Jack Hatem named head football coach at Denison

GRANVILLE, Ohio - Following an extensive national search, Denison University has named Jack Hatem as its new head football coach. Hatem, 48, becomes Denison's 20th head coach in the 121-year history of Big Red football. He has spent the last five seasons at Denison as an assistant coach, serving as defensive coordinator for the last three seasons. Hatem succeeds Nick Fletcher, who coached the Big Red for 10 seasons, from 2000 through 2009.

Prior to coming to Denison, Hatem spent 13 years as a high school football head coach. He also served three seasons as the head baseball coach at his alma mater, The University of Rio Grande. Hatem graduated from Rio Grande in 1982, earning his bachelor's degree in health and physical education. He also holds a master's degree in physical education from Ohio University (1992).

"We are thrilled to have Jack as our head football coach," said Larry Scheiderer, Denison's director of athletics, physical education and recreation. "After a comprehensive national search, we are more confident than ever that Coach Hatem is the best person to lead our program." Scheiderer continued, "Over the last five years we have gotten to know Jack very well. His commitment to our athletes, athletic department, and university is unparalleled. We thank Coach Hatem for the tremendous job he did guiding our football program on an interim basis over the last three months, and we have no doubt that the progress made over that time will continue to benefit the program into the 2010 season, and beyond."

A two-time Ohio High School Football Coach of the Year, Hatem brings 25 years of coaching experience and 13 years as a head coach at the high school level to the Denison program. He joined the Denison staff in 2005 and spent two years coaching defensive backs. In 2007 he was promoted to defensive coordinator, and since that time, his defense has forced 64 turnovers, which is the third most in the North Coast Athletic Conference during that span. In 2008 the Big Red posted a 6-4 record, winning five of their final six games of the season. Over the course of that streak, the Denison defense held its opponents to an average of just 12.8 points per game, and for the year, DU's opponents gained just 333.0 yards of total offense per game, which was the lowest average allowed by a Denison defense since 1995.

"I am honored and humbled to be the head coach of  Denison University's football program," Hatem said of his appointment. "Over the last five years, I have worked with some of the finest student-athletes of my entire career." Hatem added, "I grew up watching Keith Piper's great Denison teams of the 1970s and '80s, coming to Deeds Field with my father on Saturday afternoons in the fall. I will honor the rich football history of Denison University while leading the program into the future."

A native of Lancaster, Ohio, and a graduate of Fisher Catholic High School, Hatem was named head football coach at Fisher in 1992. Over the course of three seasons, he led the Fighting Irish to a 22-9 record, including the program's third undefeated season in school history in 1993. That year, Hatem earned his first Ohio High School Coach of the Year recognition and guided his Fisher squad to its first-ever state playoff appearance.

From 1995 to 1997, Hatem served as head football coach at Highland High School in Sparta, Ohio, and in 1998, he took over a struggling New Albany High School football program, quickly turning it into one of the top programs in central Ohio. Hatem was named Ohio High School Football Coach of the Year again in 1999 after guiding New Albany to a 9-1 record, the program's best season dating to 1966.

In addition to his accomplishments on the football field, Hatem also has had considerable success on the baseball diamond. A former baseball standout at Fisher Catholic, Hatem served as head baseball coach at Rio Grande for three seasons, shortly after his graduation from the college. While he was an assistant football coach at Bishop Watterson High School in Columbus, Hatem also served as head baseball coach there. In 1991, he led Watterson to its second state baseball championship.

Hatem currently lives in nearby Lancaster.

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,100 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in rigorous scholarship, civic engagement, and the cultivation of independent thinking.

The Jack Hatem Football File

Year          Position               &n bsp;                    School      

1987          Head Coach                 ;             St. Mary's High School (Minn.)

1988          Assistant Coach                 ;       Newark Catholic High School (Ohio)

1989          Assistant Coach                 ;       Bishop Watterson High School (Columbus, Ohio)

1990          Assistant Coach                 ;       Bishop Watterson High School (Columbus, Ohio)

1991          Graduate Assistant Coach        Ohio University

1992          Head Coach                 ;             Fisher Catholic High School (Lancaster, Ohio)

1993 *       Head Coach                 ;             Fisher Catholic High School (Lancaster, Ohio)

1994          Head Coach                 ;             Fisher Catholic High School (Lancaster, Ohio)

1995          Head Coach                 ;             Highland High School (Sparta, Ohio)

1996          Head Coach                 ;             Highland High School (Sparta, Ohio)

1997          Head Coach                 ;             Highland High School (Sparta, Ohio)

1998          Head Coach                 ;             New Albany High School (Ohio)

1999 *       Head Coach                 ;             New Albany High School (Ohio)

2000          Head Coach                 ;             Arvada West High School (Colo.)

2001          Head Coach                 ;             Arvada West High School (Colo.)

2002          Head Coach                 ;             Greenon High School (Enon, Ohio)

2003          Head Coach                 ;             Greenon High School (Enon, Ohio)

2005          Defensive Backs Coach            Denison University

2006          Defensive Backs Coach            Denison University

2007          Defensive Coordinator              Denison University

2008          Defensive Coordinator              Denison University

2009          Defensive Coordinator              Denison University

 

* denotes Ohio High School Coach of the Year

News Release By:  Craig Hicks, Denison SID