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North Carolina head coach Butch Davis has brought energy and enthusiasm back to the Tar Heel football program with his ability to motivate, teach and recruit at the highest level. A man with a proven record of success and an unyielding commitment to excellence, Davis has a clear vision for building a championship program in Chapel Hill based on integrity, character and honor. The former head coach at the University of Miami and the NFL's Cleveland Browns, Davis is Carolina's 33rd head coach and the ninth since the ACC was formed in 1953. Introduced as North Carolina's head coach on Nov. 13, 2006, Davis quickly rejuvenated the fan base and brought excitement to every Saturday at Kenan Stadium. Beginning with his first Carolina recruiting class in 2007, which many analysts ranked among the top 10 in the country, Davis has connected with student-athletes and fans alike with his brand of fast, hard-nosed, disciplined football. Over the past two seasons, Carolina has sold out 12 of 13 contests, increased average attendance by nearly 18 percent and sold a school-record 36,250 season tickets in 2008. Carolina improved from 4-8 in 2007 to 8-5 in 2008, the sixth-best turnaround in the country. The Tar Heels won games over bowl teams Rutgers, Miami, Connecticut, Notre Dame, Boston College and Georgia Tech and were in the hunt for the 2008 ACC championship until the final week of the season. Carolina's eight wins were its most since 2001. The Tar Heels earned an invitation to the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte, its first postseason game since 2004. UNC sold more than 22,000 tickets (10,000 more than its allotment) in just one week of sales and had an estimated 40,000 fans in attendance. "We are building a program to compete at the highest level for a national championship," says Davis, who won a national title as an assistant coach with Miami in 1987. "It's a process that takes time and we are heading in the right direction. The steps we take are not always evident on the field, but are also accomplished in the classroom, the weight room and other areas off the field. We are climbing the mountain." Davis's first season in Chapel Hill was highlighted by an impressive 33-27 win over Miami, in which he earned his first ACC victory against his former school. Carolina was competitive in nearly every game, with six losses decided by a combined total of just 24 points. Statistically, Carolina finished 35th in the country in total defense, improving nearly 60 positions from the previous year. Several individuals have benefitted from Davis's return to the college game, none more than defensive tackle Kentwan Balmer and wide receiver Hakeem Nicks, both of whom became first-round draft picks under Davis' tutelage. Balmer had career highs in tackles and sacks in 2007, earned all-conference honors for the first time and was selected in the first round by the San Francisco 49ers. Last year, Nicks finished an outstanding three-year career with 14 school records and was selected in the first round by the New York Giants. Nicks became the 30th first-round draft choice Davis has produced as a college coach. Many observers agree that Davis and his staff prepare players for professional football better than any other group in the country. "Coach Davis taught me how to be a professional player," says Balmer. "I know I still have a lot to learn, but I think I understand more of what it takes to be an NFL player now than I did before. I wouldn't be a first-round draft pick without his help and guidance." "Coach Davis prepares players incredibly well for the NFL," says Nicks. "Without his help and the assistant coaches, I would not be where I am today." Carolina had an ACC-best five players picked in the 2009 NFL Draft, including Nicks, second-round pick Richard Quinn, third-rounder Brandon Tate and fifth-round picks Garrett Reynolds and Brooks Foster. Add defensive end Hilee Taylor (Carolina Panthers) and place-kicker Connor Barth (Kansas City Chiefs) from the previous season and UNC has produced seven NFL players in just two years. But statistics and draft choices don't reveal the full story. Davis has hired an outstanding staff of assistant coaches, brought in three consecutive recruiting classes stocked with some of the nation's top high school players, and produced an entertaining product on the field. In addition, the University is currently underway with a renovation of Kenan Stadium that will enhance the overall fan experience and provide much-needed recruiting and office space for the football program. A fifth floor was added to the Kenan Football Center following the 2008 season. The floor contains additional space for the day-to-day operations of the football program, four premium gameday suites, a larger video and studio facility and a state-of-the-art press conference area. The recruiting area and suites will also be used as academic study areas during the week. The second floor was completely renovated for increased football meeting spaces, including bigger individual position meeting rooms and a larger team meeting room. The fourth floor renovations include additional office space for football support staff. No stranger to success, Davis has coached in 11 postseason bowl games as an assistant or head coach, including two apiece in the Fiesta, Orange and Sugar Bowls, and he either recruited or coached nearly all the players from Miami's 2001 national championship team. He also won two Super Bowls as an assistant coach with the Dallas Cowboys. An excellent motivator and technician, Davis recruited or coached a number of players at Miami who were selected in the NFL Draft, including an amazing 28 first-round picks. Prior to his arrival in Chapel Hill, Davis served as an analyst on the NFL Network for two seasons. There he was able to watch and study the latest college football offensive and defensive schemes. Yearning to return to the college coaching ranks, Davis surveyed the college football landscape, and when the Carolina job came open, he was immediately interested. "When I looked at everything North Carolina had to offer in terms of a great campus setting, access to players and the proper balance between athletics and academics, I knew this would be a good fit for me and my family," said Davis. Davis was head coach for six seasons at Miami (1995-2000) and led the Hurricanes to a 51-20 record, three Big East Conference championships and four postseason bowl wins in as many appearances. He took over a Miami program faced with NCAA sanctions that restricted the number of scholarships in his first three seasons. However, his Hurricane teams finished ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 on four occasions, including No. 2 in the nation in 2000, when the Canes went 11-1 and beat Florida, 37-20, in the Sugar Bowl. In his first year in Coral Gables, Davis helped the Canes earn a share of the Big East Conference Championship by winning seven straight games to close the `95 season. The team would have received an invitation to a BCS bowl game, however, Miami declined the invitation due to NCAA sanctions previously approved by university officials for violations prior to Davis's arrival. Davis again led Miami to a share of the Big East title in 1996 and catapulted the Hurricanes to a top 20 ranking and their first bowl victory in five years with a 31-21 win over Virginia in the Carquest Bowl. The following season he led Miami to a 46-23 win over North Carolina State in the 1998 Micron PC Bowl. Davis's 1999 squad began the year with a 23-12 victory over Ohio State in the Kickoff Classic and capped the season with a 28-13 victory over Georgia Tech in the Toyota Gator Bowl, the Hurricanes' first New Year's Day bowl game under Davis. In his final year at Miami (2000), the Hurricanes posted an 11-1 mark, including a 37-20 victory over Florida in the Nokia Sugar Bowl. That team was second in the nation in scoring, fifth in total offense, fifth in scoring defense and eighth in pass defense. Davis also emphasizes the importance of academics, and his Hurricanes earned recognition from the American Football Coaches Association for outstanding graduation rates in each of his six seasons. Davis left Coral Gables following the 2000 season to join the Cleveland Browns. In his first season in Cleveland in 2001, Davis led his young team to an impressive 7-9 record, exceeding by two the expansion club's combined victories from 1999 and 2000 (5-27). Cleveland led the NFL in takeaways with 42, including a league-high and team-record 33 interceptions. The Browns defense also scored 32 points (four interception returns, one fumble return, one safety). His second season as head coach resulted in the Browns earning their first playoff appearance and best regular season mark since 1994, despite 34 of the 53 players on the team's final active roster having four years of NFL experience or less. Cleveland finished the season with a 7-3 mark over its final 10 games, including victories in four of its final six outings, the best record over the final six games of the season for the franchise since 1988. Cleveland was Davis' second stint in the NFL. He was a defensive assistant with the Dallas Cowboys from 1989-94 and was defensive coordinator in 1993 and 1994. The Cowboys won consecutive Super Bowls in 1992 and 1993 and played in one other NFC championship game. Davis helped Dallas post one of the most spectacular turnarounds in sports history as the Cowboys went from a lowly 1-15 squad in 1989 to one of the most dominant NFL programs in the 1990s. He was the defensive line coach in the Cowboys' 52-17 win over Buffalo in Super Bowl XXVII and served as defensive coordinator in the Cowboys' 30-13 win over Buffalo in Super Bowl XXVIII. As defensive line coach in 1992, Davis helped the Cowboys lead the NFL in rushing defense. As coordinator a year later, the Cowboys set a team record by allowing just 21 touchdowns in 16 regular-season games and allowed one offensive touchdown or less in 12 of 16 games. Davis was also defensive coordinator during Barry Switzer's first season as head coach in 1994 and helped Dallas reach the NFC Championship Game, where eventual Super Bowl champion San Francisco denied its bid for a three-peat. Davis's defense was No. 1 in the league in total defense (269.6 yards per game) and pass defense (172.0 yards per game), and third in scoring defense (15.5 points per game). He coached three Pro Bowl starters - end Charles Haley, tackle Leon Lett and safety Darren Woodson. The three defensive starters were the most for the Cowboys since 1983. Davis was defensive line coach at Miami from 1984-88 under head coach Jimmy Johnson, whom he also coached under for five years in Dallas and five years at Oklahoma State. The Hurricanes went 52-9 in those five years and won the national championship after beating Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl to cap a perfect 12-0 record in 1987. He coached 15 linemen who went on to play in the NFL, including All-Americas Bill Hawkins, Cortez Kennedy, Russell Maryland, Daniel Stubbs and the late Jerome Brown. Davis' line was a key part of the Miami defense that finished second in the nation in both scoring defense (9.7 points per game) and total defense (242.0 yards per game) in 1988. The 1986 Hurricanes set a school record with 49 sacks, broke the mark with 50 in 1988 and held opposing rushers to fewer than 2.3 yards per carry in 1987 and 1988. Davis entered the collegiate coaching ranks on the offensive side of the ball as an assistant on Johnson's Oklahoma State University teams from 1979-83. At Oklahoma State, Davis coached receivers and tight ends while also serving as recruiting coordinator. Davis played college football at the University of Arkansas for Coach Frank Broyles. A knee injury curtailed his college career, and he became a student assistant coach for the Razorbacks. He earned a bachelor's degree in biology and life science in 1974. His coaching career began as a volunteer assistant in 1973 at Fayetteville High School in Arkansas. He had stints in Oklahoma at Pawhuska High School (1974-75) and Sand Springs High School (1976-77) as an assistant coach and at Tulsa Rogers High School (1978) in his first head coaching assignment before joining Johnson's staff at Oklahoma State. Paul Hilton (Butch) Davis is a native of Tahlequah, Okla. Davis and his wife, Tammy, have a teenage son, Drew. The Davis's are heavily involved in the Chapel Hill and surrounding communities. Since moving to Chapel Hill in 2006, the Davis's have pledged their time and financial support to many organizations. They include, but are not limited to: Night of Champions, Flashes of Hope, Lineberger Cancer Center, UNC Children's Hospital, SECU Family House, Athletes in Action, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Habitat for Humanity, Carolina Kids, Multiple Sclerosis, Crosby Scholars and Informed Families.
Butch Davis Yearly Coaching History First-round draft picks coached or recruited by Davis as head coach at the University of Miami or North Carolina Year-by-Year Coaching Record, University of Miami 2008 8-5 Carolina returned to rankings for the first time since 2001 2007 4-8 Pre- or Postseason History Miami (head coach) Miami (assistant coach) Oklahoma State (assistant coach) Super Bowls |
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