A.J. Ricker arrived at TCU in December 2021 as co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. In his first year with the Horned Frogs, Ricker was instrumental in TCU ranking among the national leaders in all major offensive categories en route to an appearance in the College Football Playoff National Championship. Four TCU offensive linemen earned postseason honors in 2022, led by left guard Steve Avila being a Consensus All-American and second-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Rams. Center Alan Ali was First-Team All-Big 12 and a free-agent signee with the Minnesota Vikings, while offensive tackles Andrew Coker and Brandon Coleman were Honorable-Mention All-Big 12. Ricker served the previous two seasons in the same roles under Head Coach Sonny Dykes at SMU. A Broyles Award nominee, Ricker coached SMU offensive linemen Jaylon Thomas and Hayden Howerton to all-conference honors. In his first season with the Mustangs, Ricker helped lead them to top-10 national rankings in scoring offense (41.8) and total offense (489.8). SMU was 13th in passing offense (309.0). Its highest ranking in those categories the previous season was 27th in passing offense while scoring and total offense didn’t make the top 50. The Mustangs also ranked 14th in the FBS in fewest sacks allowed per game (1.31), surrendering just 17 on the season. Ricker made the move to SMU after serving in the same capacity at Kansas in 2018. He was an offensive analyst at Oklahoma State in 2017 and Houston in 2016. While Ricker was in Stillwater, the Cowboys posted the nation’s top passing offense with 389.2 yards per game and ranked second nationally in total offense (568.9). Ricker spent two seasons (2014-15) coaching the offensive line at Missouri, his alma mater. He helped the Tigers to an SEC Eastern Division title in 2014. Mizzou totaled 5,138 yards of offense that season, including 2,648 passing and 2,490 rushing. At Mizzou, Ricker mentored Mitch Morse into a 2015 second-round draft pick by the Kansas City Chiefs. He also coached Even Boehm to a fourth-round selection by the Arizona Cardinals in 2016.

Ricker was an All-Big 12 center at Missouri from 2000-03 and Team Captain for two seasons. He started a program record 47 consecutive games and was part of Mizzou’s first bowl-eligible team since 1998. Ricker earned a degree in agriculture in 2004 and went on to sign a free-agent contract with the Chicago Bears, before being allocated to the Rhein Fire of NFL Europe in 2005. He was a member of the 2006 Tampa Bay Storm in the Arena League.