Steve Clinkscale

Steve Clinkscale (born September 21, 1977) is an American football coach who is currently the defensive backs coach for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He was previously the defensive backs coach for the University of Michigan and the University of Kentucky.

Early life Clinkscale was born in 1977. He grew up in Youngstown, Ohio, and attended Chaney High School. He attended Ashland University where he played football and was the team captain. He graduated in 2000 with a degree in sports science. to 2015. In January 2015, he was elevated to the defensive coordinator position at Cincinnati.

Clinkscale was hired in March 2016 as the defensive backs coach for the University of Kentucky Wildcats football team. He held that position from 2016 to 2020. Kentucky's defensive backs under Clinkscale led the SEC in passing defense in 2019 and 2020. He was hired at an initial annual salary of $600,000. He also became co-defensive coordinator in 2022. He helped lead the Wolverines to a national championship in 2023.

On February 14, 2024, Clinkscale was named as the defensive backs coach for the Los Angeles Chargers. On May 22, 2026, Clinkscale added the role of defensive passing game coordinator to his title.