Participants in the 2019 NCAA and NFL Coaches Academy traveled to Tampa, Florida, for professional development programming from Feb. 6-10. Facilitated by the NCAA leadership development department in collaboration with the NFL, the Coaches Academy took place in two parts, with the first two-day session starting Feb. 6 and the second two-day session starting Friday, Feb. 8.
In consultation with NFL Player Engagement, the NCAA leadership development staff provides educational training to selected participants with a focus on improving the well-being of the student-athlete and effective coaching at the collegiate and professional levels. Participants came from all three NCAA divisions and hold titles of position coaches, coordinators and assistant or associate coaches.
Topics covered during the Coaches Academy included effective communication with campus and community constituents, the importance of building culture, the management of the budget of a football program, and the evaluation of coaching strategies and philosophies.
The guiding concept of the NCAA and NFL Coaches Academy is establishing a football program with a focus on the overall development of the student-athlete both on and off the field. Through workshops and interactive discussion sessions with key resources in the industry, football coaches will leave the program ready to thrive in their current roles and poised for rapid career growth going forward.
Participants in the first session of the NCAA and NFL Coaches Academy were selected from a highly competitive application pool. Selected coaches demonstrated a commitment to investing in their personal and professional development, a passion for the student-athlete experience, and an eagerness to progress in the football coaching industry.
The NCAA participants in the first Coaches Academy session:
- Charles Bankins, running backs/special teams coordinator, Old Dominion.
- Eric Baumgartner, assistant head coach (defensive line), Malone.
- Jordan Belfiori, assistant football coach (outside linebackers), Colgate.
- Marvin Bohannon, assistant coach (defensive backs), Northeastern State.
- Michael Bond, assistant coach (defensive backs), Concordia-St. Paul.
- Patrick Brown, cornerbacks coach, Catawba.
- Christopher Cunningham, defensive coordinator, Virginia at Wise.
- Peter Davila, assistant football coach, California (Pennsylvania).
- Chris DiLella, assistant football coach/defensive coordinator, Rhodes.
- Cody Edwards, assistant football coach, Tusculum.
- Fredrick Gladney, wide receiver coach, Wisconsin Lutheran.
- Tyrone Greenwood, assistant football coach, Delaware State.
- Toryeon Hester, wide receiver coach, Shaw.
- Ryan Jirgl, associate head coach/defensive coordinator, Whittier.
- Lawrence Kershaw, offensive line coach, Winston-Salem State.
- Christopher Kirkpatrick, assistant football coach (offensive line), Elmhurst.
- Kendrick Kitchens, outside receivers coach, Houston Baptist.
- Rocky Larson, defensive coordinator/safeties coach, Wisconsin-River Falls.
- Jamael Lett, assistant football coach (secondary), Samford.
- Samuel London III, assistant football coach, Lincoln (Pennsylvania).
- Brandon Maguire, assistant football coach (running backs), Northern Colorado.
- Jason Martinez, assistant football coach/defensive coordinator, Grinnell.
- Douglas McFadden, defensive backs coach, Lafayette.
- Alfred Rowe, linebackers coach, New Mexico Highlands.
- Solomon Southall, assistant football coach/offensive coordinator, Earlham.
- John Stuart, assistant football coach (defensive backs), Lincoln (Pennsylvania).
- Isaac Williams, run game coordinator/offensive line coach, Morgan State.
- Alex Zanfardino, assistant coach (linebackers), Georgetown.
The current and former NFL players selected to attend the first Coaches Academy session:
- Ricardo Allen.
- Olong "Ollie" Ogbu.
- Joshua Bush.
- Kevin Clark.
- Aaron Curry.
- Alfred Fields.
- William Gay.
- Michael Harris.
- Frank Hartley.
- A.J. Howard.
- George Johnson.
- Eddie Kennison III.
- Josiah Price.
- Kendall Reyes.
- Keith Tandy.
- Stephen Tate.
- Cedric Thornton.
- Scott Tolzien.
- Johnnie Troutman.
- DeAngelo Tyson.
- Chris Wilson.
- Blaise Winter.
Coaches participating in the second session of programming were identified and selected by administrators from within the membership and members from affiliate organizations. These coaches demonstrated the potential to be key leaders in the future of college football and have seen widespread success both on the field and in the development of their athletes.
The NCAA coaches who participated in the second program session:
- Fran Brown, assistant head coach/co-defensive coordinator, Temple.
- Kenni Burns, running backs coach, Minnesota.
- Kodi Burns, co-offensive coordinator (wide receivers), Auburn.
- Marcus Freeman, defensive coordinator, Cincinnati.
- Billy Gonzales, co-offensive coordinator (wide receivers), Florida.
- Bush Hamdan, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach, Washington.
- Grant Heard, passing game coordinator (wide receivers), Indiana.
- Jerry Mack, offensive coordinator, Rice.
- Travaris Robinson, defensive coordinator, South Carolina.
- Chris Rumph, co-defensive coordinator (linebackers), Tennessee.
- Marcel Yates, defensive coordinator (linebackers), Arizona.
The participants selected by the NFL for the second program session:
- Doug Belk, assistant coach (defensive backs), West Virginia.
- Keary Colbert, tight ends/inside receivers coach, Southern California.
- Curome Cox, former NFL player.
- Brad Davis, offensive line coach, Missouri.
- Ron Dugans, wide receivers coach, Florida State.
- Marcus Johnson, assistant football coach (offensive line), Mississippi State.
- Shaun King, assistant coach (running backs), South Florida.
- Roy Manning, defensive backs coach, Oklahoma.
- Jeff Nixon, co-offensive coordinator (running backs), Baylor.
- Daunta Peterson, former NFL player.
- Mike Peterson, assistant coach (linebackers), South Carolina.
- Mike Rumph, assistant coach (cornerbacks), Miami (Florida).
- Cory Sanders, assistant coach (defensive backs), Pittsburgh.
- Sam Smith, assistant special teams and defensive backs coach, Minnesota-Crookston.
- Kenechi Udeze, former NFL player.
- Marcus West, defensive coordinator, Charlotte.