University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Football
- Title:
- Special Teams Coordinator/Defensive Analyst
- Email:
- mark.hocke@louisiana.edu
Mark Hocke returned for his second stint with the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns football staff in 2025 after spending the past four seasons at the University of Florida. After serving in a special teams/defensive analyst role in 2025, Hocke moved to the role of Director of Athletic Performance for footbal for the 2026 season.
In his role at Florida under head coach Billy Napier, Hocke spent three seasons as the Gators’ Associate Head Coach and Director of Football Strength and Conditioning before transitioning to the role of Director of Player Relations in 2024.
During his first stint at Louisiana from 2018–21, Hocke served as the Director of Strength and Conditioning, helping the Ragin’ Cajuns capture four straight Sun Belt West Division titles, a share of the Sun Belt Conference title in 2020, and the outright Sun Belt Conference Championship in 2021.
Prior to Louisiana, Hocke spent the 2017 season at Texas A&M, where he served as the football strength and conditioning coach.
Hocke also spent one season as the co-associate head football strength and conditioning coach at Florida State, serving under head coach Jimbo Fisher and strength coach Vic Viloria. The Seminoles won their final five games of the 2016 season on their way to a 10–3 record, including a 33–32 victory over Michigan in the Orange Bowl.
He also served as the head strength and conditioning coach at the University of Georgia in 2015, where he directed a 15-person staff that trained a pair of All-SEC offensive linemen. The Bulldogs finished the season with a 10–3 record, including a win over Penn State in the Gator Bowl.
Hocke began his collegiate coaching career at the University of Alabama in 2009, spending six seasons on head coach Nick Saban’s staff. He was with Napier in Tuscaloosa during the 2011 and 2014–15 seasons. During his tenure, he helped coach three teams that won BCS National Championships (2009, 2012, 2013) and trained more than 35 players who later signed NFL contracts, including 10 first-round NFL Draft picks. The New Orleans native also oversaw the program’s offseason Player Leadership Council.
Overall, Hocke has worked with more than 60 players selected in the NFL Draft, including top-five picks Julio Jones (2011 NFL Draft), Trent Richardson (2012 NFL Draft), Amari Cooper (2015 NFL Draft), and Anthony Richardson (2023 NFL Draft). Seven of his former Louisiana players have been drafted since 2020: Robert Hunt (2nd round, 2020), Kevin Dotson (4th round, 2020), Raymond Calais (7th round, 2020), Elijah Mitchell (6th round, 2021), Percy Butler (4th round, 2022), Max Mitchell (4th round, 2022), Andre Jones (7th round, 2023), and Nathan Thomas (7th round, 2024).
Hocke’s first coaching job was at Jesuit High School in New Orleans, where he served as a position coach (wide receivers, running backs, and defensive backs) and oversaw the team’s strength and conditioning from 2003–08.
His certifications include CSCCa Certified, FMS Screen Certified, and USA Weightlifting Level 1 Sports Performance Coach Certified.
Hocke and his wife, Katherine, have two children, Palmer and Hartman.
| 2026 | Louisiana, Director of Athletic Performance for Football |
| 2025 | Louisiana, Special Teams Coordinator/Defensive Analyst |
| 2024 | Florida, Director of Player Relations |
| 2022-2023 | Florida, Associate Head Coach/Director of Football Strength and Conditioning |
| 2018-2021 | Louisiana, Director of Strength and Conditioning (Football) |
| 2017 | Texas A&M, Football Strength and Conditioning Coach |
| 2016 | Florida State, Co-Associate Head Football Strength and Conditioning Coach |
| 2015 | Georgia, Head Strength and Conditioning Coach |
| 2009-2014 | Alabama, Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach |
| 2003-2008 | Jesuit High School, Wide Receivers Coach/Defensive Backs Coach/Strength and Conditioning Coach |
