MIAMI – New Florida International head football coach Butch Davis has turned to one of his former players to join his coaching staff.
Davis said Monday that former Miami wide receiver Kevin Beard will serve as wide receivers coach for the Panthers in 2017.
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"I'm excited to have Kevin Beard join the FIU coaching staff," Davis said in a statement. "I've known Kevin since he was in high school. He is a great person who is full energy and loves the game. He is a tremendous recruiter and is well known in the South Florida area. He also is driven to be an outstanding coach and has a proven track record as a teacher on the field."
Beard played for the Hurricanes from 1999-2003 and was a member of Miami's 2001 national championship team. He finished his college career with more than 900 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.
Davis, who coached the Hurricanes from 1995-2000, recruited Beard from Plantation High School, where he was a standout receiver who garnered all-state accolades and was named Broward County's co-offensive player of the year by the SunSentinel.
Beard returns to South Florida after spending the 2016 season as offensive quality control coach at Georgia. He previously coached wide receivers at Miami in 2015.
Davis has retained FIU secondaries coach Bobby Babich and running backs coach Tim Harris Jr. He also hired former Utah State head coach Brent Guy to serve as defensive coordinator.