:Darryl Drake

{{Short description|American football player and coach (1956–2019)}}

{{Infobox NFL biography

| name = Darryl Drake

| image = Darryl Drake in 2014.jpg

| image_size =

| alt =

| caption = Drake in 2014

| current_team =

| position =

| birth_date = {{birth date|1956|12|11}}

| birth_place = Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|2019|8|11|1956|12|11}}

| death_place = Latrobe, Pennsylvania, U.S.

| height_ft = 5

| height_in = 8

| weight_lbs =

| high_school = Louisville (KY) Flaget

| college = Western Kentucky

| undraftedyear = 1979

| pastteams =

Washington Redskins ({{nfly|1979}})*
Ottawa Rough Riders ({{cfly|1981}})*
Cincinnati Bengals ({{nfly|1983}})*

| pastcoaching =

Western Kentucky (1983–1984)
Graduate assistant
Western Kentucky (1985–1988)
Wide receivers coach
Western Kentucky (1989–1990)
Defensive backs coach
Western Kentucky (1991)
Quarterbacks coach
Georgia (1992–1996)
Wide receivers coach
Baylor (1997)
Offensive coordinator & quarterbacks coach
Texas (1998–2002)
Wide receivers coach
Texas (2003)
Associate head coach & wide receivers coach
Chicago Bears ({{nfly|2004}}–{{nfly|2012}})
Wide receivers coach
Arizona Cardinals ({{nfly|2013}}–{{nfly|2017}})
Wide receivers coach
Pittsburgh Steelers ({{nfly|2018}}–{{nfly|2019}})
Wide receivers coach

| highlights =

| pfrcoach =

}}

Darryl Drake (December 11, 1956 – August 11, 2019) was an American football player and coach. His career spanned four decades, including stints as the wide receivers coach of the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, and Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL).

College career

Drake played wide receiver for Western Kentucky University from 1975 to 1978.{{Cite web|url=http://www.chicagobears.com/team/coaches/Darryl-Drake/8fe76eca-7be6-42ec-afdb-d1495083be5b|title=Chicago Bears|website=Chicagobears.om|accessdate=August 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304115918/http://www.chicagobears.com/team/coaches/Darryl-Drake/8fe76eca-7be6-42ec-afdb-d1495083be5b|archive-date=March 4, 2016|url-status=dead}} In 2023, he was inducted into the Western Kentucky University Athletic Hall of Fame.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

Professional career

Drake played wide receiver for three professional teams, the Washington Redskins in 1979, the Ottawa Rough Riders in 1981, and the Cincinnati Bengals in 1983.

Coaching career

Drake coached at the collegiate level for 21 years. He joined the Chicago Bears coaching staff on February 6, 2004. On January 17, 2013, Drake was not retained by new head coach Marc Trestman.{{cite web|last=Mayer|first=Larry|url=http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Trestman-in-process-of-assembling-coaching-staff/4f4113be-7fad-45e3-9f02-65c7ad031dbd|title=Trestman in process of assembling coaching staff|publisher=Chicago Bears|date=January 17, 2013|accessdate=January 17, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130120194411/http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Trestman-in-process-of-assembling-coaching-staff/4f4113be-7fad-45e3-9f02-65c7ad031dbd|archive-date=January 20, 2013|url-status=dead}} He later spent five seasons with the Arizona Cardinals before joining the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2018.{{cite news|last=Klinger|first=Jacob|url=https://www.pennlive.com/steelers/2018/01/steelers_wr_coach_darryl_drake.html|title=Steelers hire Darryl Drake as receivers coach: report|newspaper=The Patriot-News|date=January 20, 2018|accessdate=August 11, 2019}}

Personal life

Drake and his wife, Sheila, had three daughters. He died on August 11, 2019, at the age of 62. The official cause of death is still to be determined.{{cite web|url=https://www.nfl.com/news/steelers-wr-coach-darryl-drake-dies-at-age-of-62-0ap3000001040859|title=Steelers WR coach Darryl Drake dies at age of 62|work=NFL.com|date=August 11, 2019|access-date=August 11, 2019}}