David Bennett is starting his ninth season as the head football coach at Coastal Carolina University, his eighth as the on-field leader. With the Chanticleers, he has amassed a 50-29 record, including 19-12 (.613) in the Big South Conference. Bennett has already had a busy 2010 heading into his ninth season. First, he was voted vice president of the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and he will later assume the role of president. In the spring, two key more honors were bestowed upon Bennett. After taking the Catawba football to unprecedented heights during his time as head coach, the school voted Bennett into its Athletics Hall of Fame. Last, Bennett received the Key to the City of Marion. Those honors came after a 2009 season which saw the Chanticleers produce their 13th and 14th All-Americans in just eight seasons thanks to first team pick Tommy Fraser and third team selection Josh Norman. In 2007, Bennett recorded his 100th career coaching victory in a 42-35 Big South win over visiting VMI at Coastal Carolina's Homecoming. That was not the only highlight for that year as, in the spring of 2008, wide receiver Jerome Simpson became the second league player ever taken in the National Football League draft, as he was a second-round selection of the Cincinnati Bengals. In addition, fullback Mike Tolbert was signed as a free agent by the San Diego Chargers, putting four Coastal Carolina alums in 2008 NFL training camps. The 2006 season was a historic one for Bennett's young Coastal Carolina program, as the squad became the third fastest in history to reach the Division I Football Championships in just its fourth season. After winning their third-straight Big South Conference title with a 4-0 mark, the team finished with a 9-2 regular season record, including non-conference wins over No. 3 Furman and at Wofford. That earned Coastal Carolina a match-up with eventual national champion Appalachian State, where the Chants scored more points on the host Mountaineers than any other team during the 2006 season in the playoffs. For his efforts, Bennett was named National Football Championship Subdivision Coach of the Year by Sportexe. Coastal Carolina had numerous conference and national honors among the 2006 players, including the Big South's first-ever NFL draft pick as All-American quarterback Tyler Thigpen was selected in the seventh round by the Minnesota Vikings and eventually spent the season on the Kansas City Chiefs' active roster. Thigpen was also seventh in the voting for the Walter Payton Award as the nation's top player, the first player from the league ever to make the ballot. Also joining Thigpen in earning All-American honors from various organizations were defensive back Quinton Teal, offensive lineman Brad Poston and wide receiver Jerome Simpson. Teal also joined Thigpen in the NFL, as he was signed by the Carolina Panthers as a free agent and made the team's roster for the season. Within the Big South, 12 players earned All-Conference accolades, while kicker Josh Hoke earned ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America First Team honors as presented by CoSIDA for the second consecutive year. In 2005, the Chanticleers posted a 9-2 mark overall, including a win over defending national champion James Madison, and a 3-1 record in the Big South to earn Big South Co-Champions. Coastal Carolina had 13 players earn All-Conference accolades, as well as having Hoke earn ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America First Team honors, the first Coastal Carolina football player to achieve that honor. During a historic 2004 season -- when the team went 10-1, Bennett had 14 players earn All-Big South Conference accolades, including Offensive Player of the Year Patrick Hall and Freshman of the Year Jerome Simpson. Bennett also earned the Big South's Coach of the Year honor and was named American Football Coaches' Association Region 2 Coach of the Year for the first time at the I-AA level and fourth time in his career. He was also honored for his efforts by the All-American Football Foundation with the Johnny Vaught Outstanding Head Coach Award. In addition to his role as vice president, Bennett serves on the AFCA All-American Selection Committee and chairs the AFCA Meeting Room Committee. Prior to the 2006 season, he was selected for the NCAA's I-AA Football Head Coaches Steering Committee. He also serves in the local community on the Board of Directors of the United Way and the Jackson Center for Values and Ethics. Additionally, he is the honorary chairman for the local March of Dimes Walk America. Bennett, born in Greer, S.C., came to Coastal Carolina after serving seven years as the Head Coach at Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C. In seven years as the head coach at Catawba, Bennett posted an overall record of 63-17, leading the Indians to three consecutive appearances in the NCAA Division II playoffs, including a run into the national semifinal round in 2001. Bennett, 48, joined the Catawba staff in 1990 as an assistant coach and was promoted to head coach on November 14, 1994. In his first season, he led the Indians to a 7-3 record, earning both South Atlantic Conference and AFCA Coach of the Year honors. The 1996 Indians' squad posted a 9-2 record and captured the SAC Championship. The 1997 and 1998 teams posted records of 8-3 and 6-4, respectively, before Coach Bennett's program made its assault on the NCAA Division II national football scene. The 1999 season saw Catawba post an 11-2 record and earn the first of three NCAA Division II playoff berths. An 11-1 record and another SAC Championship came in 2000, but the best was yet to come. In 2001, Catawba went 11-2 to give Bennett a 33-5 record over the past three seasons. The Indians won the SAC Championship and the South Region Championship before falling to Grand Valley State in the national semifinals. In addition to the incredible seven-year record as a head coach, Bennett earned four SAC Coach of the Year honors and three AFCA South Region Coach of the Year honors during his career with the Indians. Raised in Cheraw, S.C., Bennett earned 10 varsity letters at Cheraw High School, where he was named All-Conference in football, basketball, tennis and track. A three-year-starter in football, including the final two at quarterback, he led the Braves to a 20-4 record his final two seasons, including the 1979 AAA State Championship. A 1984 graduate of Presbyterian College, Bennett lettered in football and golf while earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and social studies with a minor in coaching. He earned the Unsung Hero Award from his teammates for his play during the 1983 season. He also began his coaching career at Presbyterian, working with the wide receivers as a student assistant. Bennett earned his master's degree in guidance and counseling from Clemson University in 1986, where he worked with the running backs on the Tigers' 1986 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship squad. While at Clemson, he coached in the Independence and Gator Bowls. In 1987, he served as the offensive coordinator at Goose Creek High School, a AAAA program in Charleston, S.C.. The Gators boasted the top rushing offense in the state that season. Bennett then coached at Newberry College before accepting the position at Catawba. He and his wife Melanie have a daughter, Hayes (17) and a son, Jeb (14).
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