Dennis Darnell enters his second season as the offensive coordinator for the Bears.

Darnell spent 2006 as the head coach for Republic High School in Republic, Mo., after two years as the offensive coordinator at Missouri State. He's had stints for one year at high school and junior college and the rest of his varied experience has come at four-year schools.

Prior to Missouri State, Darnell was the head coach at East Central University in Ada, Okla., for five seasons, posting a 21-32 record. In 2001, he was named the Lone Star Conference Coach of the Year after going 6-4.

Darnell was the offensive coordinator at New Mexico from 1992-98 under head coach Dennis Franchione and Rocky Long. During his tenure with the Lobos, Darnell led an offensive line that provided the blocking for units that were the second and third-ranked scoring offenses in Division I, ranked sixth in total offense and set 16 New Mexico school records. The Lobos won the 1997 WAC championship and played Arizona in the 1997 Insight.com Bowl game.

He also served a one-year stint at Utah State, as the recruiting coordinator and tight end coach after being the head coach at Missouri Western from 1986-90 with a record of 19-23-1.

Prior to that, Darnell was an assistant coach at Drake for the second time in his career, guiding the Bulldogs' offensive line from 1983-1985. He was also at Drake in the mid-1970s.

A native of El Dorado Springs, Mo., Darnell graduated from Missouri State (formerly Southwest Missouri State) in 1969 with a degree in physical education. He then went on to earn his master's degree at Pittsburg (Kan.) State in 1970. Darnell lettered at offensive center for the Bears from 1966-68.

After his 1969 SMS graduation, Darnell began his coaching career as a graduate assistant for the Missouri Southern State. Upon receiving his master's degree, he was an assistant football coach and wrestling coach at Pratt Junior College, head football coach and track coach at Sullivan (Mo.) High School and assistant football coach at Wichita State. He has also been an assistant coach at Missouri Southern, Wake Forest and Southeast Missouri State.

Darnell and his wife, Karen, have one son, Pete, who is the quarterbacks coach at Northern Colorado.