Donnalley's Hiring Fits Into Brown's Plan

After spending four years as the director of student-athlete development at Charlotte, Kevin Donnalley is a Tar Heel again.

North Carolina hired Donnalley, who played at UNC for three seasons in the late 80s and early 90s, as the director of high school relations on Monday. He was a team captain for the Tar Heels and earned All-ACC and All-American honors as a senior in 1991 before going on to play 13 seasons in the NFL.

Donnalley’s primary job will be developing and maintaining relationships with high school coaches, a role in which UNC Coach Mack Brown believes his former player will excel, especially because of his ties to Chapel Hill.

“When we interviewed Kevin, there were a lot of great candidates but here’s a guy that’s been a high school coach, he’s a 13-year NFL guy, he’d been at UNC Charlotte in a role very similar to this but loves the place...” Brown said. “He’s just another great example of, if you come here and you do what you’re supposed to do, it can really help you for the long haul.”

The former NFL veteran will also oversee all high school communications, serve as the practice guest liaison and assist with events and visits centered around recruiting.

An important reason Donnalley’s hiring fits is because of the family atmosphere Brown has brought back to the program since taking over 16 months ago. Part of that process is to surround the program with former players who understand the value of the UNC experience on and off the field. Donnalley is a continuation of that effort.

Senior associate athletic directors Rick Steinbacher and Dwight Hollier as well as cornerbacks coach Dré Bly and co-defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach Tommy Thigpen all played at UNC under Brown. Add Donnalley to that list and Brown believes he has an ideal setup around him to help sell the Carolina football experience to recruits.

“Any time that we can hire somebody who went to school here, that loves this place and that played for us and experienced what it was like to play for us and is qualified and very talented, we think that it really helps in a lot of different areas,” Brown said.

“It helps us sell our program because nobody knows it better than the Corey Holliday’s and the Dwight Holliers and the Rick Steinbacher’s and the Tommy Thigpen’s and the Dre’ Bly’s and now you add Kevin to this as well.”

Donnalley's experiences include some time in the media, as he recently hosted the podcast "Inside The Voices" that focuses on the Carolina Panthers, he was a television analyst on Panthers' postgame shows, as wella s a film room TV show on the Panthers' official site.

With sports around the world currently on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Donnalley joins the Hall of Fame head coach’s staff at an interesting time. And, while he hasn’t been able to visit Chapel Hill since taking the job, Brown is confident Donnalley will transition smoothly into his new role from his home in Charlotte until things return to normal.

“It’s unique to take a job and can’t even come to campus but I really am excited about Kevin being another piece of this puzzle moving forward,” Brown said. “John Mark Hamilton did an outstanding job for us, but now Kevin will take what he did and build upon it.”

Donnalley may not be calling the plays or coaching the players from the sideline on game days, but he will play a key role in attracting recruits to Chapel Hill and helping to rebuild the family-like atmosphere Brown so desperately wants back around his program.