- David Dean
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David Dean (born February 3, 1964) is the football coach of Valdosta State University and won a NCAA Division II Football Championship in 2007, his first year as a head coach.
Contents
Playing career
Dean walked onto the Georgia Tech football team in 1982 and earned a scholarship the following year playing through the 1985 as a wide receiver. He was a graduate assistant for the team in 1986.[1]
Coaching career
Dean was an assistant coach at Avondale High School in Avondale Estates, Georgia in 1987. He was an assistant at Valdosta from 1988 to 1992. From 1993 to 1999 he was an assistant at University of West Georgia.
From 2000 to 2006 he was offensive coordinator for Valdosta. In his first season in 2000 his quarterback Dusty Bonner won the Harlon Hill Trophy. During this period Valdosta played in the Division II title game in 2002 and won the national championship in 2004.[1]
Head coaching career
In 2007, Dean was named head coach of the Blazers in 2007 after Chris Hatcher took the head coaching job at Georgia Southern University. The "Dean Machine" started the season with five straight wins. Delta State University defeated the Blazers 35-31, despite being down 28 points at the beginning of the second half. The Blazers then capped off the season with an eight game winning streak and their second National Championship title win against Northwest Missouri State University, 25-20. This was the third straight championship appearance by the Bearcats, also the third straight time the Bearcats have lost the National Championship game.
Dean is only the second head coach to lead his team to a National Championship in his first season. Earle Solomonson accomplished this at North Dakota State University in 1985.[2]
2008 saw the Blazers make it to the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs and a 9-3 season, 6-2 in the GSC.
In 2009, after a 6-4 season in which they finished third in the Gulf South Conference, the Blazers did not make the post season for the first time under Dean, and for the first time since 2006.
Dean lead the Blazers to an 8-3 record and back into the NCAA Division II playoffs in 2010, marking the third time in his four years he has led his squad to postseason play. After beginning the year unranked, the Blazers rose as high as #7 in the AFCA poll, before finishing the regular season ranked #17.[3]
Awards and honors
Dean was AFCA Coach of the Year in NCAA Division II in 2007 after a season culminating in a National Championship. Dean was a runner up for Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year in 2008 for Division II. In 2010 he was the AFCA Regional Coach of the Year for NCAA Division II Region 2 and the Gulf South Conference's Co-Coach of the Year.[4]
Head coaching record
Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs Valdosta State Blazers (Gulf South Conference) (2007–present) 2007 Valdosta State 13–1 7–1 T–2nd W NCAA Division II Championship 2008 Valdosta State 9–3 6–2 3rd L NCAA Division II Second Round 2009 Valdosta State 6–4 5–3 T–3rd 2010 Valdosta State 8–3 6–2 T–1st L NCAA Division II First Round 2011 Valdosta State 6–4 1–3 4th Valdosta State: 42–15 25–11 Total: 42–15 National Championship Conference Title Conference Division Title References
- ^ a b David Dean Named Valdosta State's New Football Coach - Valdosta Press Release - January 19, 2007
- ^ http://www.vstateblazers.com/staff-profile.php?staff_id=9
- ^ http://vdtvarsity.ourvarsity.com/schools/school-article-profile.php?Article_ID=2017
- ^ http://vdtvarsity.ourvarsity.com/schools/school-article-profile.php?Article_ID=2017
Valdosta State Blazers head football coaches Jim Goodman (1982–1984) • Jim Berryman (1985) • Mike Cavan (1986–1991) • Hal Mumme (1992–1996) • Mike Kelly (1997–1999) • Chris Hatcher (2000–2006) • David Dean (2007– )
Categories:- 1964 births
- Living people
- Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football coaches
- Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football players
- Valdosta State Blazers football coaches
- West Georgia Wolves football coaches
- High school football coaches in the United States
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