Joe DeForest joins WVU staff

It is official.

Joe DeForest has joined the WVU football staff in a capacity yet-to-be-determined. I’m sure Holgorsen wants to see who else he’s getting.

After the jump is a shortened version of the official release from MSN.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University football coach Dana Holgorsen has announced that Joe DeForest will join the Mountaineer coaching staff. Holgorsen will announce the coaching responsibilities of his new hires once his staff is complete.

“Joe is an outstanding addition to the West Virginia football staff and brings years of experience, expertise and knowledge of the Big 12 Conference.” Holgorsen said. “He is not only a good coach, but a great teacher.

I worked with him at Oklahoma State and look forward to him and his family joining the Mountaineer program.”

DeForest rejoins Holgorsen on the staff, after spending the past 11 years at Oklahoma State. Both were on the Cowboys’ staff in 2010. At OSU, DeForest was the associate head coach, special teams’ coordinator and safeties coach since 2005. From the 2001-05, he was the special teams’ coordinator and secondary coach for the Cowboys. He worked under Les Miles from 2001-04, and the past seven years under current coach Mike Gundy.

“I am happy to come to West Virginia University and be a part of Dana Holgorsen’s staff,” DeForest said. “Dana has done great things here already, and I look forward to helping him and the staff continue to build on what has already been started. As West Virginia enters the Big 12 Conference and with Dana’s previous knowledge of the conference, I am hopeful that my experience in the league also will be helpful in the transition as well. The Mountaineer program has a lot of history and tradition, and I look forward to West Virginia going to more BCS bowls in the future.”

DeForest brings with him 22 years of collegiate coaching experience, and has coached in nine bowl games. He was named a rivals.com Top 25 recruiter in 2004, 2006 and 2008 and has coached 15 all-conference performers, five All-Americans and nine players who played professionally.

DeForest is a 1987 graduate of University of Southwest Louisiana (now known as University of Louisiana) with a bachelor’s degree in marketing. He was a four-year starter and was twice named to the all-Southern and all-Louisiana independent teams. He also was a two-year lettermen as a pitcher on the Ragin Cajuns’ baseball squad. He received the first annual President’s Cup, signifying the University’s top male athlete.

He played two years of professional football as an outside linebacker and deep snapper, first for the Houston Oilers (NFL) and New Orleans Saints (NFL) in 1987 and then finished career with the Calgary Stampeders (CFL) in 1988.

DeForest was born in Teaneck, N.J., and grew up in Titusville, Fla. He, and his wife, Laura, have one daughter, Ashley.