STANFORD, Calif. (AP) -Stanford hired Ron Lynn on Friday to be the team's new co-defensive coordinator and assistant head coach.

Lynn, who has 38 years of coaching experience in college and the pros, will share the defensive coordinator duties with linebackers coach Andy Buh. The two will replace Scott Shafer, who left last month to take the defensive coordinator job at Michigan.

``We're tremendously excited to add Ron Lynn to our staff,'' Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh said. ``He brings a wealth of football knowledge and experience to our staff that our players and coaches will benefit from. I feel like we have one of the great defensive minds in the country.''

Stanford's defense finished third last season in the Pac-10 in both sacks and tackles for loss, as well as fifth nationally in tackles for loss and 11th in sacks.

Lynn has been a defensive coordinator in the NFL with San Diego, Cincinnati and Washington. He also served as secondary coach for New England, the Oakland Raiders and San Francisco 49ers.

Lynn worked with Harbaugh with the Raiders in 2002-03, when Harbaugh was the team's quarterbacks coach. The team went to the Super Bowl in the 2002 season.

Lynn's last job was as secondary coach for the 49ers in 2004.

``This is the right time for me to get back into coaching,'' Lynn said. ``I have missed all the aspects of coaching but especially working with the players, and I am looking forward to doing that again.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.