Former NFL and University of Miami defensive back comes to USF after one season at FIU
TAMPA, Jan. 20, 2024 – Head Coach Alex Golesh has announced the addition of former NFL and University of Miami defensive back DeMarcus Van Dyke as cornerbacks coach as the Bulls prepare for their second campaign under Golesh.
Van Dyke joins the USF staff after one season as cornerbacks coach at Florida International (2023) and five seasons (2018-22) in various staff positions at Miami (Fla.).
A Miami Gardens, Fla. native, Van Dyke will enter his seventh season in collegiate coaching at USF.
“Coach DVD (DeMarcus Van Dyke) has had a tremendously fast rise through the coaching profession after culminating a six-year NFL playing career and his ability to connect with players and build relationships stood out during our search process,” Golesh said. “He brings great experience as a player, including 51 games played for the Miami Hurricanes over four seasons, and deep roots and relationships across South Florida. We are very excited to have him working with our players and staff and to welcome him and his family to our Bulls family.”
A third-round NFL Draft pick by the Oakland Raiders in 2011, Van Dyke logged six seasons in the NFL seeing time with Oakland, Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Minnesota and Atlanta. He played a total of 25 games for the Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers and totaled 17 tackles, one interception and a recovered fumble during his professional career. His time of 4.28 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the 2011 NFL Scouting Combine tied for the fourth-fastest (now fifth) at the combine since electronic timing began in 1999.
Following the completion of his playing career, Van Dyke began his coaching career at ASA College in Miami as cornerbacks coach in 2017.
Van Dyke spent the next five seasons in various roles on the football staff at Miami (Fla.). He joined the Hurricanes’ staff in 2018 as a defensive quality control analyst before being shifted to the role of assistant director of recruiting in 2019. He was promoted to cornerbacks coach in 2021.
Van Dyke was a dual-sport athlete at the University of Miami , competing in both football and track. He played a total of 51 games for the Hurricanes from 2007-10, logging 21 starts and compiling 80 tackles, 10 passes defended, three interceptions and three tackles for loss for teams that made three bowl appearances.
At Monsignor Edward Pace High School, Van Dyke played on both sides of the ball in football and anchored the 2007 FHSAA 1A Outdoor State Champion 4X100 relay team (40.78) and finished second in the 200 meters (21.46).
Van Dyke was ranked as the No. 16 athlete and the No. 21 player in the state of Florida by Rivals.com. He was rated the No. 15 cornerback and the No. 7 player in the state by Scout.com and the No. 15 player in the state by The Orlando Sentinel. He was also rated as the No. 11 player in the state and the No. 12 defensive back in the nation by SuperPrep and was selected to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Super Southern 100.
Van Dyke and his wife, Kiawana, have a son, DeMarcus Jr., and daughter, Kai.
USF is coming off a resurgent season that saw the Bulls go 7-6, a program-best six-win improvement over 2022 and the second-best win improvement for any FBS program in 2023 behind Northwestern’s seven-win improvement. The Bulls set 12 team records and 16 individual marks during the 2023 season and logged the program’s highest-ranked recruiting class in a decade (No. 48 by Rivals) and highest ranked of any program outside the autonomous “power” conferences as the Bulls head full speed into 2024.
USF will begin spring practice on March 5. The 2024 season kicks off Aug. 31 when the Bulls face Bethune-Cookman at Raymond James Stadium. USF’s non-conference schedule includes road trips to Alabama (Sept. 7) and Southern Mississippi (Sept. 14) and a home date with Miami (Fla.) (Sept. 21).
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The USF football program first took the field in 1997 and completed its 27th regular season in 2023 by earning the program’s seventh bowl win, entering a new $22 million Indoor Performance Facility and receiving Board of Trustees approval for construction of a $340-million on-campus stadium set to open in 2027. The Bulls have posted 15 winning seasons, earned 16 All-America selections, including a 2021 consensus All-American kick returner, and have 32 first-team all-conference selections. USF has had 30 players selected in the NFL Draft and 11 bowl game appearances (going 7-4 in those games), posting a program-record six straight appearances from 2005-2010 and making four straight bowl appearances from 2015-18. The Bulls posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016, and finished both seasons ranked in the AP Top 25. USF spent a program-record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 seasons and reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings during the 2007 season.
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