David Dean (born February 3, 1964) is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

coach and former player. He is the head coach at Lanier County High School in

Lakeland, Georgia Lakeland is a city and the county seat of Lanier County, Georgia, United States. The city is the county seat of Lanier County. It is part of the Valdosta, Georgia metropolitan statistical area. The population was 2,875 at the 2020 census. Ori ...

, a position he has held since 2024. He was the head football coach for the

University of West Georgia The University of West Georgia is a public university in Carrollton, Georgia, United States. The university offers a satellite campus in Newnan, Georgia, Newnan, Georgia, select classes at its Douglasville Center, and off-campus Museum Studies c ...

from 2017 to 2023. Dean served as the head football coach at

Valdosta State University Valdosta State University (VSU or Valdosta State) is a public university in Valdosta, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1906, it launched in 1913 as an all-girls college. VSU is one of the four comprehensive universities in the University System ...

from 2007 to 2015, compiling a record of 79–27 in nine seasons. His team won the NCAA Division II Football Championship in 2007 and in 2012.

Playing career

Dean attended Avondale High School in

Avondale Estates, Georgia Avondale Estates is a city in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 3,567 in 2020. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area and is near Decatur. History In the 1890s, lots were sold in the area, which was known as Ing ...

before

walking on ''Walking On'' is a studio album by musicians Ananda Shankar and State of Bengal, released on 12 September 1999 by Real World Records. Background State of Bengal (Zaman) learned to play bass in three weeks for the project. Critical response P ...

for the

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

football team in 1982. He earned a scholarship the following year and played through the 1985 season as a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

. He was a graduate assistant for the team in 1986.

Coaching career

Dean coached wide receivers at his alma mater, Avondale High School, in 1987. He was an assistant at Valdosta from 1988 to 1992. From 1993 to 1999 he was an assistant at

. 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 The Harlon Hill Trophy is an award in American college football given to the individual selected as the most valuable player in NCAA Division II. The award is named for former University of North Alabama and National Football League player Harl ...

. During this period Valdosta played in the Division II title game in 2002 and won the national championship in 2004.

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 Georgia Southern University (informally known as Southern or Georgia Southern) is a public university, public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The largest campus is in Statesboro, Georgia, Statesboro, with ...

. The "Dean Machine" started the season with five straight wins.

Delta State University Delta State University (DSU) is a public university in Cleveland, Mississippi, a city in the Mississippi Delta. History The school was established in 1924 by the State of Mississippi, using the facilities of the former Bolivar County Agricultu ...

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 Northwest Missouri State University (NW Missouri) is a public university in Maryville, Missouri, United States. It has an enrollment of 9,152 students. Founded in 1905 as a teachers college, its campus is based on the design for Forest Park (St. ...

, 25–20. This was the third straight championship appearance by the Bearcats, also the third straight time the Bearcats 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 Earle Solomonson (born September 2, 1947) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at North Dakota State University from 1985 to 1986 and at Montana State University from 1987 to 1991, compiling a caree ...

accomplished this at

North Dakota State University North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota, United States. It was ...

in 1985. 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 Gulf South Conference. In 2009, after a 6–4 season in which they finished third in the Gulf South Conference, the Blazers did not make the postseason for the first time under Dean, and for the first time since 2006. Dean led 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. In 2011, the Blazers had another 6–4 season and missed the Division II playoffs. VSU finished 4th in the Gulf South Conference in 2011. Valdosta had been ranked as high as No. 4 in the AFCA poll in the first weeks of the 2011 season. After a 2–2 start to the 2012 season, the Blazers won their next 10 straight games and defeated

Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) is a historically black public university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. History Winston-Salem State University was founded as "Slater Industrial A ...

35–7 in the NCAA Division II Championship game in Florence, Alabama. VSU finished second in the Gulf South Conference after losing to the

University of West Alabama The University of West Alabama (UWA) is a public university in Livingston, Alabama, United States. Founded in 1835, the school began as a church-supported school for young women called "Livingston Female Academy". The university serves students ...

. Valdosta would defeat UWA after playing them again in the second round of the NCAA Playoffs. David Dean is the first football coach in Valdosta State's history to win two national titles. Dean left Valdosta State to coach a single, unsuccessful year as co-offensive coordinator at FBS program

Georgia Southern Georgia Southern University (informally known as Southern or Georgia Southern) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia. The largest campus is in Statesboro, with additional campuses in Savannah ( Armstrong Campus) and Hine ...

; both co-coordinators were fired after one year.Georgia Southern fires offensive coordinators Dean, Gillespie
''Savannah Morning News'', December 4, 2016. On January 25, 2017, Dean was named the new head coach of former

Gulf South Conference The Gulf South Conference (GSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the Southeastern United States. History Originally known as the ...

rival West Georgia.FORMER VSU COACH HEADED TO WEST GEORGIA
, Valdosta Today, January 26, 2017. On November 13, 2023, Dean resigned from West Georgia. On June 18, 2024, Dean was hired to take over as the head coach of Lanier County High School in

Awards and honors

Dean was the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division II Coach of the Year in

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is the intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environment ...

in 2007 and in 2012, after seasons culminating in National Championships. Dean was also named the 2007 Division II Coach of the Year by American Football Weekly and

Schutt Sports Schutt Sports (trade name of Kranos Corporation) was a United States company that manufactured protective gear for several sports, focusing on American football, baseball, softball, and lacrosse. Products manufactured by company, headquartered in ...

. 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.

Head coaching record

College

High school

References

External links

Valdosta State profile

Georgia Southern profile

West Georgia profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dean, David 1964 births Living people Georgia Southern Eagles football coaches 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 Georgia (U.S. state) People from Avondale Estates, Georgia Players of American football from Decatur, Georgia Coaches of American football from Georgia (U.S. state)