DeWayne Walker facts for kids
Walker at UCLA in 2008
|
|
| Arizona State Sun Devils | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Analyst |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | December 3, 1960 Los Angeles, Calfifornia, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Pasadena (CA) John Muir |
| College: | Minnesota |
| Undrafted: | 1982 |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
|
|
| As coach: | |
|
|
| Head coaching record | |
| Career: | NCAA: 10–41 (.196) |
DeWayne Morris Walker (born December 3, 1960) is an American gridiron football coach and former player. He is currently a coach for the Arizona State Sun Devils football team. Before this, he was a coach for the Cleveland Browns in the National Football League (NFL).
Walker played college football at the University of Minnesota. He also played professionally in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Edmonton Eskimos in 1982. Later, he played in the United States Football League (USFL) for the Oakland Invaders in 1984 and the Arizona Outlaws in 1985. From 2009 to 2012, Walker was the head football coach at New Mexico State University.
Contents
Early Life and College Football
DeWayne Walker was born in Los Angeles, California. He graduated from John Muir High School in Pasadena, California in 1978. After high school, Walker played football for two years at Pasadena City College.
He then transferred to the University of Minnesota. There, he was a starting player for two years. In 1992, Walker earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in liberal arts. He received this degree from Regents College, which is now known as Excelsior University.
Professional Playing Career
After his college career, Walker played professional football. In 1982, he played for the Edmonton Eskimos in the Canadian Football League. He then moved to the United States Football League (USFL). He played for the Oakland Invaders in 1984. The next year, in 1985, he played for the Arizona Outlaws.
Coaching Career Highlights
DeWayne Walker has had a long and successful coaching career. He has coached at many different levels of football. This includes college teams and teams in the National Football League (NFL).
Starting in College and NFL
In 2001, Pete Carroll became the head coach of the USC Trojans. Walker was the very first coach Carroll hired for his staff. Walker was in charge of the team's secondary players. Before joining USC, Walker spent three seasons with the New England Patriots in a similar role. Carroll said he hired Walker because Walker knew his coaching style.
After his time at USC, Walker coached for other NFL teams. He was a secondary coach for the Washington Redskins and the New York Giants. He also coached for the New England Patriots again. In college, he coached at Mount San Antonio College, Utah State, BYU, Oklahoma State, and California.
Coaching the UCLA Bruins
In December 2006, Walker was the defensive coordinator for the UCLA Bruins. His defense played a great game against their rival, the USC Trojans. They held USC to under 10 points. This was the first time that had happened since 2001. This important win helped the Bruins end a seven-game losing streak against USC. It was a big moment in the UCLA–USC rivalry.
In December 2007, UCLA's head coach, Karl Dorrell, was let go. Walker was asked to be the head coach for the team's bowl game. This was the 2007 Las Vegas Bowl. The Bruins played against Brigham Young University (BYU). UCLA had beaten BYU earlier that season. However, BYU won the bowl game 17–16. A BYU player blocked a field goal attempt by UCLA as time ran out. This meant Walker had a 0–1 record as a head coach for that single game.
After the bowl game, there was talk about whether Walker would stay at UCLA. He even received an offer to coach at the University of Washington. However, news reports later confirmed that Walker decided to stay at UCLA. He remained the defensive coordinator for the Bruins. Walker also interviewed for the main head coaching job at UCLA. But the job eventually went to Rick Neuheisel. Walker continued his role as defensive coordinator.
Head Coach at New Mexico State
On December 31, 2008, DeWayne Walker became the head coach at New Mexico State University. He was the second African-American coach in the school's history. At that time, he was also one of only seven African-American head coaches in the top college football division (FBS). He coached the New Mexico State Aggies for four seasons. He decided to step down as head coach after the 2012 season.
Coaching for the Jacksonville Jaguars
On January 22, 2013, it was announced that Walker would leave New Mexico State. He took a job as the defensive backs coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars in the NFL. He continued coaching in the NFL for several years.
