USF Assistant Kevin Patrick Lengthy Pushed By Challenges, Need To Study

Whether or not it was as an All-American defensive finish at Miami the place he roomed with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, a younger skilled constructing a enterprise or a coach imploring younger males to be the most effective model of themselves, two issues have lengthy pushed Kevin Patrick: a want to be challenged and a thirst for studying.

There have been loads of skilled challenges and studying experiences of late for the 52-year-old Patrick. When he joined coach Alex Golesh’s workers in December to be a line of defense coach on the College of South Florida, his third stint on the college, he grew to become a part of a program that has struggled in recent times.

“Everyone loves winners and novices,” he stated. “We’re undoubtedly originally stage of a brand new period right here. These guys are following a course of. They don’t seem to be considering forward. They’re attempting to be the place their toes are. We’re going to hit some bumps and hurdles and these guys are studying how one can do the issues a winner does and do it the appropriate method.”

Patrick was a winner at Miami below coach Dennis Erickson. He was member of the 1991 nationwide champion Hurricanes, battled by accidents to earn All-Massive East recognition in 1992 and recorded a team-high 10 sacks in 1993 when he was named First-Group All-American by the Related Press.

Patrick’s teammates in Coral Gables included Johnson, Gino Torretta, Warren Sapp, Jessie Armstead, Leon Searcy and present Miami head coach Mario Cristobal.

“I speak to Gino Torretta and I speak to Warren Sapp rather a lot,” he stated. “They’re my brothers and we love one another. None of us is ideal, however when it comes right down to it, we sacrificed rather a lot for one another. It’s a bond that’s distinctive.”

When requested how Johnson was as a roommate, Patrick stated, “He was clear, very neat. ‘Dewey’ remains to be a superb buddy. He’s a superb human being.”

Patrick has taken a novel path to get so far. He broke into teaching following an injury-riddled try at an NFL profession, although teaching was not one thing he thought of.

“I by no means considered being a soccer coach,” he stated. “I acquired a telephone name out of the blue. It was Jim Leavitt asking me if I needed to teach. I stated, ‘positive.’ I confirmed up and began teaching.”

That was 1996 when Patrick confirmed up in Tampa to teach defensive ends and assist Leavitt launch this system at USF, which had its inaugural season the next 12 months. Patrick, who acquired his diploma from Miami in enterprise administration, remained with the Bulls till 1998. That was when he sought alternatives that led him away from soccer.

Patrick joined forces with former Miami teammates Rusty Medearis and Jason Marucci in working a West Palm Seaside-based medical billing firm.

“It was the most effective factor I ever did as a result of I had achieved nothing however go to high school and play soccer,” he stated. “I challenged myself and needed to do one thing totally different. I had a whole lot of success and there have been additionally a few bumps right here and there.”

Via the ups and downs Patrick was all the time studying, all the time asking questions as he was constructing the corporate, constructing himself.

“I can bear in mind speaking to medical doctors who began their very own orthopedic clinics and speaking to them about their group strategies, similar to in teaching,” he recalled. “To at the present time, I be taught from my gamers, I be taught from highschool coaches. I steal concepts.”

The teaching concepts started to stream as soon as once more in 2008 when he returned to USF to rejoin Leavitt, after which work below Skip Holtz. He coached defensive linemen by 2012 earlier than taking related positions at North Texas, Texas Tech, North Carolina State and FAU, the place he spent the previous three seasons teaching exterior linebackers below Willie Taggart.

The primary 12 months of his stint in Boca Raton was with Leavitt, the Owls’ defensive coordinator in 2020. The final two years have been working with Todd Orlando, who took over for Leavitt because the DC. Orlando assumed the identical position below Golesh at USF, which was the connection that introduced Patrick to Tampa a 3rd time.

“I needed to return to USF and I let all people understand it,” he stated, noting how his nice uncle, who handed away earlier this 12 months, and was the important thing male determine in his life as a youth, and several other cousins made their option to Raymond James Stadium to tailgate throughout Patrick’s first two stints at USF.

Since returning to Tampa, Patrick has been letting his linemen know that whereas they’ll aspire to be like Sapp or Jason Pierre-Paul, who he coached at USF in 2009, they need to dwell within the current whereas bettering themselves for tomorrow. That’s an underlined half of a bigger message resonating by a program that has misplaced 33 of its final 37 video games courting to the top of the 2019 season.

“Let’s be the most effective model of ourselves and actually get again to how the tradition was earlier than after we would step throughout that line and play with anyone,” stated Patrick, whose depth and want to make his gamers higher is unmistakable and unwavering. “That’s what we now have to get again to.”

Taking part in with anyone, and defeating most all people, is what Patrick and his Miami teammates did so properly.

“Folks all the time checked out us as thugs and I used to be like, ‘Do I appear like a thug to you?’’ he stated. “We have been simply totally different, and we had some nice human beings. We now have some nice human beings right here (at USF) as properly. Guys that I simply take pleasure in being round and would have cherished to play with.”