Following in the footsteps of both his older brothers Bob and Mike, Mark Stoops came to the Iowa Hawkeyes as a Defensive Back out of Youngstown, Ohio.  Although Mark was unable to match the individual playing success and accolades that both his brothers experienced while playing at Iowa, Stoops did play as a key contributor and leader on some of Iowa’s most dominate football teams. While with the Hawkeyes, Mark played on four Iowa teams that played in bowl games, and he attended bowl games while his brother, Mike, was a graduate assistant for Hayden Fry’s staff — the 1986 Rose, 1986 Holiday, 1987 Holiday and 1988 Peach Bowls.  Over Mark’s playing career at Iowa, the Hawkeyes posted a winning record each and every year going 10-2 in 1985, 9-3 in 1986, 10-3 in 1987 and 6-4-3 in 1988.(Side Note: I cannot imagine experiencing a year of Iowa Football that had 3 games end in a tie. I’m thankful to be too young to remember that.) Following his playing days at Iowa, Mark joined the Hawkeyes as a graduate assistant coach between 1989 & 1991.  Afterward, Mark left to become the athletic director and defensive backs coach at Nordonia High School in Macedonia, Ohio from 1992-1995. When Kansas State assistant Jim Leavitt was hired as the head coach for the South Florida Bulls, he hired Stoops as his defensive backs coach for the 1996 season. He left the following year to serve as the defensive backs coach for the University of Wyoming Cowboys, where he remained for three seasons under head coach Dana Dimel. When Dimel was hired at the University of Houston in 2000, he took Stoops with him to join the Cougars as co-defensive coordinator along with Dick Bumpas, and safeties coach. In February 2001 he was named the defensive backs coach for the University of Miami Hurricanes, replacing Chuck Pagano, who left for a position with the Cleveland Browns. After his brother Mike was hired as the head coach of the Arizona Wildcats for the 2004 season, he in turn hired Mark as part of his staff. On December 11, 2009, Mark Stoops accepted the job to be defensive coordinator at Florida State University. After the 2010 regular season ended, his defense was ranked 22nd in the nation in points per game and 41st in the nation in yards per game.