Daron Roberts
Encyclopedia
Daron K. Roberts is an American football
special teams coordinator and wide receivers coach
at West Virginia University
Previously he was an assistant secondary coach with the Detroit Lions
. He served as the defensive quality control coach for the Kansas City Chiefs after graduating from Harvard Law School
and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, where he was named one of the school's 75 Most Fascinating Alumni Roberts also founded and is the past CEO of 4th and 1, a nonprofit that provides free SAT prep, football skills training and life skills development to high school students in Texas and Michigan.
on November 29, 1978. He is a fifth-generation East Texan. His family moved to Mount Pleasant, Texas when Roberts was five years old and he attended Mount Pleasant Independent School District public schools before graduating from Mount Pleasant High School in 1997. As a member of the varsity football team, Roberts earned 1st Team All-District Honors as a strong safety in 1996. During high school, Roberts served as class president all four years.
. That experience prompted Roberts to pursue a football coaching job. He returned to Harvard and wrote 164 letters seeking an internship. After writing letters to the head coach and defensive coordinator of every NFL franchise and 50 FBS teams, Roberts received an offer to serve as a training camp intern with the Kansas City Chiefs
allowed Roberts to volunteer for the 2007 season before hiring him as a defensive quality control coach in 2008. He assisted the defensive backs while in Kansas City - a unit that allowed 188.9 passing yards per game in 2007 and ranked fifth in the league for pass defense.
In 2009, Roberts left the Chiefs to work as an assistant secondary coach with the Detroit Lions. He inherited a unit that ranked last in most in defensive categories including pass defense. In 2010, the Lions finished 16th in pass defense.
Roberts was selected to serve as a secondary coach in the 2010 East-West Shrine Game
under head coach Wade Phillips. He also coached in the 2009 Senior Bowl
.
In March 2011, Roberts left the Detroit Lions to become the special teams and inside receivers coach at West Virginia University.
in Mount Pleasant, Texas A select group of 35 student-athletes were chosen from four East Texas counties. Former Longhorn stars, Derrick Johnson
and Ahmad Brooks visited the camp. 4th and 1 held camps at Michigan State (East Lansing) and Mount Pleasant, Texas in 2011. For his efforts the University of Texas awarded him the 2011 Outstanding Young Texas "Ex"
coaching tree. His first head coach was Herm Edwards.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
special teams coordinator and wide receivers coach
Wide receivers coach
A wide receivers coach is a coach in charge of the wide receivers in gridiron football. The wide receivers coach typically operates under a team's offensive coordinator. This coach also typically resides in the coach's box on gameday, often accompanied by or in place of the offensive coordinator....
at West Virginia University
West Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...
Previously he was an assistant secondary coach with the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
. He served as the defensive quality control coach for the Kansas City Chiefs after graduating from Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, where he was named one of the school's 75 Most Fascinating Alumni Roberts also founded and is the past CEO of 4th and 1, a nonprofit that provides free SAT prep, football skills training and life skills development to high school students in Texas and Michigan.
Early Years
Daron Roberts was born in Longview, TexasLongview, Texas
Longview is a city in Gregg and Harrison Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 80,455. Most of the city is located in Gregg County, of which it is the county seat; only a small part extends into the western part of neighboring Harrison County. It is...
on November 29, 1978. He is a fifth-generation East Texan. His family moved to Mount Pleasant, Texas when Roberts was five years old and he attended Mount Pleasant Independent School District public schools before graduating from Mount Pleasant High School in 1997. As a member of the varsity football team, Roberts earned 1st Team All-District Honors as a strong safety in 1996. During high school, Roberts served as class president all four years.
College Years
Roberts attended the University of Texas and double majored in the Plan II Honors Program and Government. He also served as an aide to Lt. Governor Bill Ratliff. During his senior year, Roberts won the student government presidency of the largest student body in the United States. After graduating in 2001, Roberts deferred entrance to the Harvard Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and worked as an aide to Senator Joseph I. Lieberman and Lt. Governor Bill Ratliff before attending the Harvard Kennedy School in 2004 After graduating with a Master in Public Policy, Roberts entered Harvard Law School. During the summer before his third year, Roberts worked as a coach at the Steve Spurrier Football Camp at the University of South CarolinaUniversity of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
. That experience prompted Roberts to pursue a football coaching job. He returned to Harvard and wrote 164 letters seeking an internship. After writing letters to the head coach and defensive coordinator of every NFL franchise and 50 FBS teams, Roberts received an offer to serve as a training camp intern with the Kansas City Chiefs
Coaching career
Herman EdwardsHerman Edwards
Herman "Herm" Edwards, Jr. is an American football analyst who most recently coached in the National Football League for the Kansas City Chiefs. He was fired from this position on January 23, 2009. Since then, he has been hired as a football analyst for ESPN...
allowed Roberts to volunteer for the 2007 season before hiring him as a defensive quality control coach in 2008. He assisted the defensive backs while in Kansas City - a unit that allowed 188.9 passing yards per game in 2007 and ranked fifth in the league for pass defense.
In 2009, Roberts left the Chiefs to work as an assistant secondary coach with the Detroit Lions. He inherited a unit that ranked last in most in defensive categories including pass defense. In 2010, the Lions finished 16th in pass defense.
Roberts was selected to serve as a secondary coach in the 2010 East-West Shrine Game
East-West Shrine Game
The East–West Shrine Game is an annual post-season college football all-star game played each January since 1925. The game is sponsored by the fraternal group Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and the net proceeds are earmarked to some of the Shrine's charitable works, most notably the Shriners...
under head coach Wade Phillips. He also coached in the 2009 Senior Bowl
2009 Senior Bowl
The 2009 Under Armour Senior Bowl was an all-star college football exhibition game featuring players from the 2008 college football season, and prospects for the 2009 Draft of the professional National Football League ....
.
In March 2011, Roberts left the Detroit Lions to become the special teams and inside receivers coach at West Virginia University.
4th and 1
In 2010, Roberts founded 4th and 1, LLC - a nonprofit that provides free SAT prep, football skills training and life skills development to high school students in Texas and Michigan. The first 4th and 1 Football Camp was offered at Northeast Texas Community CollegeNortheast Texas Community College
Northeast Texas Community College is a community college serving the Northeast Texas region. The campus is set on in rural Titus County near the community of Chapel Hill, approximately seven miles southeast of Mount Pleasant, the county seat....
in Mount Pleasant, Texas A select group of 35 student-athletes were chosen from four East Texas counties. Former Longhorn stars, Derrick Johnson
Derrick Johnson
-Kansas City Chiefs:Johnson started every game for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2005, becoming the first Chiefs linebacker in 20 years to start all 16 games of his rookie campaign. He was subsequently awarded the Mack Lee Hill Award by the Chiefs...
and Ahmad Brooks visited the camp. 4th and 1 held camps at Michigan State (East Lansing) and Mount Pleasant, Texas in 2011. For his efforts the University of Texas awarded him the 2011 Outstanding Young Texas "Ex"
Coaching Tree
Daron Roberts is a member of the Tony DungyTony Dungy
Anthony Kevin "Tony" Dungy [DUN-jee] is a former professional American football player and coach in the National Football League. Dungy was head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1996 to 2001, and head coach of the Indianapolis Colts from 2002 to 2008...
coaching tree. His first head coach was Herm Edwards.