Derek Stingley

Derek Stingley (born April 9, 1971 in Chicago, Illinois) is a former arena football Head Coach for the New Orleans Voodoo of AFL. He also had an eight year career as a defensive specialist for the Albany Firebirds. He played college baseball at Triton College. He was selected in the 1993 Major League Baseball Draft as a center fielder by the Philadelphia Phillies, where he spent three seasons (1993–1995).

Early life
Stingley was just seven years old when his father, New England Patriots wide receiver Darryl Stingley, was paralyzed, in a preseason game, after being hit by Oakland Raiders safety Jack Tatum on August 20, 1978.

College career
Stingley enrolled at Purdue University in 1989, where he intended to play both football and baseball. However he soon decided that he was too small, at just 5' 10" tall and 150 pounds, to play Big Ten football. So he decided to leave Purdue and attended two smaller, junior colleges in Indiana. Finally graduating from Triton College.

Professional playing career
Stingley was selected in the 1993 Major League Baseball Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies. He played in the Phillies organization for three seasons before deciding to attempt to play professional football. He began his professional football career playing for the Louisiana Bayou Thunder, a semi-pro football team. He was then signed to an Arena Football League contract by then-head coach of the Albany Firebirds Mike Hohensee.

On June 14, 1998, Stingley was on the receiving end of a hard hit by Thomas Orr of the New York CityHawks that left him unconscious for 10 minutes, many believing that Stingley, like his father, had been paralyzed by the hit. However, he wasn't paralyzed from the hit. Coincidentally, his father was in attendance at that game. As a result he did miss one game, suffering a concussion from the hit. In 1999, Stingley was signed to the New York Jets' practice squad. However, he was released by the team after just three practices. On January 15, 2002, Stingley was waived by the Chicago Rush. In February 2003, Stingley signed with the Carolina Cobras.

af2 (2005 - present)
Stingley began his coaching career with the Macon Knights of the af2, the Arena Football League's minor league, in 2005 as Defensive Coordinator, but was promoted to Head Coach mid-way through the season. He coached the Knights for two seasons. He was able to turn around a losing 2-4 record, finishing the 2005 season at 8-8 and making the playoffs. In the 2006 season, the team again finished 8-8, just missing the playoffs by one game. After spending two seasons with the Knights, he was hired as the head coach of the South Georgia Wildcats, after Donnie Davis was fired after a 3-13 season.

In 2007, his first season in Georgia, Stingley recorded a 10-6 record and advanced to the second round of the playoffs. In his second and final season with the Wildcats, he was named the 2008 Coach of the Year after the Wildcats finished with a 12-4 record, winning their final seven games to close out the regular season and captured first place in the league's South Division. The team also finished in the top ten in several statistical categories, including scoring defense, rushing defense and interceptions.

While a head coach in af2, his overall record was 37 wins and 25 losses, a winning percentage of .597, including three postseason appearances.

On November 17, it was announced that Stingley had signed with the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings to become the teams Defensive Coordinator.

Arena Football League (2009)
On September 16, 2008, he was hired by the New Orleans VooDoo as their new defensive coordinator. On October 15, 2008 the Voodoo announced that the team was ceasing operations resulting in Stingley's contract being nullified. On September 16, 2010, he was hired by the New Orleans VooDoo as their new Head Coach. On June 26, 2011 Derek Stingley was released by the New Orleans Voodoo as the head coach.

Personal
Stingley is the youngest child of former New England Patriots wide receiver Darryl and Tina Stingley. He currently resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana along with his wife Natasha and their four children Isis, Nahjha, Derek Jr., and Sanaa. Derek is the youngest of three sons, his siblings, Darryl Stingley Jr and John Shawn Smith.