Dameyune Craig
Encyclopedia
Dameyune Vashon Craig is a former professional American football
quarterback
in the National Football League
for four seasons for the Carolina Panthers
. He is currently the quarterbacks coach
for Florida State University
.
for Mattie T. Blount High School for legendary coach Ben Harris. He helped lead his team to two state championships in 1990 and 1992.
from 1993–1997, where he wore jersey number 16. He was redshirted for the undefeated 1993 season, during Coach Terry Bowden
's first year, then served as the backup quarterback to starter Patrick Nix
during 1994 and 1995 (and was MVP of the spring game). Occasionally during those two seasons he would enter the game at quarterback in place of Nix in goalline situations, where his running ability could be put to good use.
He was named Auburn's starting quarterback for the 1996 and 1997 seasons. He led Auburn to victory over Army in the Independence Bowl
in 1996; including setting Auburn offensive team record of 588 total yards in a 62-0 victory over Fresno State. He also prevailed in bowl victory over Clemson University
in the Peach Bowl in 1997. In that ten-win senior season, he also led the Tigers to the SEC Western Division title and a berth in the SEC Championship Game
in Atlanta. Despite a strong performance by Craig, Auburn lost the game to Peyton Manning
's highly favored Tennessee Volunteers
, 30-29.
hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
. A placard to explain his jersey's presence reads: his professional American football
-record 611 yards passing in a game between the Claymores and the Frankfurt Galaxy
on May 22, 1999.
, in 2004.
to the Miami Dolphins
as a special teams assistant coach.
Golden Tigers. Tuskegee has won two Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
in Craig's two seasons on staff. They also won the black college football national championship
in 2007.
s coach at the University of South Alabama
in 2008.
at Florida State University in December 2009.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
for four seasons for the Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
. He is currently the quarterbacks coach
Quarterbacks coach
A quarterbacks coach is a coach in charge of the quarterbacks in gridiron football. The quarterbacks coach typically operates under the offensive coordinator on a team's coaching staff....
for Florida State University
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
.
Early years
Craig played high school footballHigh school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
for Mattie T. Blount High School for legendary coach Ben Harris. He helped lead his team to two state championships in 1990 and 1992.
College career
Craig played college football at Auburn UniversityAuburn University
Auburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts...
from 1993–1997, where he wore jersey number 16. He was redshirted for the undefeated 1993 season, during Coach Terry Bowden
Terry Bowden
Terry Bowden is an American football coach at the University of North Alabama. Bowden was previously the head coach at Salem University , Samford University , and Auburn University . Bowden is the son of former Florida State University head football coach Bobby Bowden...
's first year, then served as the backup quarterback to starter Patrick Nix
Patrick Nix
Patrick Nix is a college football coach and former player in the United States.-Player:Patrick Nix began his career at Etowah High School in Attalla, Alabama. Nix was a standout quarterback at Auburn University, where he came in for an injured Stan White vs. Alabama to help lead the Tigers to a...
during 1994 and 1995 (and was MVP of the spring game). Occasionally during those two seasons he would enter the game at quarterback in place of Nix in goalline situations, where his running ability could be put to good use.
He was named Auburn's starting quarterback for the 1996 and 1997 seasons. He led Auburn to victory over Army in the Independence Bowl
Independence Bowl
The Independence Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I college football bowl game that is played annually at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana, so named because it was inaugurated in the United States bicentennial year, 1976....
in 1996; including setting Auburn offensive team record of 588 total yards in a 62-0 victory over Fresno State. He also prevailed in bowl victory over Clemson University
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....
in the Peach Bowl in 1997. In that ten-win senior season, he also led the Tigers to the SEC Western Division title and a berth in the SEC Championship Game
SEC Championship Game
The SEC Championship Game refers to the game determining the Southeastern Conference's football season champion. The championship game pits the SEC Western Division representative against the Eastern Division representative in a game held after the regular season has been completed. Thus far, nine...
in Atlanta. Despite a strong performance by Craig, Auburn lost the game to Peyton Manning
Peyton Manning
Peyton Williams Manning is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League . Manning holds the record for most NFL MVP awards with four. He was drafted by the Colts as the first overall pick in 1998 after a standout college football career with the...
's highly favored Tennessee Volunteers
Tennessee Volunteers
The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the National Collegiate Athletic Association college sports teams at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. Mike Hamilton is the most recent Men's Athletic Director, but resigned on June 7, 2011, and Joan Cronan is the current Women's...
, 30-29.
Professional career
Dameyune Craig's jersey from his NFL Europa stint with the Scottish ClaymoresScottish Claymores
The Scottish Claymores were an American football team from Scotland. The franchise played in the World League of American Football between 1995 and 2004, initially playing all home games at Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh and latterly sharing home games with Hampden Park, Glasgow...
hangs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
. A placard to explain his jersey's presence reads: his professional American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
-record 611 yards passing in a game between the Claymores and the Frankfurt Galaxy
Frankfurt Galaxy
The Frankfurt Galaxy was a professional American football team that originally played in the World League of American Football and later in the resurrected NFL Europe. The team was based in Frankfurt, Germany and played in the Commerzbank-Arena, formerly called the Waldstadion.-History:In 1991, the...
on May 22, 1999.
Blount High School
Craig entered the coaching ranks with a season as an assistant at his alma mater Blount High School.LSU
Craig then spent a season as a graduate assistant at LSU with his previous quarterbacks coach at Auburn, Jimbo FisherJimbo Fisher
John James "Jimbo" Fisher is an American college football coach and former player. He is currently head coach at Florida State University....
, in 2004.
Miami Dolphins
In 2005, he followed LSU head coach Nick SabanNick Saban
Nicholas Lou "Nick" Saban is the head coach of the University of Alabama's Crimson Tide football team. Saban has previously served as head coach of the National Football League's Miami Dolphins and three other NCAA universities: LSU, Michigan State and Toledo...
to the Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
as a special teams assistant coach.
Tuskegee
In 2006, Craig left to become the quarterbacks coach for the Division II Tuskegee UniversityTuskegee University
Tuskegee University is a private, historically black university located in Tuskegee, Alabama, United States. It is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
Golden Tigers. Tuskegee has won two Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is a College athletic conference consisting of historically black colleges and universities located in the southern United States. Formed in 1913, the SIAC is a member of the NCAA and participates in Division II athletics...
in Craig's two seasons on staff. They also won the black college football national championship
Black college football national championship
The black college football national championship is a mythical national championship won by the best black college football team in the United States of America. There has been some criticism of this title on the grounds that the schools in the various polls compete in different levels of...
in 2007.
South Alabama
Craig became the wide receiverWide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
s coach at the University of South Alabama
University of South Alabama
The University of South Alabama is a public, doctoral-level university in Mobile, Alabama, USA. It was created by the Alabama Legislature in 1963, and replaced existing extension programs operated in Mobile by the University of Alabama. No other areas of the state were willing to support such a...
in 2008.
Florida State
Craig became the quarterbacks coachQuarterbacks coach
A quarterbacks coach is a coach in charge of the quarterbacks in gridiron football. The quarterbacks coach typically operates under the offensive coordinator on a team's coaching staff....
at Florida State University in December 2009.