderson: Played linebacker for coach Don Fambrough at Kansas. … Has coached 14 players who went to the NFL.
Salary: $107,500.

