CHAPEL HILL – The Carolina football program has added UNC alum and NFL veteran Da’Norris Searcy as the Director of Football Student-Athlete Development and 10-year veteran Ema Thake as the Director of Football Performance Nutrition to its support staff, Head Coach Mack Brown announced on Tuesday.

A four-year letterman in the secondary at UNC, Searcy returns to Chapel Hill after an eight-year NFL career and a year as a high school coach. In his role at Carolina, Searcy oversees the personal and professional growth of each student-athlete to facilitate success both on and off the field and prepare them for life beyond their collegiate football experience. He also assists in various administrative roles, including financial aid matters, housing and community service projects.

Searcy was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He played four seasons with the Bills before moving on to Tennessee for three seasons. He finished his career in 2018 with the Carolina Panthers. Overall, Searcy played in 109 games, starting 58, and tallied 335 tackles, eight INTs, three forced fumble and four fumble recoveries.

While at Carolina, Searcy was a four-year letterman from 2007-10, a two-year starter at safety, and the Tar Heels’ top return man for two seasons. He played in 48 games, starting 22 of his final 23 games, and posted 106 tackles, two sacks, five TFL, five INTs and 10 PBU.

Searcy was also active off-the-field, participating in team sponsored functions in the community, and assisting with rookie training to help them get acclimated to life in the NFL. He also runs the Da’Norris Searcy Annual Youth Football Camp, a camp that serves over 400 inner city children between the ages of 5-18.

Thake came to UNC from the University of Washington, where she served as the Director of Performance Nutrition for seven years. During her time at Washington, she oversaw all Olympic sports along with her staff, and most closely worked with men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s basketball, gymnastics, women’s rowing, and track and field. Thake worked with the Huskies football program from 2015-19, including the 2016 Pac-12 Championship team, and supported the Huskies in their College Football Playoff appearance.

Prior to the University of Washington, Thake worked as a sports dietitian at the University of Utah and UCLA, and at USC Keck Medical Center as an inpatient oncology dietitian. Thake has been credentialed as a Registered Dietitian (RD) since 2013 and a Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics (CSSD) since 2015.