Recruits: NY (Section 2, 7), Hawaii and Nevada
Dan Hunt at the top of the Patriot League coaching ladder has a nice ring to it.
In five short seasons, Hunt not only has become the league’s marquee sideline general but he also now stands as the dean of Patriot League coaches. More impressively, three of the last four seasons at Colgate have ended with championship trophies residing in Hamilton.
The 2018 campaign was one for the history books:
- Colgate went 10-2, earning the fourth 10-win season in program history
- Won the Patriot League at 6-0 for its 10th conference title
- Led the nation in scoring defense, total defense and pass efficiency defense
- Tied an FCS record with five shutouts
- Earned the Patriot League’s first top-eight seed in the NCAA playoffs
- Hosted a playoff game for the first time since 2003
- Advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals for the second time in four years.
Hunt already is mentioned in the company of Colgate coaching legends. He holds the endowed coaching position of the Fred ’50 and Marilyn Dunlap Head Football Coach and he just won his third Patriot League Coach of the Year Award, an award recently named for one of his mentors, Coach Dick Biddle.
Colgate wrapped up its 10th Patriot League title with a 41-0 whitewash at Fordham and its sixth perfect record in conference with a 48-6 triumph at Lehigh. The Raiders outscored their 2018 Patriot League competition 223-26, or by an average of 37-4, and they carry an 11-game conference winning streak into 2019.
Hunt is now 24-6 against the Patriot League.
The Raiders in 2018 placed a program-record six players on All-America teams, led by T.J. Holl, James Holland Jr., and Nick Wheeler earning placement on the 2018 AFCA All-America First Team. Colgate earned three first-team selections in the same year for the first time since 1916, and Colgate in 2018 was the only program in the nation with three on the first team.
Six different Raiders accumulated 14 All-America certificates. Holland was a double First Team selection, and he and Wheeler earned placement on four different teams.
Hunt won the ECAC’s Coach of the Year Award for the second time and led the Raiders to their first Lambert Cup trophy in program history. Five Raiders also earned All-ECAC First Team status.
The Raiders also dominated the Patriot League awards in 2018, winning the Offensive Player of the Year (Holland) and Defensive Player of the Year (Holl) in addition to Hunt’s Dick Biddle Award as coach of the year. Colgate landed 13 student-athletes for 14 positions on the All-Patriot League First Team, with five more chalking up Second Team certificates.
Head Coaching Career
Hunt, who signed a five-year contract extension in November 2018, carries an overall coaching record of 36-23. But he’s 31-13 in the last 44 games despite facing at least one FBS opponent in each of his five seasons – which makes him 31-10 against the FCS during that stretch.
Hunt in his five seasons has coached 25 different players to 37 All-Patriot League First Team certificates, and 44 players have earned a combined 66 first- or second-team selections. Colgate under Hunt has captured two Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year awards, two Rookie of the Year awards and one Offensive Player of the Year in addition to Hunt’s three plaques as Coach of the Year.
Eleven Raiders have been named to the ECAC FCS All-Star Team, including Afriyie and Wheeler on two occasions apiece. Hunt twice has won the ECAC FCS Coach of the Year honor.
Hunt also has placed 10 student-athletes on the elite Academic All-Patriot League Team, which honors those who excel both on the field and in the classroom. Josh Cerra has earned the distinction each of the last three seasons.
In 2017, a Patriot League-leading 13 Raiders made all-conference, including nine on the first team – another league high. Colgate shared the Patriot League championship and ended as the lone Patriot League team with a winning record after finishing 7-4 overall and 5-1 in the conference.
Colgate Athletics in 2017 completed installation of a new playing surface on Crown Field at Andy Kerr Stadium, renovation of the football locker room, construction of a new team meeting area, and construction of a new academic enhancement center.
Hunt in 2015 guided Colgate to its second-best postseason in history. The Raiders won a Patriot League championship and then won twice in the NCAA playoffs to finish among the top eight teams in the FCS.
Hunt was named Coach of the Year by both the ECAC and the Patriot League, and was a finalist for national honors. He guided the Raiders to a perfect 6-0 conference record for their eighth Patriot League title.
Colgate finished 9-5 overall after being picked third in the 2015 Patriot League preseason. The Raiders were rewarded with final national ranking of 13th in the FCS Coaches Poll and 17th in the STATS FCS Poll.
In 2016, Colgate set a program record and led the nation by allowing just 69.4 rushing yards per game. Pat Afriyie closed in on the career sacks record, was a multiple All-American recipient and earned the Patriot League’s Defensive Player of the Year, while Abu Daramy-Swaray took home Patriot League Rookie of the Year and Hero Sports Freshman All-America honors.
Jake Melville finished fourth all-time in total offense at Colgate, fourth in passing yards and 13th in rushing, while John Maddaluna III finished fifth in career receptions and sixth in receiving yards. Placekicker Jonah Bowman graduated as the all-time Colgate record-holder for field goal percentage and graduated second in made field goals.
Hunt served 19 seasons as a Colgate assistant coach from 1995-2013, the last 18 under previous head coach Dick Biddle. The Biddle-Hunt combo produced seven Patriot League titles, and Hunt in 2015 matched his mentor by winning his first championship in his second season – just as Biddle did in 1997.
For a program celebrating its historic 125th season of football, Colgate’s 2015 edition under Hunt breathed some rarified air as just the ninth football team in Colgate history to get to nine wins. The Raiders reached nine victories after becoming the only team in the 2015 playoff field to post back-to-back road wins – 27-20 at New Hampshire and 44-38 at No. 5 James Madison.
Only Colgate's 2003 national championship finalist had a better postseason run, and that includes every Patriot League football program in history. The 2003 and 2015 Colgate teams are the only Patriot League squads to compile multiple victories in the same playoff run, and Hunt is one of the common denominators.
Colgate introduced Hunt to succeed Biddle as its 29th head football coach in December 2013.
Assistant Coaching Career
Hunt was by Biddle's side since Biddle took over as Raiders head coach to begin the 1996 campaign. An immediate sign of the two men's coaching abilities saw them rally a squad that went 0-11 the previous season to a 6-5 overall record in 1996, followed by a perfect 6-0 Patriot League season in 1997.
That marked the first of seven conference titles the Biddle & Hunt team constructed.
Hunt also was the offensive mastermind behind Colgate's recent winning ways. The Springfield College graduate served four seasons as associate head coach and seven as offensive coordinator before taking the head reins. He had been the quarterbacks coach since 1999.
In 2012 with Hunt calling the shots, the Raiders finished third nationally in scoring offense, fourth in total offense and fifth in rushing offense. And Hunt's starting quarterback turned in one of the more impressive individual seasons in Colgate history.
Hunt began his Colgate tenure working with the tight ends in 1995 and 1996, before one season as the running backs coach.
Before Colgate
Hunt came to Colgate from his alma mater, where he helped coach the wide receivers and tight ends. Hunt began his coaching career at Christian Brothers Academy in Albany before returning to Springfield in 1993 as head junior varsity coach.
Hunt was a three-year starter at tight end for Springfield.
The Hunt File
Personal
Wife: Susanne; Children: Ryan, Sean
Education
High School: Canajoharie (N.Y.) HS
Springfield College, B.A. in Physical Education, 1992; M.A. in Athletic Admin., 1995
Athletics
Canajoharie HS: football, basketball, track and field
Springfield College: football, tight end, three-year starter
Coaching
Year School Coaching Position
1992 Springfield Junior Varsity Head Coach
1993 Springfield Assistant Coach/Wide Receivers
1994 Springfield Assistant Coach/Wide Receivers
1995 COLGATE Assistant Coach/Tight Ends (0-11, 0-5)
1996 COLGATE Assistant Coach/Tight Ends (6-5, 3-2)
1997 COLGATE Assistant Coach/QBs (7-5, 6-0, PL Title, NCAA Playoffs)
1998 COLGATE Assistant Coach/QBs (8-4, 5-1, NCAA Playoffs)
1999 COLGATE Assistant Coach/QBs (10-2, 5-1, PL Title, NCAA Playoffs)
2000 COLGATE Assistant Coach/Quarterbacks (7-4, 4-2)
2001 COLGATE Assistant Coach/Quarterbacks (7-3, 5-1)
2002 COLGATE Assistant Coach/Quarterbacks (9-3, 6-1, PL Title)
2003 COLGATE Assistant Coach/QBs (15-1, 7-0, PL Title, NCAA Playoff Finalist)
2004 COLGATE Assistant Coach/Quarterbacks (7-4, 4-2)
2005 COLGATE Assistant Coach/QBs (8-4, 5-1, PL Title, NCAA Playoffs)
2006 COLGATE Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks (4-7, 3-3)
2007 COLGATE Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks (7-4, 4-2)
2008 COLGATE Offensive Coordinator/QBs (9-3, 5-0, PL Title, NCAA Playoffs)
2009 COLGATE Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks (9-2, 4-2)
2010 COLGATE Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Coord./QBs (7-4, 3-2)
2011 COLGATE Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Coord./QBs (5-6, 1-4)
2012 COLGATE Associate Head Coach/Offensive Coord./QBs
(8-4, 5-0, PL Title, NCAA Playoffs)
2013 COLGATE Associate Head Coach/Offensive Coord./QBs (4-8, 3-2)
Assistant Coach Overall Record: 137-84 (.620); Patriot League: 81-32 (.717)
2014 COLGATE Head Coach (5-7, 3-3)
2015 COLGATE Head Coach (9-5, 6-0, PL Title, NCAA Playoff Quarterfinalist)
2016 COLGATE Head Coach (5-5, 4-2)
2017 COLGATE Head Coach (7-4, 5-1, PL Title)
2018 COLGATE Head Coach (10-2, 6-0, PL Title, NCAA Playoff Quarterfinalist)
Head Coach Overall Record: 36-23 (.610); Patriot League: 24-6 (.800) (Five Seasons)
Get to Know 'Gate Athletics -- Dan Hunt
- An Influential Person in My Career: Dick Biddle, Fred Dunlap and Mike Foley are the reason I am here today. Marty Fine also taught me a lot when I was first starting out.
- An Idea or Invention I Wish I Had Thought of: The Keurig coffee maker.
- What I Like About My Job: The people I get to meet, including players, their families and all of the people at Colgate and in Hamilton.
- What I Like About Competing: There is no gray area; you win or you lose. And in the case of football, you do it all TOGETHER.
- What I Would Like to Change: The starting hole at Seven Oaks.
- What I Like That Would Surprise Those Who Know Me: 1- I try to use Seinfeld references in an many situations as possible; 2- I am addicted to the "Stuff You Should Know " podcast; and 3- I love horse racing.
- What I Like About Myself: I think I am coaching for the right reasons.
Miscellaneous Favorites
- Heroes: Tom Landry, my parents, Jimmy Buffett.
- Possession: The code to Brad Dunlay's garage.
- Memento: Game ball from first win; ball from 2003 National Championship Game.
- Magazines, Hardcopy or Online: Sports Illustrated, Mental Floss.
- Gadget: Digital meat thermometer.
- App: TVFoodMaps. This is a must for anyone who travels.
- Music Type, Singer or Group: Jimmy Buffett.
- Books: The Physics of Football by Timothy Gay, President Me by Adam Carolla, and SeinLanguage by Jerry Seinfeld.
- Food: Anything grilled, and anything containing the words mahi-mahi.
- Movies: Jaws, The Outlaw Josie Wales, and A Few Good Men.
- Quote: "A goal without a plan is a wish."
