Field Level Media
The New England Patriots officially have hired former Arkansas and Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema as "consultant to the head coach," the team announced Tuesday.
Bielema has been working with the team for much of the offseason, spending significant time with the special-teams units, but his role wasn't officially announced until Tuesday.
The 48-year-old was fired after going 4-8 with the Razorbacks last season, bringing his record to 29-34 in five years at Arkansas, including 11-29 in the SEC. He spent the previous seven years at Wisconsin, going 68-24 and taking the team to three straight Big Ten titles from 2010-12.
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The Patriots haven't employed such a staff member in recent years, although former NFL personnel man Michael Lombardi filled a similar role from 2014-15.
New England has drafted four of Bielema's former players since 2014: running back James White (fourth round, 2014), defensive end Trey Flowers (fourth round, 2015), tight end A.J. Derby (sixth round, 2015) and Deatrich Wise Jr. (fourth round, 2016). Derby is the only one of the four no longer on the team.
