DARRELL PERKINS ADDED TO COACHING STAFF

The Ferris State University football program filled its remaining coaching staff vacancy with the appointment of Darrell Perkins to an assistant coaching position as announced by seventh-year head coach Jeff Pierce.

Perkins, who has spent the last two seasons (2000-01) at NCAA Division I Purdue University, will be responsible for coaching Ferris State's defensive backs while also serving as the Bulldogs' special teams coordinator. He replaces Cary Marquell (pronounced MAR-kwell), who accepted the defensive coordinator position at Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC)-member Hillsdale (Mich.) College last winter.

“We’re fortunate to get an experienced, quality coach like Darrell,” said Pierce. “He’s a well-rounded individual, a great communicator and has tremendous people skills due in part to his background experience in business. He knows how to motivate young people and has demonstrated the ability to develop kids. Furthermore, Darrell is a well-organized individual and has a strong understanding of the various defensive backfield positions.”

Perkins has served in a graduate assistant capacity at Purdue as a member of head coach Joe Tiller’s coaching staff. While at PU, Perkins coached the defensive backs and provided leadership for the scout team. He helped the Boilermakers claim the Big Ten Conference title in 2000 en route to their first Rose Bowl appearance in 33 years. In 2001, Purdue participated in the 68th annual Wells Fargo Sun Bowl. He’s presently working towards completing a Master’s Degree in sports marketing at Purdue.

Prior to his coaching stint at Purdue, Perkins was an owner/operator of a Chick-Fil-A restaurant franchise in Fort Collins, Colo., from 1990-96 and was the concessionaire for Colorado State University Athletics during that period. In September 1996, he became a general manager of the Bennigan’s Corporation in Denver, Colo., for three-plus years.

A native of Denver, Colo., Perkins’ other coaching experience was as the head varsity basketball coach at Legacy High School in Fort Collins, Colo., from 1993-96 in which his teams registered a 47-36 record and made two state playoff appearances. He also spent two seasons (1998-99) as an assistant varsity football coach at his alma mater Gateway High School in Aurora, Colo., where he was the special teams coach and also coached the running backs, receivers and defensive backs.

Perkins’ collegiate playing experience was at the University of Wyoming (1986-89) in Laramie, Wyo., where he played for former UW offensive coordinator Joe Tiller. He was a two-year starter and a three-year letterwinner at running back for the Cowboys. In his career, Wyoming won back-to-back Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Championships in 1987-88 and competed two consecutive years (1987-88) in the Holiday Bowl. Perkins earned a bachelor of science degree in business from Wyoming in 1990.

A standout athlete at Gateway High School, Perkins earned all-state recognition in football at running back and was a two-time Centennial Conference selection. He served as team captain of the 1985 football squad and held the same honor for three seasons (1982, ‘83 and ‘85) on the basketball team. Perkins also lettered three years in track as a sprinter and was named to the USA Today All-America Honorable Mention squad. As a senior in 1985, he was chosen both the school’s and conference’s player of the year.

Perkins, the son of Vinson and Jackie Perkins of Aurora, Colo., is married to the former Elena Zbitskaya. He’s a member of both the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and the Black Coaches Association (BCA).