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"My ultimate goal at Old Dominion is to aim high and be the best defensive line coach I can be, not only in the CAA, but in the entire country. The d-line is and will be the foundation of our defense and our team. Hopefully hard work and dedication to the program will help our team attain that goal."
- Coach Cotton
Dealton Cotton finished his fifth season as a member of the Monarch Football coaching staff. Cotton oversees the Monarchs' defensive line and also added the title of Assistant Head Coach to his name in the Fall of 2011.
Cotton coached senior defensive lineman Chris Burnette to the finest season of all CAA defensive tackles, as Burnette led all league d-linemen with 73 tackles. Burnette earned first-team All-CAA accolades and All-America honors from several publications. Sophomore defensive tackles Dominique Guinn-Bailey stood out as well, earning third-team All-CAA. Cotton's group helped the Monarchs finish 16th in the country with 38 sacks.
During his time at Old Dominion, Cotton has helped the Monarchs to a 27-8 mark in three seasons as the winningest start-up FCS program. In 2011, the Monarchs not only achieved its first-ever national ranking, but finished the season 10th in the country in both the Sports Network/Fathead.com and FCS Coaches Polls.
Playing in their first season in the nationally renowed Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), Old Dominion finished second with a 6-2 record. Under Cotton's tutledge, defensive tackle Ronnie Cameron has become the most decorated Monarch in the school's brief history. Cameron earned not only All-America honors from seven different publications in 2011, but was named the CAA's Defensive Player of the Year and the CAA Student-Athlete of the Year for his contributions on the field, in the classroom, and around the community. Additionally, Chris Burnette earned Third Team All-CAA honors in the Monarchs' inaugural season in the league.
A native of Norfolk, Cotton spent 13 years coaching high school football, including the last five as a head coach.Before joining the Monarch coaching staff, Cotton was at the helm of the Maury High School program, coaching the Commodores to a four-year mark of 30-15. He earned District Coach of the Year and NFL State Coach of the Year honors in 2005 after posting a mark of 10-2.
Cotton's first head coaching stint came at Hertford County High School in North Carolina where he earned another District Coach of the Year distinction in 2003 after taking the Bears from 5-5 the previous season to a mark of 10-2.
Cotton holds three degrees from East Carolina University including a bachelor's in criminal justice and a bachelor's and master's degree in social work.
A four-year letterman at nose guard for the Pirates' football team, Cotton helped guide ECU to appearances in the 1992 Peach Bowl and the 1994 Liberty Bowl.
The Cotton File:
Hometown: Norfolk, Va.
High School: Granby High School
College: East Carolina '95
Family: Wife - Tephanie
Recruiting Areas:
Primary: Virginia - Virginia (Northern Virginia, Fredericksburg, Stafford, 29 to 81 Corridor)
Auxiliary: Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin
Coaching History:
2011 - Present: Old Dominion University - Assistant Head Coach - Defensive Line
2008 - 2010: Old Dominion University - Defensive Line
2003 - 2007: Maury High School - Head Coach
2001 - 2003 : Hertford County High School - Head Coach
All-American Monarchs Under Coach Cotton:
2011: Ronnie Cameron
2012: Chris Burnette
All-Conference Monarchs Under Coach Cotton:
2011: Ronnie Cameron - CAA Defensive Player of the Year, First Team All-CAA; Chris Burnette - Third Team All-CAA
2012: Chris Burnette - First Team All-CAA
2012: Dominique Guinn-Bailey - Third Team All-CAA
"Coach Cotton helped to develop three outstanding defensive linemen this past season in Ronnie Cameron, Chad King, and Edmon McClam. Cameron was a First Team All-American and the CAA Defensive Player of the Year. i am confident he will develop our young d-line into a solid group in 2012."
- Head Coach Bobby Wilder on Coach Cotton