American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...
coach.
He was most recently an offensive analyst for the
Georgia Bulldogs
The Georgia Bulldogs are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The offic ...
during the 2023 season.
Prior to joining the Georgia program, he was the offensive coordinator for the Texas A&M Aggies football team.
Before joining the Texas A&M staff he was the
offensive coordinator
An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...
offensive coordinator
An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico (UNM; ) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1889 by the New Mexico Territorial Legislature, it is the state's second oldest university, a flagship university in th ...
for the 2009 and 2010 seasons, and
Utah State University
Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public university, public land grant colleges, land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal ...
for the 2007 and 2008 seasons.
He was head coach of the
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public university, public research university located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its main campus is in Denton, Texas, Denton, with a satellite campus in Frisco, Texas, Frisco. It serves as the ...
from 1998 to 2006. During the 13 years prior to his stint at North Texas, Dickey was an assistant at SMU, UTEP, LSU, Mississippi State, Memphis, and Texas A&M. Subsequent to his tenure at North Texas, he was an assistant at Utah State and New Mexico.
Dickey was a
quarterback
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
in college, playing for his father, Jim Dickey, at
Kansas State University
Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...
. Coached by Dickey, North Texas won the 2002 New Orleans Bowl. The win highlighted a four-year period (2001–2004) during which the Mean Green became only the 11th program in college football history to win four consecutive conference titles.
Dickey comes from a family of coaches. His father, Jim Dickey, was a successful college and Texas high school coach for over 40 years. Brother Jim Dickey Jr., has coached in Texas high schools for over 30 years.
In 2006, despite being fired by the
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public university, public research university located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its main campus is in Denton, Texas, Denton, with a satellite campus in Frisco, Texas, Frisco. It serves as the ...
, Mattress Mack, a major donor requested that school officials name the new football practice facility in honor of him. Mack did not want to have his own name branded on the practice fields, but believed the program's accomplishments under his leadership deemed Dickey worthy of the naming rights.
Playing career
High school career
Graduated from Chapel Hill High School in Chapel Hill, North Carolina in 1978. Passed for 2,800 yards and 24 touchdowns in 2 years at CHHS.
Voted conference player of the year in 1977 and was a 1977 Shrine Bowl Participant
College career
Dickey was the starting quarterback at Kansas State for four seasons from 1979 to 1982. In 1979, he established the school record for passing yards by a freshman with 915, a record that stood until 2005 when Allan Evridge broke the record with 1,365 yards.
Dickey concluded his collegiate career in 1982 by leading the Wildcats to the school's first bowl appearance in its 87-year history, the 1982 Independence Bowl. He left Kansas State ranked second all-time in pass completions, yards passing, touchdown passes, and total offense.
Dickey remains only player in Kansas State history to lead the school in passing yards and total offense for four consecutive seasons.
NFL career
He signed free agent contracts in 1983 and 1984 with the
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...
and
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...
respectively.
Coaching career
Texas A&M
Dickey served as the offensive graduate assistant under
Jackie Sherrill
Jackie Wayne Sherrill (born November 28, 1943) is an American former college football player and coach. He was the head football coach at Washington State University (1976), the University of Pittsburgh (1977–1981), Texas A&M University (1982� ...
at
Texas A&M
Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...
in 1985, where he was part of a staff that led the Aggies to their first
Southwest Conference
The Southwest Conference (SWC) was an NCAA Division I college athletic conference in the United States that existed from 1914 to 1996. Composed primarily of schools from Texas, at various times the conference also included schools from Oklaho ...
title since 1975. The defensive graduate assistant on Sherrill's 1985 coaching staff was
Charlie Strong
Charles Rene Strong (born August 2, 1960) is an American football coach who is the current defensive line coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He recently served as the Head coach, assistant head coach and Li ...
, who later served at head coach of Louisville, South Florida, and rival Texas.
To cap their Southwest Conference title, the Aggies defeated rival Texas, 42–14. Quarterbacking for Texas that day was Todd Dodge, who 21 years later would replace Dickey at North Texas.
As offensive graduate assistant, Dickey helped Aggie quarterback Kevin Murray, father of Kyler Murray, develop into the SWC Offensive Player of the Year. The Aggies defeated Auburn, which boasted Heisman Trophy winner
Bo Jackson
Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson (born November 30, 1962) is an American former professional baseball and American football, football player. He is the only professional athlete in history to be named an All-star#Sports, All-Star in Major professio ...
University of Memphis
The University of Memphis (Memphis) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students.
The university maintains the Herff Col ...
to serve as
tight end
The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...
s coach. The Tigers won only one game, finishing the season 1–10. Dickey pupil Keith Jeffries led the Tigers in touchdowns receptions for the season.
In 1987, Dickey was moved to
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...
s coach. The Tigers improved to 5–5–1, with wins over SEC schools Ole Miss and Alabama, which was ranked No. 15 in the country at the time. During the game, Dickey pupil Wayne Pryor outrushed Crimson Tide Heisman Trophy candidate and future
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...
star
Bobby Humphrey
Bobby Gene Humphrey (born October 11, 1966) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for the Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama ...
. Pryor ran for 112 yards to Humphrey's 84, and was named AP Player of the Week for his effort.
In a nod to future Dickey pupils, Pryor excelled not only as a runner, but as a receiver. He led the Tigers in rushing and rushing touchdowns, while finishing second on the team in receptions and leading the team in touchdown receptions and overall touchdowns.
In 1988, Dickey was moved to quarterbacks coach. The Tigers improved to 6–5, with wins over SEC foes Mississippi State, Florida, and Vanderbilt.
The 1988 win against Florida at
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (in full Steve Spurrier-Florida Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium),Emmitt Smith led the Gator squad. Florida's offensive coordinator was Lynn Amedee, who had been Texas A&M's offensive coordinator when Dickey was an offensive graduate assistant there. Gator head coach Galen Hall had been an assistant at Oklahoma, coaching alongside Dickey's dad there.
And, finally, it was a memorable win because Dickey's dad, Jim, was Florida's defensive coordinator at the time. In the battle of offensive coordinator son versus defensive coordinator dad, Darrell and Memphis emerged victorious.
In early 1989, Memphis' football program became embroiled in a scandal when it was revealed that a player had been paid by a booster for a summer job. The then-scandal led to the resignation of head coach Charlie Bailey. Bailey was replaced by Chuck Stobart, who was then offensive coordinator at USC. Stobart had previously been head coach at Toledo and Utah.
Although Dickey was given offensive coordinator duties in addition to quarterback coaching duties, Stobart had been offensive coordinator and quarterback coach at Southern Cal, where he had coached future NFL signal-caller, Rodney Peete. The Tigers took a step backward, going 2–9, including a loss to then I-AA Arkansas State. After the season, it was revealed that there had been discord among the coaching staff with Stobart, and he fired Dickey and five other coaches as a result.
Mississippi State
Mississippi State coach
Rockey Felker
Rockey Felker (born February 1, 1953) is a former quarterback, head football coach, and retired as director of player personnel for Mississippi State University, in Starkville, Mississippi after the 2017 season. After serving three different stin ...
hired Dickey to coach quarterbacks and running backs at
Mississippi State University
Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, Un ...
in 1990. Mississippi State and Memphis had played each year Dickey was an assistant there.
The Bulldogs had an up and down year, finishing 5–6, but beating LSU, 34–22, to end a five-season losing streak to the Tigers. Dickey pupil Tay Galloway ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns in the victory.
Bulldog quarterback Tony Shell was 4th in the SEC in pass completions and passing yards. Running backs Tay Galloway and Kenny Roberts each ran for over 500 yards, with Roberts finishing 5th in the SEC in yards per carry with 5.6.
On November 10, 1990, Mississippi State traveled to Memphis, where Dickey faced the coach, Chuck Stobart, who had fired him less than a year prior. The Bulldogs won, 27–23.
However, the 1990 season was Mississippi States fourth consecutive losing season, and Rockey Felker resigned after the final game, a 21–9 loss in the
Egg Bowl
The Egg Bowl (traditionally named the “Battle for the Golden Egg”) is the name given to the Mississippi State–Ole Miss football rivalry. It is an American college football college rivalry, rivalry game played annually between Southeastern ...
to rival Ole Miss. Incoming coach Jackie Sherrill, who had given Dickey his collegiate coaching start in 1985, did not retain any of Felker's staff.
LSU
In 1991 Dickey became tight ends coach at Louisiana State, where he served through 1993. The 1993 LSU squad upset No. 1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
Dickey pupil Harold Bishop earned 2nd Team All-SEC honors following the 1993 season. Bishop was then selected in the 3rd Round if the 1994 NFL Draft.
The 1993 Tiger tight end group coached by Dickey also included freshman David LaFleur, who later became an All-American and was a 1st Round pick in the 1997 NFL Draft.
UTEP
Dickey rejoined Charlie Bailey as offensive coordinator at the
University of Texas at El Paso
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public university, public research university in El Paso, Texas, United States. Founded in 1913 as the State School of Mines and Metallurgy, it is the third oldest academic component of the Univers ...
(UTEP) in 1994 and stayed with the Miners through the 1996 season.
Running back Toraino Singleton led Dickey's offense, running for over 1,300 yards in both his junior and senior season after signing with UTEP from Coffeyville Community College. The totals were good enough for second best in the
Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the Western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and Washington (state), Washington.
Due to ...
. In Dickey's 1994 and 1995 offenses, Singleton finished third and second respectively in the Western Athletic Conference in total yards from scrimmage. He was named 2nd Team All-WAC following the 1995 season, invited to the Blue-Grey Game, and signed a free agent contract with the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...
in 1996.
Following the 1996 season, wide receiver Cedric Johnson was named 2nd Team All-WAC.
SMU
In 1997,
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...
(SMU) coach Mike Cavan hired Dickey to lead the Pony offense as offensive coordinator and to be the quarterbacks coach. The 1997 SMU squad posted their first winning season since the return from their NCAA-imposed "Death Penalty." The season included a 31–9 victory over former Southwest Conference foe
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...
in Shreveport, Louisiana.
North Texas
When hired to lead the Mean Green in 1998, Darrell Dickey took over a football program which hadn't had a winning season since 1994. In his fourth season at the helm, Dickey's Mean Green won a share of their first Sun Belt Conference title and played in the first of their four consecutive New Orleans Bowl appearances. From 2001 to 2004, Dickey led UNT to four consecutive Sun Belt Conference titles.
From 2001 to 2005, Dickey's North Texas teams won 26 consecutive Sun Belt Conference games, a streak that began on October 13, 2001, with a 24–21 win over Middle Tennessee State and ended on October 4, 2005, with a 13–10 loss to Troy University.
While Dickey was coach, North Texas produced back-to-back national rushing leaders. Patrick Cobbs was the leading rusher in the nation in 2003 and Jamario Thomas was national rushing leader in 2004.
During his tenure, Darrell Dickey led the UNT to high-profile wins over
Big 12
The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Okla ...
schools
Texas Tech
Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the flagship institution of the five- ...
(1999) and Baylor (2003). Additionally, the Mean Green posted a 2–1 record against
Boise State
Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It ...
during his time in Denton. In 2002, he guided the Mean Green to a victory over CUSA Champion Cincinnati in the New Orleans Bowl.
After two consecutive losing seasons in 2005 and 2006, Dickey was fired. North Texas paid out the remaining years on his contract.
Current and former NFL players who played for Dickey at North Texas include:
* Phil Armour center, Indianapolis Colts (2000)
* Adrian Awasom defensive end, New York Giants (2005–2007), Minnesota Vikings (2011)
* John Baker punter, St. Louis Rams (2000–2001)
* Patrick Cobbs running back, Miami Dolphins (2006–2010)
* Brad Kassell linebacker, Tennessee Titans (2002–2005), New York Jets (2006–2007)
* Cody Spencer linebacker, Tennessee Titans (2004–2005), New York Jets (2006–2008)
* Brian Waters guard, Dallas Cowboys (1999, 2013) Kansas City Chiefs (2000–2010), New England Patriots (2011)
Utah State
Following his stint at North Texas, Dickey became the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Utah State for the 2007 and 2008 seasons.
New Mexico
Dickey was the offensive coordinator and running backs coach at New Mexico for the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
Texas State
In 2011, he joined
Dennis Franchione
Dennis Wayne Franchione (born March 28, 1951) is an American former college football coach. He is the former head football coach at Texas State University–San Marcos, Texas State University, a position he held from 1990 to 1991, when the school ...
at Texas State as co-offensive coordinator and running backs coach.
Return to Memphis
In 2012, Dickey was hired to be offensive coordinator and running backs couch at the University of Memphis. Shortly after his arrival, then head coach Justin Fuente sent him to Deltona, Florida to recruit an unheralded, lighty recruited prep quarterback named Paxton Lynch. Dickey had long ago earned a reputation for finding diamonds in the rough as a recruiter, and he reported back to Fuente that Memphis should sign Lynch. In 2016, Lynch was the 26th pick in the First Round of the NFL Draft.
In November 2015, Dickey was named interim head coach of the Memphis Tiger after head coach Justin Fuente was hired by Virginia Tech. Dickey coached the Tigers against the
Auburn Tigers
The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...
in the Birmingham Bowl on December 30, 2015. Auburn won the game 31–10, pulling away in the second half after ending the first half tied 10-10.
In January 2017, Dickey was elevated to offensive coordinator by Memphis head coach Mike Norvell.
Return to Texas A&M
Dickey was hired by new Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher to be the Aggies' offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The hiring paid immediate dividends, as the Aggies' 2018 offense finished ranked 20th in nation, up from 57th in 2017. Running back
Trayveon Williams
Trayveon Thomas Williams (born October 18, 1997) is an American professional American football, football running back and return specialist for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). During his junior season at Texas A&M ...
led the SEC in rushing and rushing touchdowns, while Quarterback Kellen Mond ranked fifth in the SEC with 24 touchdown passes.