1. Daniel "Sonny" Dykes was born on November 9,1969 and is an American football coach, and a former college baseball player.
44 Facts About Sonny Dykes
1. 2.
Sonny Dykes is currently the head football coach at Texas Christian University, and previously served in the same role at Southern Methodist University from 2018 to 2021, the University of California, Berkeley from 2013 to 2016, and Louisiana Tech University from 2010 to 2012.
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Sonny Dykes then moved to the junior college level as an assistant football coach, including stints with Kentucky, Texas Tech, and Arizona.
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In 2010, Sonny Dykes became a head college football coach for the first time at Louisiana Tech.
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In 2017, Sonny Dykes was hired as head coach at Southern Methodist University.
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Sonny Dykes graduated from Coronado High School in Lubbock, Texas, where he played both football and baseball.
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Sonny Dykes lettered for three years as a first baseman for the Texas Tech baseball team.
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Sonny Dykes earned a bachelor's degree in history from Texas Tech University in 1993 and a master's degree from the University of Kentucky in 1999.
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Sonny Dykes began his career in the spring of 1994 as an assistant baseball coach at Monahans High School in Monahans, Texas.
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Later in 1994, Sonny Dykes switched to coaching football as the running backs coach for JJ Pearce High School in Richardson, Texas.
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From 1995 to 1996, Sonny Dykes coached at Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas.
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At Navarro, Sonny Dykes coached Leroy Fields, who led the nation in receiving and was selected in the seventh-round of the 2000 NFL draft by the Denver Broncos.
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In 1998, Sonny Dykes served as the wide receivers coach at Northeast Louisiana.
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In 1997, Sonny Dykes served as a graduate assistant and tight ends coach at Kentucky under head coach Hal Mumme.
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Sonny Dykes returned to Kentucky in 1999 to serve on Mumme's staff as wide receivers coach and special teams coordinator.
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At Kentucky, Sonny Dykes coached James Whalen who earned consensus All-America honors and set the all-time NCAA Division I record for receptions by a tight end.
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Sonny Dykes coached wide receiver Quentin McCord who was selected in the seventh-round of the 2001 NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons.
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In 2000, Sonny Dykes joined Mike Leach's staff at Texas Tech as the wide receivers coach.
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Sonny Dykes coached wide receiver Carlos Francis who finished his career at Texas Tech with the second-most career touchdowns and third-most career receiving yards, and Francis was selected in the fourth-round of the 2004 NFL draft by the Oakland Raiders.
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That season Sonny Dykes directed an offense that scored 32 points per game, and two receivers ranked top three in the nation in receptions per game and a third receiver ranked in the top twenty.
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Sonny Dykes helped develop Joel Filani into a two-time first team All-Big 12 honoree and a sixth-round selection in the 2007 NFL draft by the Tennessee Titans.
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Sonny Dykes joined Mike Stoops' staff at Arizona as offensive coordinator in 2007.
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On January 20,2010, Sonny Dykes was hired to replace Derek Dooley as the head football coach of Louisiana Tech.
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On December 5,2012, Sonny Dykes was announced as the 33rd head football coach at the University of California, Berkeley.
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Sonny Dykes inherited Jared Goff who was recruited in 2012 by Sonny Dykes predecessor Jeff Tedford.
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Sonny Dykes named Jared Goff as the team's starting quarterback, making him the first true freshman quarterback to start a season opener in Cal history.
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Sonny Dykes' defense struggled even worse in 2014 under the coordination of Art Kaufman, surrendering the most yards in the history of college football.
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Sonny Dykes high powered attack finished 5th in the nation for completions per game, 3rd in passing yards per game, 2nd in passing touchdowns per game, and 8th in total yards per game.
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Shortly after the conclusion of the 2015 season, Sonny Dykes stated that he did not anticipate any staff turnover.
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However, offensive coordinator Tony Franklin resigned from his position at California a few weeks after Sonny Dykes made this statement.
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On January 8,2017, Sonny Dykes was fired as the head coach of the Cal Golden Bears.
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Sonny Dykes had only one win against any of Cal's in-state Pac-12 rivals.
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Sonny Dykes' teams lost to division rival Oregon in his first three outings before beating the Ducks in 2016.
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Later Sonny Dykes Cumbie became head coach at Louisiana Tech.
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None of these schools made Sonny Dykes an offer to hire him as head coach.
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Sonny Dykes nevertheless negotiated an extension with the University of California.
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Less than a year after receiving this extension, Sonny Dykes interviewed for the head coaching vacancy at Baylor University, but Baylor athletic director Mack Rhoades instead decided to hire Matt Rhule.
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Under contract through the 2019 season, Sonny Dykes was owed $5.88 million, 70 percent of his remaining base salary and talent fee.
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Besides his losing record, California Athletic Director Mike Williams has stated that Sonny Dykes had never "settled into California, the Bay Area or the Cal experience" as reasons for the firing.
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Sonny Dykes turned everything around in 2019, doubling SMU's wins from the year prior.
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Sonny Dykes received recognition, as he was named a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award and the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award.
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Sonny Dykes left the program at the conclusion of the 2021 regular season to take the head coaching job at TCU.
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On November 29,2021, Dykes was announced as the new head coach of the TCU Horned Frogs, flying across the Metroplex from Dallas to Fort Worth in a helicopter that landed on the field at Amon G Carter Stadium for an introductory ceremony ahead of the official press conference, which was held the next day.
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Sonny Dykes earned the AFCA Coach of the Year, AP Coach of the Year, Big 12 Coach of the Year, Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year, Home Depot Coach of the Year, Bear Bryant Coach of the Year, and Walter Camp Coach of the Year Awards.