USF Athletics

Da Prato Dedicated to Maximizing USF's Potential on Special Teams

May 04, 2020

COACHES PROFILE SERIES: While we wait for USF football to hit the field once again, Senior Writer Tom Zebold and Voice of the Bulls Jim Louk give Bulls fans a window to know more about the people and personalities on head coach Jeff Scott's first USF staff.

The series continues with a story on super positive and outgoing Daniel Da Prato, who steps into USF's special teams coordinator role after lots of success at Arkansas.

LISTEN: Da Prato's interview with Voice of the Bulls Jim Louk HERE.
 
PAST PROFILES:
Charlie Weis Jr. - Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Coach
Glenn Spencer – Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Coach
Xavier Dye – Wide Receivers Coach
Jules Montinar – Cornerbacks Coach/Recruiting Coordinator
Allen Mogridge - Offensive Line Coach/Assistant Head Coach
Da'Quan Bowers – Defensive Line Coach
Pat White – Running Backs Coach
Wes Neighbors – Safeties Coach
Joey King – Tight Ends Coach
 
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, MAY 4, 2020 – Daniel Da Prato is dedicated to maximizing the athletic Bulls' potential in a highly important phase of football as USF's new special teams coordinator.

"We're trying to impact the outcome of the game, but that occurs when you do the ordinary things extraordinary well," he said. "When you can do that rep in and rep out, when the opportunity presents itself, you'll take advantage of a big play."

For much of his 15-plus year coaching career, Da Prato has gotten to work with game-changing special teams units across the country. Last season, his Arkansas Razorbacks group ranked 10th in the NCAA in kick return coverage while Treylon Burks earned 2019 All-SEC Second Team return specialist honors.

Now, Da Prato has the task of helping the Bulls become brilliant in an area of the game he said accounts for "roughly 50 percent of the yards that occur on Saturdays."

"Obviously, you're looking for great speed. We don't lack speed," he said. "We're gonna have great speed running down the field, but I need to make sure those guys are in the right place at the right time to enable us to be successful."

Da Prato's Special Journey to Tampa
Da Prato, the son of a longtime coach, has gained lots of all-around football experience on the way to thriving as a special teams expert.

As a collegiate quarterback, Da Prato started for New Mexico Highlands University (2000) and earned all-conference honorable mention accolades the following season with Chabot (Calif.) Junior College.

Da Prato played his final two seasons for Louisiana-Monroe and was the Warhawks' starter for the 2002 season opener against Ole Miss. He also got into the coaching business at ULM as a graduate assistant on offense (2004-05) who was promoted to director of operations and recruiting coordinator in 2006.

"I'm very proud of my alma mater, Louisiana-Monroe," said the two-time ULM grad who received his master's in education in 2004. "My wife (Giovanna) and I both graduated from there. We both played sports there and I'm very proud of that."

Coaching took Da Prato back to his birthplace in California for a six-year run at Sacramento State (2007-12). He guided receivers the entire time and added special teams duties for the final three seasons. One major highlight as a Hornet was being on the 2012 staff for a 30-28 road upset of Colorado that was decided by a game-winning field goal in the final seconds.

Gaining more experience out west, Da Prato pulled double duty again as the special teams coordinator/tight ends coach for Montana State from 2013-15.

In his first season with the Bobcats, he helped Shawn Johnson become MSU's first All-American return specialist in more than a decade. Johnson ranked fourth in the FCS in kick returns (31.0 ypr) and fifth in punt returns (13.9) with three special teams scores to his credit in 2013. Two of those highlight-reel plays were a school record 100-yard kickoff return against South Dakota and a 99-yard score against UNC.

"I think every single place – no matter where it is – is what you make of it," Da Prato said.

Years after beating the Buffs, Da Prato joined the Colorado staff and served in a number of roles from 2016-18.

One of those tasks was game planning for special teams, specifically on punt block and kickoff return. During his time with the program, Colorado blocked its first punt in eight seasons and returned a punt for a touchdown for the first time in 11 years.

Special teams success continued last season at Arkansas for Da Prato, who started in a quality control position under head coach Chad Morris, a former Clemson offensive coordinator.

Once Barry Lunney Jr. became interim head coach, Da Prato was promoted to coordinator for Arkansas' special teams units that ended up ranking 10^th nationally in kick return coverage (17.29 ypr), 20^th in punt return defense (4.50 ypr) and 26^th in punt returns (11.5 ypr). Kicker Connor Limpert went 14-for-19 in field goal attempts and was a perfect 7-for-7 inside of 40 yards.

"Trying to keep things as similar as possible and having some continuity I think can really help in the progression," Da Prato said. "Sometimes, it's just verbiage that changes. It's the same teaching and the same techniques with different verbiage. As much carryover as you can keep as possible, I think is beneficial in any situation."

Getting the Razorbacks to excel on special teams during a time of change is similar to Da Prato's new opportunity in Tampa that was presented in December.

New head coach Jeff Scott dialed up Da Prato, which led to great discussions about mutual friendships with former Clemson coaches Morris and Justin Stepp – both coworkers of Da Prato's at Arkansas. Da Prato jumped at the chance to join "phenomenal" Scott's staff at rapidly rising USF.

"To be able to be in that environment, it's a great opportunity," Da Prato said. "I'm very thankful for Coach Scott and Michael Kelly to give me this opportunity to be here."

New Dad Embraces New USF Duties
Twitter followers of @CoachDaPrato have embraced his super-positive approach since USF's new special teams coordinator joined the program in late December.

"Every single day, I'm gonna wake up and my glass is always full. It's attitude and effort all day, every day," he said. "I'm gonna bring the juice and we're gonna find a way to have a great day."

Several great days so far have included the outgoing personality showcasing beautiful Bay area scenery, or sharing his excitement for Bulls football.

"I think it's important for recruiting, getting young men an opportunity to see who we are as people and involving family," he said.

Speaking of family, Da Prato and his wife, Giovanna, welcomed their daughter, Audrina, into the world just days before the Bulls began spring practice in March. The couple have appreciated their new USF family for helping out during a whirlwind transition.

"It makes you feel good and it makes you work really hard for those people who want to be there for you to help out during these times," he said. "I'm just very thankful for them and the family aspect."

Aside from his dad duties, Da Prato has been busy building a bond with Bulls and identifying talent for special teams units.

"We need people that we can trust to put in the right place at the right time, all the time," he said.

Unfortunately, Da Prato had just one spring practice to work with Bulls that could fit the special teams mold on the field because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the adversity, he's still been able to see which USF players are remaining dependable in virtual team meetings. He's also kept a close eye on their progress in conditioning as well as the online classroom.

"Of course, I'd love to be out on the field and seeing every single one of these kids, but every single day they're being evaluated," he said. "Everything that they do – all day, every day – is a constant evaluation."

Da Prato is confident the Bulls will be able to sort things out on special teams when they're cleared for more field time. Once that happens, he'll be motivated to get the most of his players in an effort to make USF's special teams elite.

"It's our job to push them to places they don't think they can get to," he said. "As soon as they get there, give them a high-five and say, 'Hey, let's go a little further.'"
 
About USF Football
The USF football program first took the field in 1997 and completed its 23^rd season (20^th at the FBS level) in 2019. The Bulls have posted 15 winning seasons, earned 14 All-America selections and 29 first-team all-conference selections and has seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft. USF has made 10 bowl games appearances (going 6-4 in those games) and posted a program record six straight appearances from 2005-2010. The Bulls most recently made four straight bowl appearances from 2015-18 and posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016 while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. USF spent a program record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 seasons and reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings during the 2007 season.
                                                                                
Follow @USFFootball on Twitter for all the latest information concerning the USF Football program.