University of California Athletics

Terrence Brown enters his fourth season with the Golden Bears and was recently named Co-Defensive coordinator on April 10, 2025. He previously served as the defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator. Brown has accumulated more than a decade of experience as a coach and player on the West Coast. 

• Brown has spent time on coaching staffs at Cal, Washington (twice) and Vanderbilt after graduating from Stanford in 2013.

• He was named to 247Sports’ 30Under30 coaches list in both 2019 and 2020.

• Brown has coached 17 defensive back draft selections in his four stops at the FBS level.

• At Cal, Brown has made an immediate impact co-leading the defensive unit. In 2024, the Bears defense led the ACC by only giving up a total of 290 points to opponents. In addition, the Bears ranked third in total defense in the ACC (337.5 ypg) and was one of two teams in the ACC to surrender less than five yards per play over the course of the season.

• As an assistant defensive backs coach in 2023, Brown co-led the Cal defense into becoming one of the nation's most productive groups. The Bears led the nation with 16 fumbles recovered and tied for the national lead with 28 turnovers gained. The Bears' three defensive touchdowns were second in the Pac-12 and tied for 15th nationally. The unit's 12 interceptions tied for third in the Pac-12 and tied for 36th nationally. The defenses’ rushing defense ranked sixth in the Pac-12 and 35th nationally (133.4 ypg).

• Before his time in Berkeley, Brown served as the assistant defensive backs coach at Washington from 2020-2021. In his two seasons, he coached four Huskies who were later drafted in Kyler Gordon (Chicago), Trent McDuffie (Kansas City), Elijah Molden (Tennessee), and Keith Taylor Jr. (Kansas City).

• Before returning to Seattle, Brown spent two seasons at Vanderbilt. While in Nashville, the Commodores reached the Texas Bowl and equaled their best record in eight years during his first campaign in 2018. He also coached Joejuan Williams, a 2018 second-team All-Southeastern Conference selection and second round pick of the New England Patriots in 2019.

• His first FBS opportunity came as a graduate assistant at Washington from 2015-17. During his first stint in the pacific northwest, he coached a pair of All-Americans in Budda Baker and Sidney Jones, while working with a long list of future NFL defensive backs in addition to Baker and Jones including Kevin King, Jordan Miller, Byron Murphy, Taylor Rapp, Keith Taylor Jr. and Zeke Turner.

• As a player (2009-12), started all 23 of his collegiate games at Stanford during his final two seasons of a four-year collegiate playing career in which he compiled 113 tackles including a career-high 65 stops when he started a career-high all 14 contests as a 2013 senior.

Year-By-Year Coaching Positions
Season: Team – Coaching Position
2015 (Spring): Cal Poly – Cornerbacks
2015-17: Washington – Defensive Graduate Assistant
2018-19: Vanderbilt – Cornerbacks
2020-21: Washington – Assistant Defensive Backs
2022-24: California – Defensive Backs
2025: California – Co-Defensive Coordinator/ Defensive Backs

Terrence Brown File

Birthdate: March 4, 1991
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
High School: Orange Lutheran HS
College: Stanford, 2013, BA, Science, Technology and Society; Washington, 2017, MA, Education
Family: Wife, Courtney; Son, Ty; Daughter, Mya