St.AmbroseUniversity football coach Todd Sturdy resorted to his past to find his new defensive coordinator. To the staff, Sturdy has added Mike Magistrelli, who served as a graduate assistant for him at SAU from 1997-99.

``We're getting a great coach,'' said Sturdy, who introduced his new coordinator Monday. ``It's an advantage when you know somebody. I've been in a working relationship with him and he made a lasting impression on me the years he was here. I think he's a great person, first and foremost, and is a great coach. I think he's going to bring a lot of things to the table.''

The 30-year-old Magistrelli comes back to St.Ambroseafter coaching at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, from 1999-2003. He last served as defensive coordinator/recruiting coordinator/defensive backs coach at his alma mater after starting out as an offensive assistant.

He said the decision to bounce back to SAU was an easy one, although it is one post that now carries a lot of expectations. Former defensive coordinator Rich Wright (who left for NCAA Div. II power Northwest Missouri State) had built that unit into one of the best in the country. the Bees were ranked in the top 10 nationally and, annually, have been one of the top two in the Mid-States Football Association.

``That definitely makes it a challenge,'' Magistrelli said of living up to the great numbers the Bee D has recorded recently. ``I'm excited about that opportunity; it's a great opportunity. ... It's my job to tweak things and keep it going.''

He said that he plans to keep an aggressive, attacking defense that will shut down the run first. He said there probably won't be many changes to what has worked, but that he plans on adding a few wrinkles. Sturdy is expecting Magistrelli to ``put his stamp on the defense.''

With his first day being Monday, Magistrelli still is looking to get his family moved into the area. He and his wife, the former Lisa Hlubek, who hailed from nearby DeWitt, Iowa, have an 18-month-old daughter Paige. They are expecting their second child this fall.