A two-year letterwinner at UC Davis in 2010 and 2011, then a graduate assistant with the Aggies in 2012, Mike Cody returned to his alma mater during the 2020 winter camps as an assistant coach with the offensive line, then was named as a full-time assistant coach for that position group in 2021. During the 2023 season, Cody served as offensive coordinator before returning to his duties in charge of the offensive line ahead of the 2024 season.
The 2025 season will be Cody's sixth on the Aggie sideline.
His arrival reunited him not only with UC Davis, but also briefly with then-offensive coordinator Tim Plough, with whom he previously coached at Northern Arizona for two years. Cody also coached O-line at Torrey Pines in 2013 between his stints with the Aggies and Lumberjacks.
In 2016, the opportunity to connect with another UC Davis figure arose: he became the offensive coordinator/offensive line coach for Aggie Hall of Famer and former NFL veteran Mike Moroski at the College of Idaho. As the O-line coach, he mentored left tackle Josh Brown to AP and AFCA All-America status, plus appearances in the NFLPA Bowl and Hula Bowl. Cody later transitioned to OC/quarterbacks coach, during which quarterback Darius-James Peterson earned Frontier Conference Offensive Player of the Year and All-America honors.Â
Under Cody's watch, the Yotes set the school record for total offense in his first season, then broke the record again in 2017. In 2018, his offense average 30.9 yards per game, the most by a C of I team in 65 years.
In Cody's final season in Caldwell, the 'Yotes went undefeated in the regular season, reached the NAIA quarterfinals for the first time in program history, and finished No. 5 in the final national poll. The offense set the school scoring record yet again – the third time in his tenure – averaging 37 points per game while ranking among NAIA leaders in rushing offense (fifth) and total offense (sixth).
Originally from Colfax, Cody earned All-Bay Valley Conference honors at Sierra College before transferring to UC Davis in 2010. He had back-to-back seasons with 5-for-44 receiving stats for the Aggies. He earned his bachelor's degree in psychology in 2012, then later added a master's in educational leadership during his time at NAU.
Cody received his first coaching stint as a graduate assistant under Bob Biggs in 2012. In fact, he says he initially came to UC Davis as a student-athlete because Biggs promised that he could get into coaching after his playing career was done. Cody more recently visited his alma mater for professional development prior to the 2018 season. As he recalls, "IÂ was blown away by how much fun the kids were having at practice and under Coach Hawkins that if I ever got an opportunity to come back to Davis I could never pass it up."
Cody has yet another connection to UC Davis athletics: his wife, the former Elise Winbrock, who was a three-year captain for the women's soccer team. The two actually met in the training room, as Cody was recovering from a toe injury while Winbrock was coming back from an ACL injury. "She made sure I knew 'toe pain' was no reason for rehab," Cody recalls. The couple has traveled to Spain, Portugal, Italy and France together. They also share a love for the mountains of Idaho and the Pacific coast in California.
