Colorado Coach Darrin Chiaverini Relieved of Coaching Duties
On the morning of Nov. 28, Colorado Head Coach Karl Dorrell relieved Darrin Chiaverini of all of his coaching duties, effective immediately.
Not even 48 hours after the final whistle on the Colorado Buffaloes 2021 football season, another change was made to Head Coach Karl Dorrell’s coaching staff. On Nov. 28 at 10:23 a.m. Offensive Coordinator and Wide Receivers Coach Darrin Chiaverini was relieved of his coaching duties.
The change was made after their final game of the season, a 28-13 loss against the then 19th ranked Utah Utes, a game where the offense only produced two field goals, as the only Colorado touchdown of the game came on Nikko Reed’s 100-plus yard kick return touchdown. This was Colorado’s third game of the season where the offense failed to score a touchdown.
“I believe it’s just time to go in a different direction,” Head Coach Karl Dorrell said in a statement. “We need a new perspective, which can bring new life and a different energy along with it. In the end, we need to do what’s best for the program, and at the same time, certainly wish Darrin the best in his future endeavors.”
Chiaverini’s offense sputtered for most of the year, averaging just a mere 257.4 total yards per game (126.2 rushing, 131.2 passing) en route to a 4-8 record on the season (3-6 Pac-12). Many fans were not happy about the Buffs’ offensive production all year long and had been pointing towards Chiaverini’s questionable play calling.
Chiaverini was a wide receiver for the Buffaloes from 1995-1998, where they had two ten-win seasons and three bowl game victories in that span. He was a team captain as a senior in 1998, the year where the Buffaloes won the Aloha Bowl. In 2016, he was brought back to Boulder by Head Coach Mike MacIntyre, this time as the team’s Co-Offensive Coordinator and Wide Receivers Coach.
In his first season as a member of the coaching staff, he helped lead the team to be the Pac-12 South Division Champions and a 10-3 record on the year, a major turnaround from their 4-9 record the previous year. Chiaverini was also the team’s recruiting coordinator and helped to drastically improve the team’s recruiting class in 2017.
After three seasons of being the Co-Offensive Coordinator, the Wide Receivers Coach, and the Recruiting Coordinator, Chiaverini was promoted from Co-Offensive Coordinator to Assistant Head Coach in 2019. After former Head Coach Mel Tucker left the program in early 2020, Chiaverini was again promoted, this time to Interim Head Coach for the period of time in between the end of Mel Tucker’s time at CU and the beginning of Karl Dorrell’s tenure.
The 2021 season was his first year as the Offensive Coordinator instead of the Co-Offensive Coordinator, and his offensive scheme just didn’t work out. His offense failed to eclipse 100 passing yards in five games this season and only had 102 in the contest against Northern Colorado. The rushing attack also failed to eclipse 100 yards in five games, with a team total of -19 rushing yards against Minnesota. The offense scored a mere 18.8 points per game, which was ranked 121st out of 130 teams in terms of scoring.
Head Coach Karl Dorrell now has two holes to fill on his coaching staff this offseason, as Offensive Line Coach Mitch Rodrigue was relieved of his duties earlier in the season. However, there is hope for this offense in the future, as a lot of the contributors on this offense were underclassmen who should be back for the 2022 season.
Chiaverini made an announcement Sunday, Nov. 28 morning after the news broke that he would be relieved of his duties.
