Deloach's Reputation Led To Return

MeanGreen61 · January 25, 2008

Football: DeLoach's reputation led to return to UNT

Dodge received good reviews from many in coaching fraternity

11:37 PM CST on Thursday, January 24, 2008

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

North Texas head coach Todd Dodge was driving to his office at the Mean Green Athletic Center in early December when he heard that Karl Dorrell had been fired as UCLA's head coach.

That bit of news got Dodge thinking about Gary DeLoach, a coach who thrived as UNT's defensive coordinator for three years during the height of the Mean Green's four-year reign as Sun Belt Conference champions from 2001-04.

"I had known Gary for a while. He recruited Carroll for UCLA," said Dodge, who coached at Southlake Carroll before taking over at UNT. "I knew about the success he had both at North Texas and at UCLA. He was the first person that came to mind when I heard that the staff at UCLA was fired."

Dodge gave DeLoach a call a few weeks later once he had an opening for a defensive coordinator and eventually hired him, a move Dodge said will become official today. DeLoach will attend the Mean Green's season-ending banquet on Saturday.

DeLoach's defenses led the Sun Belt Conference in both scoring and total defense in his last two seasons with the Mean Green.

DeLoach coached UNT's defensive backs during his first stint with the Mean Green from 1998-2002. His role with UNT the second time around has yet to be determined.

Dodge said DeLoach would coach either UNT's defensive backs or linebackers, depending on who he hires for the final open spot on his coaching staff.

DeLoach will also recruit for UNT and will be responsible for an area that includes Grand Prairie, Arlington and part of Fort Worth.

DeLoach will replace Ron Mendoza, who was fired after his only season as the Mean Green's defensive coordinator. Mendoza coached UNT's linebackers.

Butch LaCroix resigned his position as the Mean Green's cornerbacks coach after last season.

The more Dodge looked into DeLoach's background, the more comfortable he said he felt with bringing the Houston native back as UNT's defensive coordinator.

"I talked to some of the coaches whose teams played against him and they had great things to say about him and his defenses," Dodge said. "Once I set my sights on him, I also asked some coaches who I respect who I should hire, without telling them that I was looking at hiring Gary. They said they would hire Gary DeLoach."

Dodge said that he knew of DeLoach's reputation as a solid defensive coach and was impressed with the line of coaches he worked under.

DeLoach built on that reputation during his time at UNT. The Mean Green's 2002 defense is considering among the best in UNT history.

The Mean Green ranked third nationally in scoring defense with an average of 14.8 points a game and also ranked ninth in total defense with an average of 290.6 yards allowed a game.

DeLoach will take on a massive rebuilding project at UNT. The Mean Green ranked last nationally with an average of 45.1 points allowed per game last season and loses several key players, including All-Sun Belt Conference defensive end Jeremiah Chapman.

"I feel great about bringing coach DeLoach back," Dodge said. "He will be a great fit."

BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com.

Edited January 25, 2008 by MeanGreen61