Southeast Missouri State University Athletics

Bobby McMillen starts his first season as Southeast Missouri’s inside linebackers coach in 2025.

McMillen was hired on Mar. 11, 2025 after serving as Utah State’s co-defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach for one year. 

Prior to Utah State, McMillen worked two seasons as the linebackers coach at New Mexico State, helping lead the Aggies to a 17-11 record and consecutive bowl game appearances. New Mexico State also played in the Conference USA championship game during its first year in the league in 2023.

During that 2023 season, New Mexico State posted a 10-5 record, including a 7-1 mark in Conference USA. The Aggies’ defense was one of the best units in the nation allowing 22.8 points per game en route to leading the Conference USA and ranking 44th at the FBS level. The Aggies also ranked second in the conference and 48th in the nation in rushing defense at 143.7 yards per game allowed.

New Mexico State’s defense excelled in the red zone with McMillen on staff as the Aggies ranked first in the conference and fifth nationally in 2023, allowing opponents to score 72.6 percent of the time when inside the 20-yard line.

Following the 2023 campaign, linebacker Keyshaun Elliott was named a Conference USA second team selection after leading the Aggies with 111 tackles.

In his first season at New Mexico State in 2022, McMillen helped the Aggies climb 98 spots from the previous year to 29th in the nation with an average of 336.3 yards allowed per game. They were the most improved defensive unit in college football that year.

The first Aggie team that McMillen coached saw linebacker Chris Ojoh earn College Football Network All-Independent first-team honors as he led the Aggies with 108 tackles, including five sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss. Following the season, Ojoh received an invitation to the New Orleans Saints NFL Rookie Mini Camp.

Before his time at New Mexico State, McMillen spent two years on staff at TCU. In 2021, McMillen was special teams analyst for the Horned Frogs with responsibilities ranging from formulating practice plans to evaluating recruits and creating scouting reports.

McMillen was a graduate assistant at TCU during the 2020 season working primarily with the Horned Frogs’ running backs, while also assisting in the creation and completion of scouting reports for opposing special teams and defensive units.

A Naperville, Illinois native, McMillen suited up as a linebacker for Iowa State from 2015-19. Through his career, he participated in 33 contests for the Cyclones and amassed 37 tackles, one sack and a pair of pass breakups. During McMillen’s tenure at Iowa State, the Cyclones appeared in a trio of bowl games and defeated six top-25 teams.

McMillen graduated from Iowa State in 2019 with a degree in communications.