George Ricumstrict has been named as the defensive line coach for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff football program, as announced on Monday by head coach
Alonzo Hampton.
Ricumstrict brings 34 years of coaching experience in defensive line and linebackers to the team. He has a proven track record of developing All-Conference players, many of whom have gone on to graduate and play in the NFL.
Before joining UAPB, Ricumstrict spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons coaching at Delaware State. He also served as an assistant coach at Northwood University (MI) in the NCAA Division II Great Northwest Conference during the 2022 season.
Prior to Northwood, Ricumstrict was the defensive tackles coach at the University at Buffalo for two seasons. He previously spent six years as the defensive line coach at Central Michigan. Under his guidance, Buffalo led the Mid-American Conference in total defense in 2020. Defensive tackle Eddie Wilson earned All-MAC Third Team honors, recording 21 tackles and two tackles for loss that season.
In Ricumstrict's first season as defensive tackles coach, his unit played a crucial role in the Bulls' rushing defense, which led the Mid-American Conference and ranked seventh nationally. Chibueze Onwuka, a former walk-on, was named to the All-MAC Third Team after achieving career highs with 43 tackles, eight tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks.
In 2017, Ricumstrict led a defensive unit that was instrumental in helping Central Michigan rank third nationally with 31 forced turnovers and seventh with 19 interceptions. One notable player from this period was Joe Ostman, a protégé of Ricumstrict. Ostman became one of the best defensive players in CMU history, finishing his career with 28 sacks—second in program history. In 2017, he recorded 14 sacks, the second-highest single-season total for a Chippewa, leading the nation in both total sacks and sacks per game (1.27), along with 20.5 tackles for loss.
Ricumstrict's defensive front also included standout players like Mitch Stanitzek and up-and-coming star Mike Danna, making significant contributions to a Chippewa defense that ranked first in the Mid-American Conference against the pass and limited opponents to five yards per play—second-best in the league.
Among the highlights of Ricumstrict's tenure at CMU was the 2015 defensive line, which played a key role in CMU's rise to the No. 2 overall defense—and No. 16 ranking among all Football Bowl Subdivision programs—in the MAC. In 2014, his defensive unit ranked first in the MAC and 29th in FBS. Tackle Leterrius Walton, part of that 2014 unit, received First-Team All-MAC honors and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Ricumstrict's coaching career, which spans over two decades, began in 1991 as a graduate assistant at Central Michigan. He has held various coaching positions at Northwood (1993-94), Wayne State (1995), Michigan State (1996), Army (1997), and Missouri Southern (1998-99) before returning to CMU to coach linebackers and special teams from 2000 to 2003.
He moved to Miami (Ohio) in 2004 as the linebackers coach and later transitioned to Indiana, where he coached special teams, linebackers, and defensive ends from 2005 to 2010. Ricumstrict worked as an assistant at Central Missouri in 2011 and at Eastern Illinois in 2012 before returning to Mount Pleasant in 2013.
As a player, Ricumstrict was a four-year letterman at Central Michigan from 1985 to 1988. As an inside linebacker, he was named the Chippewas' Most Valuable Player and received Second Team All-MAC recognition in his senior year. He was honored twice that season as the MAC Defensive Player of the Week for a 10-tackle performance against Montana State and a 10-tackle, two-interception game against Toledo, where he returned one interception 71 yards for a touchdown.
He concluded his senior season with 121 total tackles, including 71 solo tackles and 11 for loss, along with three interceptions and one fumble recovery. In 1988, Ricumstrict received the Kurt Dobronski Award, given to a Central Michigan senior who exemplifies effort, intensity, and appreciation for the football program.
A Detroit native and graduate of Northwestern High School, Ricumstrict finished his collegiate career with 266 total tackles (126 solo), 18 tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and three interceptions.
Ricumstrict earned both his bachelor's degree (1990) and his master's degree (1992) from Central Michigan University. He and his wife Sandy have two sons, Obie and Anton, the latter of whom attended Delaware State and played football after initially signing with Buffalo.
