Feb. 15, 2008
DeChon Burns was appointed defensive line coach at UTEP on Friday by Miner head coach Mike Price.
Burns joins the Miners after serving as the defensive coordinator and defensive line coach at Texas Southern for the last two seasons.
"I have known DeChon Burns for several years since he was with the Washington Redskins, and I considered hiring him at UTEP four years ago," Price said. "I continued to follow his career at Texas Southern, and I thought their defense played well for their level. He has also done a great job of recruiting in the state of Texas, particularly in Houston."
Texas Southern finished 31st in tackles for losses in the Division Football Championship Subdivision in 2007, averaging seven per game. TSU was also 41st nationally in pass defense, yielding 190.7 yards per game. Headlining the Tiger defense was senior end Derrick Gray, who tied for first in the country in tackles for losses per game (2.2) and tied for eighth in sacks per game (0.9).
In 2006 Texas Southern was tied for sixth in the nation in turnovers gained (29) and interceptions (17), 18th in third down conversion percentage defense (32.8 percent), tied for 23rd in fumble recoveries (12), and tied for 31st in sacks (23). Senior linebacker Vincent Davis was tied for 10th in the NCAA in sacks per game (0.9) and tied for 15th in tackles for losses per game (1.5), and senior safety Stacey Thomas was tied for 15th in tackles per game (10.4).
Burns was the defensive line coach at TSU in 2004 and 2005 prior to being elevated to defensive coordinator.
He started his college coaching career as a defensive graduate assistant under Steve Spurrier at Florida in 2001. The Gators posted a 10-2 mark that year and beat Maryland in the FedEx Orange Bowl, 56-23, to close out the campaign rated third nationally.
Burns followed Spurrier to the NFL's Washington Redskins for the 2002 and 2003 seasons. His title was assistant defensive line coach/defensive quality control in 2002 and defensive assistant/special teams in 2003. During the summer of 2004 Burns took part in the NFL's Minority Internship Program, working with the San Francisco 49ers as assistant linebackers coach.
He was a member of USC's 1989 Rose Bowl team before suffering a neck injury that ended his collegiate career. He assisted the Trojan coaching staff during the 1990, 1991 and 1992 seasons.
Also an accomplished baseball player, Burns played center field for USC in 1992 and was in the Houston Astros' Developmental League in Merced, Calif. in 1994.
He received his bachelor of arts degree in Communications from USC in 1993. Burns is fluent in Spanish.
He and his wife, Enid, have two sons, Lorenzo (10) and Simeon (8), and a daughter, Jailyn (5).
The DeChon Burns File
Age: 37 (born June 6, 1970)
Birthplace: Riverside, Calif.
Alma Mater: USC `93
Playing Experience: USC (CB, 1989)
Bowl Games Coached: 2002 FedEx Orange (Florida)
Coaching Experience:
2001 Defensive Assistant/Defensive Line Florida
2002 Assistant Defensive Line Coach/Defensive Quality Control Washington Redskins
2003 Defensive Assistant/Special Teams Washington Redskins
2004 Minority Internship Program Assistant Linebackers Coach San Francisco 49ers
2004-05 Defensive Line Coach Texas Southern
2006-07 Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line Coach-Interim Head Coach Texas Southern
2008- Defensive Line Coach UTEP