A veteran collegiate coach, Chris Woods begins his first year as an assistant coach at Bryant University in 2008.  Woods brings a wealth of coaching experience at all levels, most recently at Harvard University where he was the Crimson's special teams coordinator and linebackers coach in 2007.

Prior to arriving at Harvard, Woods was the head coach at Stonehill College for three seasons.  Woods inherited a Stonehill program that had struggled with participation numbers and competitiveness and made tremendous strides in both areas. He was responsible for recruiting the three largest classes in the program's history, saw his 2004 team register the school's best season since the formation of its conference and had a Northeast-10 Conference-best six All-Academic selections in 2006.

Woods also enjoyed a successful three-year term as head coach at Mansfield, where he was named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference coach of the year and the American Football Coaches Association Region II coach of the year in 2003. Inheriting a team that went 1-9 the year prior to his first year as head coach, Woods led the Mountaineers to an 8-3 record in his third year at Mansfield, helping the school to its first winning season since 1975.

Woods spent a year as defensive and special teams coordinator at Mansfield prior to his selection as head coach and oversaw a special teams unit that set a school record for blocked kicks in the 2000 season.

Before joining the staff at Mansfield, Woods spent four years (1996-99) as an assistant head coach, defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Division III Wittenberg, where he helped that program to a 40-4 record and two appearances in the NCAA tournament.

Woods also served as interim head coach at Plymouth State during his two-year stint as an assistant with the Panthers (1994-95). He was part of two teams that went undefeated in the regular season and advanced to the NCAA Division III tournament while coaching two All-America players.

Originally from Milton, Mass., Woods attended Boston College High School before continuing his playing career at Davidson College. He graduated from that institution in 1991 with a degree in sociology and anthropology and served as captain of the football team. He was the Wildcats' team MVP as a senior and graduated having started in a school-record 41 games in his career.

A member of the American Football Coaches Association since 1994, Woods was a member of the NCAA Division II Northeast Region Advisory Committee and has been a regular speaker and clinician in New England and the Midwest.

Woods lives in Norton, Mass., with his wife, Stephanie, their son, Braden (7), and their daughter, Hannah (2).