2005 Blue Raider Football 57 · Year, is coming off a 5-6 sea-son that saw his team go 4-1 at home...

2005 Blue Raider Football 57

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HEAD COACH ANDY MCCOLLUMEntering his seventh season

as the head coach at his almamater, Andy McCollum hasstockpiled a bevy of talentacross the board that shouldgive Middle Tennessee thegreatest depth it has had sinceit began playing at the I-A level.

Known for his exciting and unpredictable coach-ing style, McCollum has compiled a mark of 30-38since returning to lead theBlue Raiders. McCollum,who has a vote on the USAToday/ESPN Coaches pollfor the fourth year in a row,has not shied away from col-lege football’s heavyweightsas evidenced by contestsagainst 19 teams from thepower conferences duringhis six years at the helm.

McCollum, the 2000 and2001 Tennessee Sports Writ-ers Association Coach of theYear, is coming off a 5-6 sea-son that saw his team go 4-1at home and upset MAC foeAkron on the road.

The energetic McCollum,46, guided the Blue Raidersto an incredible 2001 cam-paign that saw the team wineight games, grab a share of the Sun Belt Confer-ence championship, set 46 team and individualrecords, and defeat a team from the SEC.

BORN: March 1, 1959HIGH SCHOOL: Marietta (Georgia)COLLEGE: Austin Peay State, 1981 (Bachelor of Science Degree); Middle Tennessee, 1983 (Indus-

trial Safety and Driver Safety Education).FAMILY: Wife, Gwen (Ashland City, TN). Son, Drew, 11, and daughter, Andrea, 10.PARENTS: Johnny and Peggy McCollum. Andy has a brother, Davis, and a sister, Angie.COACHING EXPERIENCE: 1982-88: Head Junior Varsity coach in 1982, then assistant coach until

1988 ... 1989-93: Assistant coach at UTEP ... 1993-98: Assistant coach at Baylor University ... 1995(seven weeks): Assistant coach at Tennessee ... 1999-present: Head Coach at Middle Tennessee.

HONORS: 1994: Listed by Max Emfinger as one of the top 10 recruiters in the country ... 1995: Listedby Max Emfinger as one of the top 10 recruiters in America ... 1996: Listed by Bobby Burton as one oftop five recruiters in nation ... 2000 and 2001: TSWA Coach of the Year .

PLAYING CAREER: Collegiately at Austin Peay from 1977 to 1980 (honorable mention all-OVC in1979 as a receiver).

RECORD: At MT: 30-38 (7 years)NOTEWORTHY: Hobbies include golf, fishing, racquetball, and basketball ... Has coached eight all-

Americans.

UP CLOSE WITH MCCOLLUM

In just six years as head coach, McCollum haswon a league championship, produced the confer-ence player of the year and offensive player of theyear, had a freshman All-American, developed thehighest NFL draft pick in school history, and placed11 athletes on the first team all-conference squad. Ifthat isn’t impressive enough, the hard-workingMcCollum has also had a 1,000-yard rusher in threeof the last five seasons, the nation’s completion per-centage leader (2001), the country’s no. 2 (2001)

and no. 3 (2000) scorers, thenation’s fifth rated receiver(2003), and a receiver withback-to-back 1,000-yardseasons for the first time inschool history.

O f f e n s i v e l y ,McCollum’s teams havestirred up plenty of conversa-tion in the coaching commu-nity. The Blue Raiders hadthe no. 5 rated offense in thecountry in 2001 and the No.16 unit in 2000.

In his short timeas a head coach, McCollumhas done a great job of notonly developing players butalso assistant coaches.McCollum has sent 12coaches on to either the pro-fessional, collegiate, or high

school ranks. Over the past five seasons, CoachMcCollum has placed two assistants in the pros, twoat national power Florida, and one each at SEC


Won the Sun Belt Conference Championship in 2001Played 22 televised gamesProduced an SBC Player of the Year and an SBC Offensive Player of the YearGarnered 13 SBC first team selectionsDeveloped a 1,000-yard rusher in three straight seasons (2000-02)Had a Heisman Trophy candidate in 2002Developed the nation’s pass completion percentage leader (Wes Counts, 2001)Had the nation’s 5th-ranked offense (2001) and 16th-ranked offense (2000)Improved 36 spots in total defense from year one to year three (108th-77th-72nd)Had the nation’s third-leading scorer (2000) and second-leading scorer (2001)Improved 87 spots in the national rankings in rushing offense (94th-24th-7th)from 1999 to 2001Had a receiver ranked among the nation’s top 20 four different yearsProduced a first team Freshman All-American (Brandon Westbrook)Sent two coaches to the NFLAmassed a 22-9 record at homeGone 11-6 in the month of NovemberScored 30 or more points on offense 29 times in 58 gamesReceived a vote in the 2002 Preseason Associated Press poll, the first vote in school history

members Arkansas, LSU, and Mississippi State. Atthe 2002 AFCA Coaches Convention, McCollum andhis staff were one of just five such groups in thecountry selected to speak before their peers.

McCollum, known for his ability to bring in top-notch talent, has not let any of the Blue Raider faith-ful down during his six seasons. The fearlessMcCollum has made his mark in the recruiting arenaby bringing some of the area’s top talent toMurfreesboro. With each recruiting class,McCollum’s talent seems to get better and better,which is a mark of a solid program and one that iswell respected.

A former coach and player under legendary BlueRaider coach Boots Donnelly, McCollum has broughtwith him an exciting offensive strategy and a defen-sive scheme predicated on speed and athleticism.In his first year, theBlue Raiders setfour team recordsand 15 single-game and/ors i n g l e - s e a s o nmarks. The MiddleTennessee pass-ing offense ranked32nd in the nation,and two receiverswere rated amongthe top 26 incatches per game.In his second sea-son, the offense

set a school record with five 40-plus point gamesand then added three individual single-game marks,five individual single-season records, and five indi-vidual career marks.

After serving as an assistant at Middle Tennes-see in the ’80s, McCollum made his way back toMurfreesboro following nine seasons at Baylor andUTEP.

In 1989, McCollum left Middle Tennessee to be-come wide receivers coach under offensive coordi-nator David Culley at Texas-El Paso. That year,UTEP was rated 10th nationally in passing. From1990 to 1993, McCollum was in charge of the line-backers and also coordinated special teams.

In 1993, McCollum joined Chuck Reedy’s staff atBaylor as linebackers coach and immediately earneda reputation as an outstanding recruiter and top-flight

tactician. In 1995and 1996, MaxEmfinger ratedMcCollum amongthe top 10 recruit-ers in the nation.In the spring of

1995, he left for theUniversity of Ten-nessee to serve aslinebackers coachbut returned toBaylor sevenweeks later to takeover the role of as-sistant head coach

The Blue Raiders Under McCollum

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and defensive coordinator.As defensive coordinator in 1995, the Bears

ranked no. 5 nationally in total defense, no. 5 in passdefense, no. 9 in scoring defense, and no. 12 in rush-ing defense. As special teams coordinator that sameseason, McCollum’s squad was rated the SWC’s topunit after recording eight blocked punts and convert-ing four of those into touchdowns.

McCollum, who was named Middle Tennessee’s13th head coach on Dec. 8, 1998, got his start incoaching when Donnelly picked up the phone in1981 and asked him to be a graduate assistant. Af-ter just one year as a graduate assistant in which hewas head coach of the junior varsity squad,McCollum was named full-time in 1982.

From 1981 to 1984, McCollum served as an as-sistant coach working with wide receivers, tight ends,and special teams. In 1985, MT was ranked No. 1 inI-AA, going 11-0 in regular season play. In 1988,McCollum’s Blue Raider secondary led the nation inpass defense and set three new NCAA records.

During his time as an assistant at Middle Ten-nessee, McCollum recruited or coached the likes ofDwight Stone, Tony Burse, David Little, Don Griffin,Vince Hall, Kenny Tippens, Marty Carter, WalterDunson, Steve Dark, and Ricky Martin. All of theabove are former Blue Raider greats who are eitherplaying in the NFL or did at one time.

McCollum, from Marietta, Ga., graduated fromAustin Peay in 1981, where he was a four-yearletterman as an offensive guard and tight end. Heearned his master’s degree from MT in 1983. A four-year starter, McCollum played offensive guard in1977 and then was a tight end/receiver from 1978to 1980.

Offensive ProductionUnder McCollum

PassingIn 2004, the Blue Raiders topped the 2,900-yard mark

in passing yardage for the first time in school history with2,945 yards through the air. McCollum has put togetherthe top five single-season passing marks at Middle Ten-nessee.

RK YEAR YARDS HEAD COACH1. 2004 2,945 McCollum2. 2003 2,720 McCollum3. 1999 2,711 McCollum4. 2001 2,681 McCollum5. 2000 2,631 McCollum

Total OffenseAgainst the toughest competition in school history,

the Blue Raiders have churned up the yardage duringMcCollum’s reign. Under his leadership, the Blue Raid-ers have posted three of the top five total offense marks,including a school record 5,295 yards in 2001.

RK YEAR YARDS HEAD COACH1. 2001 5,295 McCollum2. 1990 5,155 Donnelly3. 2000 4,769 McCollum4. 1991 4,523 Donnelly5. 2003 4,455 McCollum

Receiver ProductionDuring McCollum’s six seasons at the helm he has

produced the three most effective wide receivers inschool history. The threesome of Kendall Newson, TyroneCalico, and Kerry Wright are 1-2-3 in receptions, yard-age, and 100-yard games.

RK PLAYER YARDS HEAD COACH1. Kendall Newson 3,074 McCollum2. Tyrone Calico 2,636 McCollum3. Kerry Wright 2,589 McCollum4. D. Mostiller 2,205 Donnelly5. Herbert Owenby 1,757 Murphy

As a prep player for Ray Broadaway at MariettaHigh School, McCollum was a three-year starter atquarterback. As a senior, he earned third team all-state honors and was selected Cobb County Playerof the Year, North Georgia Athlete of the Year, andMost Valuable Player at Marietta. In his final year,McCollum led the Blue Devils to a 10-2 record andthe region championship.

McCollum, who has coached eight All-Americans,67 all-conference picks, and 31 players who havemoved to the NFL, is married to the former GwenWilkinson. The couple has a son, Drew, and a daugh-ter, Andrea.


Mark Criner, who coached theBlue Raider secondary in 2004, waselevated to defensive coordinator inFebruary 2005 by Head Coach AndyMcCollum. The former University ofCincinnati assistant is in his secondyear with the Blue Raiders.

“Moving Mark to defensive coor-dinator was an easy decision,” McCollum said. “Mark hasa great coaching background and is extremely knowledge-able in the game of football. He is a great teacher and hasan unbelievable attitude and enthusiasm. This will be agreat fit for Middle Tennessee and this program.”

Criner spent two seasons at Cincinnati under RickMinter. He coached the Bearcat linebackers in 2002 and2003 and was the team’s co-defensive coordinator duringthe 2003 campaign.

In 2003, the Bearcats ranked 27th nationally in totaldefense after giving up just 333.0 yards a game and were28th in pass efficiency defense. Cincinnati ranked 21st intotal defense in 2002 and finished 17th in pass efficiencydefense. While at Cincinnati, Criner coached three line-backers (Tyjuan Hagler, Andre Frazier, and Jamar Enzor)who were taken in the 2005 NFL Draft.

In 2001, Criner took over as defensive coordinator withthe Las Vegas Outlaws of the XFL, a position he held untilthe league folded after one season. The Outlaws rankedfirst in the league in scoring defense and No. 1 in totaldefense. Criner also headed up the defensive draft for theOutlaws during his brief stay.

In taking over the Blue Raider secondary in 2004, Crinerinherited a unit that mainly played three freshmen and twonewcomers. The group showed a lot of improvement andaccounted for four of the team’s seven interceptions.

A 12-year coaching veteran, Criner learned the finerpoints of coaching from his father, Jim, who had headcoaching tenures at Boise State and Iowa State along witha stint in NFL Europe.

A 1990 graduate of Boise State with a degree in physi-cal education, Crinerplayed one year atIowa State (1986) andfour at Boise State(1987-90).

Criner began hiscoaching career as agraduate assistant atUtah State, workingwith the secondary in1991 and the defen-sive line in 1992. Healso worked with spe-cial teams both years.

He moved to Port-land State in 1993,

MARK CRINER

starting a seven-year coaching stint. He started as sec-ondary coach and special teams coordinator and was pro-moted to defensive coordinator in 1997.

While at Portland State, Criner worked with three line-backers - Sammy Burroughs, Rick Cruz and Jeff Bockert -who went on to sign NFL contracts.

Criner and his wife, Angie, have two children, daughterMadison (9) and son Calin (6) and twins Jackson andBrooklyn (1).

Defensive Coordinator/Safeties

PersonalBirthdate: 12/18/66Hometown: Boise, IdahoFamily: Wife: Angie; Daughter: Madison; Son: Calin,twins Jackson and Brooklyn

EducationHigh School: Ames (Iowa) HighCollege: Boise State (1990)

Playing Experience1986 Iowa State; 1987-90 Boise State

Coaching Experience2004-Present Middle Tennessee; 2002-03 Cincinnati;2000 Las Vegas Outlaws; 1993-99 Portland State;1991-92 Utah State (GA)

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Glen Elarbee, an All-Sun BeltConference lineman under AndyMcCollum at Middle Tennessee,begins his first season as a full-timecoach with the football program.Elarbee, who was with the BlueRaiders all during the 2004 season,

will coach the tight ends.Prior to making the move back to Murfreesboro, Elarbee

was an assistant coach at Texas A&M-Commerce for alittle over four months from late January 2005 through June2005.

A native of Carrollton, Georgia, Elarbee played in 35career games, started the last 23 in a row, and earned all-conference honors as a junior and senior. A four-yearletterman from 1999 to 2002, Elarbee had the distinctionof playing in Middle Tennessee’s first season as a I-A mem-ber while also competing on the first Sun Belt ConferenceChampionship team in 2001.

Noted for being one of the most improved players everunder McCollum, Elarbee ledthe Blue Raiders in snapsplayed as a senior with 735while also recording 91knockdowns.

Elarbee played his prepfootball at Central High Schoolin Carrollton and was a firstteam all-state selection andteam MVP for coach BillBailey.

Elarbee, the winner of the2002 Ray Neal award, earnedhis degree in Math Educationfrom Middle Tennessee in2003.

GLEN ELARBEE

PersonalBirthdate: 2/27/80Hometown: Carrollton, GAFamily: Single

EducationHigh School: Central (GA) (1998)College: Middle Tennessee (2003)

Playing Experience1998-2002: Middle Tennessee

Coaching Experience2005-Present Middle Tennessee; 2004 Texas A&M-Commerce; 2003 Middle Tennessee (GA)

Tight Ends

Security and Technical Support

Roger EvansTechnician

Chip MillerTennessee

Highway Patrol

John AlbertsonTennessee

Highway Patrol

Tommy WrightMTSU Public Safety


One of the brightest and mostinnovative young coaches incollege football, assistant headcoach Kevin Fouquier is in hisfifth season as a member ofAndy McCollum’s staff at MiddleTennessee. Fouquier, who re-cruits south Georgia, will coach

the Blue Raider defensive line for the second straightyear after coaching the linebackers his previousthree seasons. Fouquier also serves as theprogram’s recruiting coordinator.

Fouquier, who was elevated to assistant headcoach in February of 2002, came to Middle Tennes-see after serving as defensive coordinator at Cen-tral Arkansas in 2000.

In his first season, Fouquier was instrumental inthe development of Scotty Brown, one of the SunBelt’s top linebackers. Brown, a first team all-SBCpick, was a three-time player of the week winnerand finished third in the league in sacks and 12th intotal tackles.

In 2002, Fouquier had the team’s top two tack-lers in Sheldon Durham and Randy Arnold, and bothplayers turned in career years. Last season, youngguns Jonathan Bonner, Dennis Burke, and Alvin Fiteall had career campaigns under Fouquier’s tutelage.

Fouquier took over the defensive line in 2004 andpromptly guided the unit to 21 of the team’s schoolrecord 29 sacks, while quickly molding freshmenSean Mosley, Erik Walden, and Antoine Owens intopass rush specialists. The trio collected 12 sacks in2004.

He got his coaching start as a student assistantat Louisiana-Lafayette from 1985 to 1989. There hewas the tight ends coachwhile assisting with thewide receivers and offen-sive line.

Fouquier spent the 1990season as a graduate as-sistant at Texas-El Paso,working with wide receiv-ers and the scout team de-fense. At UTEP, Fouquierwas able to work with BlueRaider head coach AndyMcCollum, who was theMiners’ linebackers andspecial teams coach.

In the spring of 1991,Fouquier moved toTuerlings High School inLafayette, Louisiana, to be-come the defensive coor-

KEVIN FOUQUIER

dinator.Fouquier then moved to Texas A&M, where he

assisted with the defensive line, scout team, andspecial teams in 1991 and 1992. In 1991, the Aggieswere Southwest Conference Champions, had theno. 1 ranked defense in the country, and finishedwith a number five team ranking. Both seasons atTexas A&M for Fouquier ended in Cotton Bowlberths.

In 1993 and 1994, Fouquier was the defensiveline coach at Sam Houston State, where he alsoassisted in all phases of special teams.

The former Louisiana-Lafayette walk-on thenjoined the staff at Louisiana Tech in 1995, where he

served as defensive linecoach through the 1999season. Fouquier alsoadded the title of recruitingcoordinator for the Bull-dogs in 1999.

The Franklin,Louisiana, native receivedhis bachelor’s degree fromUSL (now Louisiana-Lafayette) in 1989 andtook courses toward amaster’s in education atUTEP and Texas A&M.

Fouquier is mar-ried to the former ChristineRodriguez of El Paso,Texas, and they have fourchildren: Kevin, 11;Victoria, 10; Analise, 5; andCarmen-Louise, 2.

Asst. Head Coach/Defensive Line

PersonalBirthdate: 6/24/65Hometown: Franklin, LAFamily: Wife: Christine; Children: Kevin, Victoria,Analise, Carmen-Louise

EducationHigh School: Hanson MemorialCollege: Louisiana-Lafayette (1989)

Playing Experience1985 Louisiana-Lafayette (walk-on)

Coaching Experience2001 - Present Middle Tennessee; 2000 CentralArkansas; 1995-99 Louisiana Tech; 1993-94 SamHouston State; 1991-92 Texas A&M; 1991 TuerlingsHigh School (spring only); 1990 UTEP (GA); 1985-89Louisiana-Lafayette (SA)

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Scott Fountain, a seven-yearveteran at UCF before makinghis way to Murfreesboro, is inhis second season at MiddleTennessee. Fountain, who re-cruits south Alabama, northwestFlorida, and the Mississippi jun-ior colleges, coaches the Blue

Raiders offensive line.In 2004, Fountain took over a group that lost

its best player prior to the season, did not have aproven center, and had to fill both guard spots. Theunit quickly came together to help form the top pass-ing offense in the Sun Belt Conference and the 15thbest in the nation.

At UCF, Fountain coached offensive tacklesand tight ends for six years while also doubling asthe program’s recruiting coordinator. UnderFountain’s guidance, tight end Mario Jackson ex-celled in the UCF system and was signed as a freeagent by New Orleans following the 2003 NFL Draft,offensive lineman Cornell Green became a freeagent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and SteveEdwards became a starter along the offensive linefor the Chicago Bears. Tight end Michael Gaines,who was coached by Fountain, was drafted in thesixth round by the Carolina Panthers in 2004.

In 1997, he coached the guards/centers atUCF and was the co-recruiting coordinator.

During his tenure at UCF, the Golden Knightsoffense ranked among the nation’s top 30 in six ofseven years, and three recruiting classes ranked inthe top 50 according to various recruiting analysts.The 2002 class ranked in the top 30 as rated byVandelezSports.com, and the 2000 class was ratedno. 46 by Rivals.com.

Fountain went toUCF after earning hismaster’s degree in educa-tional leadership andspending three seasons asa graduate assistant offen-sive line coach at FloridaState under Head CoachBobby Bowden. Fountainwas on staff with the Semi-noles from 1994 to 1996and was a part of threeACC Championshipteams. Along with helpingcoach the offensive line,Fountain handled filmbreakdown and scoutingreports and organized

SCOTT FOUNTAIN

Bobby Bowden’s Summer Camps.Prior to joining FSU, Fountain was a high

school coach in Alabama for six years. He servedas the head coach for Monroe County High in 1993and for Frisco City High from 1990 to 1992. In hislast season at Frisco City, the team went 12-1 andadvanced to the semifinals of the state playoffs. Priorto his stint at Frisco City, Fountain was an assistantcoach at his alma mater, W.S. Neal High School, in1989 and an assistant coach at Flomaton High in1988.

A 1988 graduate of Samford University with adegree in physical education, Fountain was a four-year letterman for the Bulldogs. He started everygame of his career, spending most of his time at

tight guard on the offensiveline.

As a senior atSamford in 1987, Fountainhelped the Terry Bowden-coached Bulldogs averagean NCAA Division III record51.7 points and 523 yardsper game. He was a four-year starter for the Bull-dogs and helped lead themto a 9-1 mark his senioryear.

Fountain is a na-tive of East Brewton, Ala.He and his wife Rosie havethree sons: Brookes,Hunter, and Tanner.

Offensive Line

PersonalBirthdate: 2/28/66Hometown: East Brewton, ALFamily: Wife: Rosie; Sons: Brookes, Hunter, andTanner

EducationHigh School: W.S. NealCollege: Samford (1988); Masters: FSU (1998)

Playing Experience1985-88 Samford

Coaching Experience2004-Present Middle Tennessee; 1997-03 UCF;1994-96 Florida State (GA); 1993 Monroe Co. HS(Ala.); 1990-92 Frisco City HS (Ala.); 1989 W.S. NealHS (Ala.); 1988 Flomaton HS (Ala.)


A former UCF record holderand passing great, DarinHinshaw is set to begin his fifthyear as a member of AndyMcCollum’s staff. Hinshaw, whoserved as running backs coachhis first two years, was elevatedto co-offensive coordinator in

February of 2003 and then became offensive coor-dinator in June of 2005. Hinshaw, who also took overthe wide receiver duties in June of 2005, recruitsnorth Florida.

Hinshaw’s offense in 2004 led the Sun Belt andranked 15th nationally in passing and ranking 31stin the country in passing efficiency. The unit alsotallied 47 plays of 20 yards or more.

In 2003, the Blue Raider offense went down asthe highest scoring unit in the Sun Belt Conferenceat 27.7 points a contest, including four games of 35points or more. The unit ranked 37th nationally inpassing efficiency and had the fifth-ranked receiverin the country.

In 2002, the Blue Raiders had the nation’s no. 21ranked rushing offense, a 1,000-yard rusher, andtwo of the top eight ground gainers in the Sun BeltConference.

In 2001, the Blue Raiders had two of the top fiverushers in the SBC along with the top overall rush-ing attack. Record breaker Dwone Hicks, whorushed for over 1,000 yards, finished the year asthe nation’s second leading scorer.

Hinshaw, 32, made his way to Middle Tennesseeafter serving on Mike Kruczek’s staff at UCF from1999 to 2000. The 1993 UCF graduate spent the1999 campaign as agraduate assistant with theresponsibility of coachingtight ends and assisting thehead coach with the quar-terbacks.

In 2000, the formerGolden Knight signal-callertook over the quarterbackcoaching duties: the firsttime someone other thanKruczek had guided thequarterbacks since 1985.In that first season, RyanSchneider threw for 2,334yards and 21 touchdownsand completed 62 percentof his passes. In a win overAlabama, Schneider regis-tered 283 yards throughthe air.

DARIN HINSHAW

As a player, Hinshaw set numerous schoolrecords for the Golden Knights, including the careerpassing mark with 9,000 yards. During his time un-der center, UCF had a combined 28-16 record, in-cluding a 9-3 mark and an appearance in the I-AAplayoffs in 1993.

Following his playing days at UCF, Hinshaw triedhis hand at professional football. After a brief stintwith the Cleveland Browns, Hinshaw spent two yearswith the Orlando Predators of the Arena FootballLeague, helping the Preds to the Arena Bowl wherethey lost to the Tampa Bay Storm in 1995.

In 1996, Hinshaw played quarterback and wasthe offensive coordinator for the Granite State War-riors of the Eastern Football League, which wasmade up of teams from New York and New England.Hinshaw inherited a team that went 2-8 in 1995 and

led it to a 14-2 record anda trip to the national cham-pionship game.

Following a yearin the EFL, Hinshaw wentback to the Arena Leagueto play for the NashvilleKats. After a short stay inNashville, Hinshaw de-cided to pursue collegecoaching at UCF.

Hinshaw earnedhis master’s in businessadministration from UCF in1996. He and his wife Pamhave three daughters,Sydney, Hayley, andCarley, and a son, Darin Jr.

Offensive Coordinator

PersonalBirthdate: 6/6/72Hometown: Punta Gorda, FLFamily: Wife: Pam; Children: Sydney, Hayley, DarinJr., Carley

EducationHigh School: CharlotteCollege: Central Florida (1993)

Playing Experience1991-94 UCF; 1994-95 Orlando Predators; 1996Granite State Warriors; 1997 Nashville Kats

Coaching Experience2001-Present Middle Tennessee; 1999-00 UCF

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After five seasons at MurrayState, Derek Jones begins hisfirst year on Andy McCollum’sstaff at Middle Tennessee.Jones, who coached the sec-ondary for the Racers, will be incharge of the Blue Raider

cornerbacks.Last season, Jones’ secondary played a ma-

jor role in Murray State ranking 11th nationally intotal defense and 23rd in scoring defense. Jonestutored two first team all-conference players in 2004with Laroni Gallishaw (went on to sign with the Min-nesota Vikings) and Onsha Whitaker. Whitaker reg-istered seven interceptions in 2004 to rank fourthnationally.

In 2003, Jones’ secondary was instrumentalin leading the Racer defensive unit to a no. 2 rank-ing in pass defense. During his five seasons atMurray State, Jones coached a total of seven play-ers who earned either first or second team All-OVChonors.

Jones joined the staff at Murray State in thespring of 2000 after serving as a graduate assistantat his alma mater, Mississippi, for more than a year.Following a professional playing career, Jones re-turned to Oxford to serve as a graduate assistantcoach where he helped to tutor current CarolinaPanther cornerback Ken Lucas.

Jones enjoyed a stellar playing career at OleMiss, earning second-team All-SEC honors as a jun-ior and senior cornerback. As a senior, Jones servedas the Rebels’ permanent team captain and wonthe prestigious Chucky Mullins Courage Award,given annually to the Rebels’ best defensive player.For that honor, healso wore Mullins’no. 38 in his seniorseason, winning theTeam LeadershipAward that year.

Following hissenior season,Jones was selectedto play in the 1996Blue-Gray All-StarClassic.

In addition tofootball, Jones was

DEREK JONES

also a standout in track and field at Ole Miss, earn-ing All-American honors in the 4x400-meter relay. Amember of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity at Ole Miss,Jones was a fraternity scholar from 1994 to 1996.Jones graduated from Ole Miss with a bachelor’sdegree in public administration in 1996.

He played professionally for the Toronto Argo-nauts and Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Foot-ball League and the Nashville Kats of the Arena Foot-ball League. After a ruptured disk ended his playingcareer in 1998, Jones returned to Ole Miss to beginhis coaching career.

A native of Moore, S.C., Jones was a standoutin both football and track at Woodruff High School.He was an all-state selection as a defensive backas a junior and senior in addition to being the teamMVP in those years. He was also a three-time all-state pick in track and field.

Jones is married to the former Naketa Whiteof Oxford, Miss.The couple has adaughter, Madison,7, and Jones has ad a u g h t e r ,Darquisha, 13.

Cornerbacks

PersonalBirthdate: 6/6/74Hometown: Moore, SCFamily: Wife: Nakita; Daughters: Darquisha, Madison

EducationHigh School: WoodruffCollege: Ole Miss (1996)

Playing Experience1993-96 Ole Miss

Coaching Experience2005-Present Middle Tennessee; 2000-04 MurrayState; 1998-99 Ole Miss (GA)


Art Kaufman, a veteran of 21years of coaching at the colle-giate level, begins his first sea-son as a member of AndyMcCollum’s staff at Middle Ten-nessee. Kaufman will coach thelinebackers.

Kaufman, who has coached in six bowl gamesduring his career, makes his way to Murfreesboroafter two seasons as defensive line coach at EastCarolina.

Prior to joining the staff at ECU, Kaufman spenttwo seasons as the defensive coordinator and line-backers coach at Arkansas Tech.

A 1980 graduate of the University of Arkansas atMonticello, Kaufman spent 10 years as an assistantcoach at the University of Mississippi including sixyears as defensive coordinator and linebackerscoach.

Kaufman, a two-time All-American linebackerduring his playing days at Arkansas-Monticello, fol-lowed his four-year career with the Boll Weevils bytaking a graduate assistant position at Delta StateUniversity.

Kaufman earned his first full-time coaching job in1983 when he became the outside linebackerscoach at Northwestern State University (La.). In1987, he was named as the defensive coordinator/linebackers coach at Northwestern State. He leftthere the following year for Ole Miss to coach theRebels’ outside lineback-ers and defensive ends.While at Ole Miss,Kaufman helped guide theRebels to back-to-backbowl appearances (1989Liberty Bowl and 1991Gator Bowl) for the firsttime since the 1970s.

Four years later,Kaufman was named thedefensive coordinator/line-backer coach at LouisianaTech University where heremained until returning toOle Miss in 1995. In 1992,his defensive unit ranked inthe top five nationally.

He served again as the

ART KAUFMANLinebackers

PersonalBirthdate: 12/23/57Hometown: Dermott, ARFamily: Daughters: Tara, Taylor, Madison

EducationHigh School: Dermott HSCollege: Arkansas-Monticello (1980)

Playing Experience1976-79 Arkansas-Monticello

Coaching Experience2005-Present Middle Tennessee; 2003-04 EastCarolina; 2000-02 Arkansas Tech; 1994-00 Ole Miss;1992-93 Louisiana Tech; 1988-91 Ole Miss; 1987Northwestern State; 1983-84 Northwestern State;1982 Delta State (GA)

Rebels’ defensive coordinator/linebacker coach forthe next six years. During his second stint at OleMiss, Kaufman helped the Rebels to four straightbowl berths (1997-2000) and his 1999 defenseranked fourth nationally in rushing defense.

Kaufman, a native of Dermott, Ark., has threedaughters: Tara, Taylor, and Madison.

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Entering his 23rd season atMiddle Tennessee, Alex Robinsis regarded as one of the topquarterback coaches in thecountry. The respected Robinshas developed seven of the top10 passers in school history in-cluding the top three completion

and yardage leaders.Robins has developed the likes of Mickey Corwin,

Marvin Collier, Wes Counts, Phil Ironside, KellyHolcomb, and Jonathan Quinn. That group accountsfor a total of eight first team all-conference selec-tions and two league players of the year. Holcomb,the MVP of the Gray team at the 1994 Blue-GrayAll-Star game, and Quinn are backups on NFL ros-ters. Counts competed in the Arena2 league for oneyear before an injury ended his career.

During his tenure at Middle Tennessee, Robinshas guided his signal-callers to top 25 nationalrankings in passing efficiency 10 times, including twowho finished in the top five.

His latest upstart is Clint Marks, who finished 21stnationally in total offense, 24th in passing efficiency,and set single-season records in passing yards andcompletions in 2004.

One of his most memorable jobs came in 2003when Robins had three guys see significant playingtime. The threesome of Andrico Hines, Marks, andJonathan Harris all completed over 60 percent oftheir passes and threw for 18 touchdowns and onlyhad eight interceptions.

In 2002, Robins had the task of breaking in new-comer Hines. As he has done for over 20 years,Robins got the most out of his signal-caller: Hinescompleted 58 percent of his passes and registeredthe fifth most yards of total offense in school history.

In 2001, the Blue Raider offense was ranked No.5 nationally, and a big key in the team’s successwas the continuedgrowth of Counts.Counts, who endedhis career owningevery passingrecord in school his-tory, was rankedthird in the nation inefficiency and wasthe nation’scompletion percent-age leader in 2001.Counts was alsothe 2001 Sun BeltC o n f e r e n c e ’ sPlayer of the Year.

ALEX ROBINS

During Middle Tennessee’s 2000 campaign, Rob-ins platooned quarterbacks Counts and JasonJohnson. The two combined for 2,542 passing yardsand 12 touchdowns and completed 59.3 percent oftheir passes. With the two capable juniors under cen-ter, the Blue Raiders finished with the 16th-rated of-fense in the nation.

In 1999, he was instrumental in Counts havingone of the best seasons ever for a Middle Tennes-see quarterback. Counts broke five single-gamerecords and set six new single-season marks includ-ing passing yards and 300-yard games. As a fresh-man in 1998, Counts was rated 16th nationally inpassing efficiency.

Robins made his way to Murfreesboro in 1983after working with the offensive backs for 10 sea-sons at Mars Hill (N.C.) College.

He coached for two years at the University ofRichmond and served another two-year hitch atBrunswick (Ga.) High School.

The likable and efficient Robins was a star run-ning back atWoodberry ForestSchool in Orange,Va., and then atMaryville (Tenn.)College, where heplayed for JohnTomlinson and wasa three-time all-area player.

Robins is marriedto the former PeggySmith and theyhave two sons, Treyand Matt.

Quarterbacks

PersonalBirthdate: 5/4/44Hometown: Richmond, VAFamily: Wife: Peggy; Children: Trey, Matt

EducationHigh School: Woodberry ForestCollege: Maryville College

Playing Experience1965-69 Maryville College

Coaching Experience1983-Present Middle Tennessee; 1973-82 Mars Hill1971-72 University of Richmond (GA); 1969-70Brunswick High School


Floyd Walker, who has beeninvolved with Blue Raider foot-ball as a player or coach since1983, begins his 14th season asa full-time assistant at MiddleTennessee. Walker will coachthe running backs for a third

straight season after handling the tight ends the pre-vious four years for head coach Andy McCollum.

In 2003, Walker took over the most inexperi-enced group in the I-A era and produced the league’sfifth-leading rusher and second-leading touchdownscorer.

Walker, who was a player on Blue Raiderteams for which McCollum was an assistant coach,arrived on campus at Middle Tennessee in the fallof 1983 as a walk-on. One of the smallest collegiatefootball players in NCAA history (5-3, 139 pounds),Floyd quickly became a crowd favorite as a dartingrunner who was willing to play hard-nosed football.Walker averaged nearly four yards per carry despitehis lack of size.

After redshirting in 1983, Walker was a part ofthe 1984 and 1985 teams that made the I-AA play-offs. The 1984 club finished 11-3 and advanced tothe third round of the playoffs. The 1985 team earneda no. 1 national ranking and registered a perfect 11-0 regular season. During Walker’s four years, theBlue Raiders went 34-14-0.

A native of Clarksville, Tennessee, Walker hasworked at four different po-sitions since his start on thecoaching staff in 1988.Walker started his careerwith the running backs be-fore moving to the otherside of the ball as outsidelinebackers coach. Walkerthen went back to teachingthe running backs and laterreturned to coach the out-side linebackers beforemoving to receivers coachin 1997. Walker handledhis fourth position as tightends coach beginning withthe 1999 campaign.

Walker earned hisbachelor’s degree from

FLOYD WALKERRunning Backs

PersonalBirthdate: 7/25/65Hometown: Clarksville, TNFamily: Single

EducationHigh School: Montgomery CentralCollege: Middle Tennessee (1989)

Playing Experience1983-87 Middle Tennessee

Coaching Experience1988-Present Middle Tennessee

Middle Tennessee in 1989. He recruits Chattanoogaand east Tennessee, northeast Georgia, and Atlanta.

Walker is single.

Since stepping on the field forthe first time at MT in 1983,Floyd Walker has been a partof 149 wins, 13 postseasongames, and five conferencechampionships in his 22 sea-sons.

GoBlueRaiders.com70

Richard Burnoski, who spent the2004 season as a graduate assis-tant on Andy McCollum’s staff, waselevated to Director of Football Op-erations in June 2005.

Burnoski’s new role will see himassisting the head coach with theday-to-day administration of the

Blue Raider football program, overseeing the football bud-get, and serving as the Summer Football Camp Director.Burnoski will also act as the Director of High School Rela-tions and Community Relations.

Among his other duties, Burnoski will assist with thehead coaches radio and television shows, coordinate allrecruiting and the annual coaching clinic, while serving asthe liason for the Blue and Silver Club, the NFL, and thecompliance office.

The Jacksonville, Fla., native made his presence felt ina big way in 2005 by signing highly touted players AlexSuber, Jordan Wilson, Eddie Brown, and Dale Galvin.

Burnoski made his way to Murfreesboroafter serving as head coach at MandarinHigh School in Jacksonville, Fla., from2000 to 2003. Burnoski, who wasMandarin’s offensive coordinator from1997 to 1999, is the winningest coachin school history and took MHS fromlast place in the district to districtchamps in just two years.

During his head coaching tenure,Burnoski led MHS to three consecu-tive state top ten rankings, placed 34players in the collegiate ranks, andhad five high school all-Americans.Burnoski, who was the US Army All-American Bowl Coach in 2004 and theTeam Florida Coach in 2001, 2002,and 2003, was crowned the FACA 6ADistrict Coach of the Year in 2001.

Burnoski, better known as “CoachBruno,” graduated from Eastern Or-egon in 1996 where he was an Aca-demic/Athletic All-American as a run-ning back. He also earned all-confer-ence honors as a junior and seniorwhile serving as team captain his finalyear.

Burnoski and his wife Nicole havetwo children: Brittany and Bruno.

RICHARD BURNOSKIDirector of Football Operations

PersonalBirthdate: 4/13/72Hometown: Jacksonville, FLFamily: Wife: Nicole; Son: Bruno, Daughter: Brittany

EducationHigh School: University Christian SchoolCollege: Eastern Oregon, 1996

Previous Experience2004-Present Middle Tennessee

“Coach Bruno is avaluable member to ourstaff. I count on him todo a lot for this programand he does them allextremely well. We arefortunate to have some-one of his character inour program and repre-senting Middle Tennes-see.”

- Andy McCollum


One of the most respected menin his field, Joe-Joe Petrone beginshis fourth year at Middle Tennesseeas the program’s head athletictrainer.

A native of Nashville and a gradu-ate of Father Ryan High School,Petrone oversees the entire training

operation and is also the primary liaison for the footballprogram.

Petrone came to the Middle Tennessee family afterspending five years as the athletic trainer and therapist atHealthsouth Sports Medicine Center in Tampa, Florida. Hewas responsible for the rehabilitation of all injuries and incharge of the sports medicine outreach program.

Prior to his time at Healthsouth, Petrone was theassistant athletic trainer for the Tampa Bay Buccaneersfrom 1987 to 1996. While with the Buccaneers, he saw tothe care and prevention of player injuries and handled allroad trip needs for his team physicians.

From 1981 to 1987, Petrone was the assistant ath-letic trainer at the University of Mississippi. At Ole Miss, heassisted with the football program and was the head ath-letic trainer for basketball. For five years, Petrone workedas an athletic trainer for the New York Yankees FantasyCamp and also donated his time and knowledge as anathletic trainer for Florida College and Hillsborough HighSchool football.

During the summers of 1979 and 1980, Petroneserved as a summer assistant athletic trainer for the NewYork Jets Football Club in Hempstead, New York.

A certified member of the National Athletic TrainersAssociation, Petrone earned his bachelor’s degree fromVanderbilt University in 1980. In 1994, he received hismaster of science degree from the University of SouthFlorida.

Petrone has also been very active in the commu-nity, offering his services and expertise in a number of ways.While living in the Tampa area, he delivered lectures onathletic training andsteroid education atseveral schools. Healso participated in theGreat AmericanTeach-In at fourschools.

Petrone’s ef-forts didn’t stop there.For four years he wasa co-organizer of theAmerican CancerSociety’s Longest Dayof Golf Fundraiser,and he was a three-

Head Athletic Trainer

JOE-JOE PETRONE

year volunteer with the University of Tampa’s RenneMartinez Golf Fundraiser. He also participated in Paint YourHeart Out Tampa for four years.

Petrone and his wife Allyson have 14-year-old twinsons, Chas and Michael. His hobbies include yard work,golf, and Little League baseball with his kids.

PersonalBirthdate: 2/15/58Hometown: Nashville, TNFamily: Wife: Allyson; Sons: Chas, Michael

EducationHigh School: Father RyanCollege: Vanderbilt (1980); South Florida (1994)

Experience2002-Present Middle Tennessee; 1997-02HealthSouth Sports Medicine; 1997-02 NY YankeesFantasy Camp; 1987-96 Tampa Bay Buccaneers;1981-87 University of Mississippi; 1980-81 Universityof Kentucky (GA); 1979-80 New York Jets (summers)

GoBlueRaiders.com72

Erik Bartlett Glenn Suggs

FOOTBALL SUPPORT STAFF

BRENDAN FARRELLGraduate Assistant

CHRIS MATUSEK

Chris Matusek, a four-yearlettermen at Middle Tennessee, is inhis third year with the program.Matusek spent the first two years asthe program’s equipment managerbefore being elevated to Administra-

tive Assistant in June 2005.Matusek will oversee the equipment operation and staff,

handle all travel, including team meals, hotel arrangements,practice, team escort and overall itinerary, while also as-sisting with the Blue and Silver Club, and overseeing theteams practice facility. Matusek will also act as the pro-grams former player contact.

A native of Shelbyville, Tennessee, Matusek played andstarted all 43 games as a deep snapper from 1998 to 2001.Matusek was a member of the 2001 team that went 8-3,won a share of the Sun Belt Conference Championshipand became the first team to ever win a game against ateam from the SEC. He also carries the distinction of be-ing on the last I-AA team at Middle Tennessee and on thefirst I-A team.

Matusek, who went his entire career without a bad snap,was originally a walk-on before being put on scholarshipfor his final two years.

Matusek earned his degree in Industrial Technology.

Administrative Asst.

JAN WORLEY

Jan Worley is in her 16th year inthe Middle Tennessee Athletic De-partment and currently has the roleof executive aide for the Blue Raiderfootball program.

The Manchester, Tennessee, na-tive graduated from Middle Tennessee in 1980 and earnedher Certified Professional Secretary rating in 1993.

Before coming to Middle Tennessee, Worley lived inAtlanta, where she worked at a computer company calledData General.

Worley now resides in Murfreesboro with her hus-band, Mike, and daughter, Lyndsay, who is a student atBlackman High School.

Executive Aide

Brendan Farrell begins his sec-ond season at Middle Tennessee,but his first as a graduate assistanton Andy McCollum’s staff. Farrell,who will work on the offensive sideof the ball, spent the 2004 campaign

as the program’s video coordinator.Prior to his arrival in Murfreesboro, Farrell served as a

graduate assistant coach for two years at Wayne StateUniversity working primarily with the running backs. He alsoserved as the program’s video coordinator.

A 2000 graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Farrellalso has a master’s of arts degree from WSU in sportsadministration.

The Fairport, N.Y., native earned one monogram dur-ing his four years (1996-1999) in South Bend as a strongsafety and linebacker. He was a member of teams thatparticipated in the 1997 Independence Bowl and the 1999Gator Bowl.

Prior to joining the WSU staff, the 1996 graduate ofMcQuaid Jesuit High School in Rochester, New York, spenttwo years as a legal research assistant at a law firm.

Video Staff

BLUE AND SILVER CLUBThe Blue and Silver Club is an exclusive member-

ship for football fans of Middle Tennessee. If you want toget the real insidescoop and get a betterunderstanding of thegame, the Blue and Sil-ver Club is for you.

Members are in-vited to attend the an-nual preseason staffcookout, will receive a pass for home games to comedown on the field to view pregame workouts, and willhave the opportunity to have lunch with Head Coach AndyMcCollum on Friday’s before home games to discussthe upcoming opponent, watch film, and get an under-standing of the gameplan. Other members of the staffwill also be on hand to provide commentary and answerany questions.

Anyone who is not a member and wants to join theclub, please call Richard Burnoski at 615-898-2311.

2005 Blue Raider Football 57 · Year, is coming off a 5-6 sea-son that saw his team go 4-1 at home...

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