Jan. 4, 2002
WACO, Texas - Baylor Head Football Coach Kevin Steele announced Friday the hiring of Dave Baldwin as the Bears' new offensive coordinator and quarterback coach. Baldwin, a noted offensive mind who was offensive coordinator this past season at the University of Cincinnati, spent four seasons as head coach and offensive play-caller at San Jose State from 1997-2000.
"I'm excited about the opportunity to be a part of something special here at Baylor," Baldwin said. "The three things that interested me the most about this job were Kevin Steele, the Big 12 Conference and the opportunity to coach in the state of Texas, which has such a great football tradition.
"Kevin and this staff have laid a great foundation for success, and it will be fun to see the final pieces come together. I believe the Big 12 is the best college football conference in America when you consider national rankings, bowl appearances and overall talent. And the high school coaches in Texas do a tremendous job of producing the best talent in the nation."
Cincinnati, which lost to Toledo last week in the Motor City Bowl, finished the season 7-5. The Bearcat offense finished in the top 40 nationally in total yards (416.3), scoring (29.1) and passing (269.8) in Baldwin's first season. He had similar success at San Jose State, where his 2000 team finished in the top 30 nationally in total yards (417.3), scoring (31.2) and rushing (189.1).
"As I called football people from around the country and started asking about certain individuals, the name that kept popping up over and over was Dave Baldwin's," Steele said. "And after meeting and talking with him, it's obvious he has a very progressive offensive mind.
"Dave has two qualities that we said were essential when we began this search: he knows how to move the football and he knows how to coach quarterbacks. He's done it well, he's done it consistently, and he's done it at more than one place. When he was a head coach, he served as his own offensive coordinator and quarterback coach."
Baldwin's six-year major college head coaching record of 27-39 doesn't adequately represent his coaching accomplishments. In 1997, he guided San Jose State to a 4-7 mark, including a win over No. 24 Air Force. The rebuilding project with the Spartans culminated in a 7-5 record in 2000, San Jose State's best mark in eight years, and wins over Stanford and then ninth-ranked TCU, ending the Horned Frogs nation's best 12-game winning streak. In four seasons at San Jose State, Baldwin's Spartans posted three wins over nearby Stanford, including a victory during the Cardinal's 1999 Rose Bowl season.
A 1978 graduate of Cal State Northridge, Baldwin began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater in 1979 before starting a four-year tenure as receivers coach at San Jose State in 1980.
Baldwin moved to Stanford as receivers coach in 1984, helping the team to an 8-4 record and a Gator Bowl bid in 1986. He was promoted to passing game coordinator in 1988.
In 1990, Baldwin was named head coach at Santa Barbara City College, where he compiled a 23-18 mark in four seasons (1990-93). He was named California Community College Region III Coach of the Year in 1991 after guiding his team to a 9-2 record. He took over as head coach at Santa Rosa Junior College in 1994, leading the team to an 8-3 record.
Baldwin returned to his alma mater, Cal State Northridge, as head coach in 1995, recording a 9-12 record in two seasons, including a 7-4 ledger in 1996, the school's first winning season in four years at the Division I-AA level.
In 2001, he oversaw an offense that produced Conference USA freshman of the year Gino Guidugli, who passed for over 250 yards a game while completing 58 percent of his attempts and throwing 16 touchdowns compared to only nine interceptions.
THE DAVE BALDWIN FILE
1978 Granada Hills (Calif.) HS [assistant coach]1979 Cal State Northridge [graduate assistant]1980-83 San Jose State [wide receivers]1984-88 Stanford [wide receivers]1990-93 Santa Barbara Junior College [head coach]1994 Santa Rosa Junior College [head coach]1995-96 Cal State Northridge [head coach]1997-00 San Jose State [head coach]2001 Cincinnati [offensive coordinator]
