Here's one for the "David Bailiff-Good Guy" file:

Barrick Nealy, the QB who led the Bailiff-coached Texas State team to the 2005 FCS semifinals, earned his bachelors degree in May and has now been hired as UTEP's Director of Player Development. The Miners' new head coach, Dana Dimel, had coached Nealy during his single year as a Cougar before transferring to Texas State.

Quote:“He was my first collegiate coach. So, I was pretty excited about the opportunity to reconnect with him. You know, he was a guy that sat in my living room and sold the University of Houston program to my family and I. He was the one my mother trusted. So, we go way back."

But Bailiff played a big role in Nealy being prepared to enter the coaching profession. From the May 11, 2017, San Marcos Daily Record:

Quote:Making the decision to go back to school was a tough one for Nealy, especially having a wife and three young children. There was so much planning that had to take place and he couldn’t have done it without a great support system of friends and family. Atop of that list of supporters was former Texas State head coach and current Rice head coach, David Bailiff. From the very beginning Coach Bailiff’s slogan was, “We live for each other.”

“I can honestly say that Coach Bailiff has honored that commitment to the highest extent,” Nealy said.

Nealy talks about that long phone conversation he had with Coach Bailiff last summer, regarding his personal desires, as if it was a father giving his son advice on how to get from one step to the next. You see, Nealy’s big picture is all about helping young people navigate the dynamics and demands of being a student-athlete. But in order to get to the next level, he understood that he needed to take a few steps back himself.

Bailiff not only helped Nealy construct a plan, but he made sure that his former quarterback had the necessary resources to complete the plan.

The Austin American-Statesman report on Nealy's new job showed a photo of Bailiff consoling him after the FCS playoff loss:



BTW, Nealy's been coaching in San Marcos while finishing his degree. One of his last pupils is QB Prudencio (Prudy) Calderon, who -- as noted here by FBO -- this week flipped his commitment from Rice to Yale.

FTR, Rice alum (1978) and 4-year football letterman (1973-76) Nate Poss is UTEP's Assistant Athletic Director for Football Operations.

That file is very thick. It probably extended his tenure by a year or two

I remember him. He had the potential to be Greg Ward before Greg Ward.