Football
- Title:
- Secondary
- Season at Pitt:
- Seventh
Vital to the success of Pitt's nationally ranked defense has been ball-hawking cornerbacks coached by Archie Collins.
Collins has coached 17 defensive backs who have gone on to the NFL. That number includes 2024 Las Vegas Raiders draft pick M.J. Devonshire and Super Bowl LIX champion A.J. Woods.
An All-ACC cornerback, Devonshire played in the prestigious East-West Shrine Bowl. He led the ACC in pass breakups (1.17 per game; 10 total) and interception return yards (115), while ranking second in interceptions (0.33 per game; four total) in 2023.
Woods also received an East-West Shrine Bowl invitation. He played in 59 games during his college career and was responsible for one of the most memorable plays in recent Pitt history: a 73-yard interception return against Wake Forest that spurred the Panthers to victory in the 2021 ACC Championship Game.
Damarri Mathis was another lockdown corner for Pitt’s ACC champion squad, earning an invite to the Senior Bowl. Selected by the Denver Broncos in the 2022 NFL Draft, Mathis has been a prominent contributor his initial two professional seasons.
Collins’ additional Pitt pupils in the NFL include Dane Jackson (Carolina Panthers) and Jason Pinnock (New York Giants).
Prior to Pitt, Collins spent five seasons at Central Michigan (2013-17). Serving as defensive pass game coordinator in 2017, his influence helped the Chippewas lead the Mid-American Conference in interceptions (19), turnovers gained (31), fewest passing yards allowed (185.5 yards per game) and pass efficiency defense (108.8 rating).
On a national scale, CMU ranked third in turnovers gained (No. 1 for regular season), sixth in pass efficiency defense, seventh in interceptions (No. 1 for regular season) and 20th in passing defense. FootballScoop named Collins a finalist for its 2017 Defensive Back Coach of the Year award.
Two of Collins’ Central Michigan defensive backs, cornerback Amari Coleman and safety Josh Cox, were 2017 All-MAC honorees. Coleman was a first-team selection for the second consecutive season and finished his collegiate career with three interceptions returned for touchdowns. Cox intercepted six passes as a senior to finish seventh in the nation (0.5 INTs per game).
Under Collins’ tutelage, Coleman and Cox both earned CMU’s Defensive MVP award during their careers.
Additionally, corner Sean Bunting had five interceptions during that 2017 season. Bunting was a second-round selection by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2019 NFL Draft.
During Collins’ tenure, Central Michigan ranked among the nation’s top 25 in passing defense three times: 2017, 2015 (No. 24, 193.0 avg.) and 2013 (No. 20, 203.9 avg.). In 2016, CMU finished eighth nationally with four defensive touchdowns—all pick-sixes by Collins’ defensive backs.
Also under his watch at CMU was Kavon Frazier, an All-MAC safety in 2015 who was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys. Collins was also highly productive on the recruiting trail at Central Michigan. In 2015, he was named the MAC’s Recruiter of the Year by Scout.com.
In 2014, Collins participated in an NFL Coaching Fellowship with the Detroit Lions under head coach Jim Caldwell.
Prior to Central Michigan, the Detroit native was a defensive graduate assistant from 2010-12 at Michigan State, his alma mater. It was during this coaching assistantship that he first met Pat Narduzzi, who was the Spartans’ defensive coordinator at the time.
In addition to contributing to one of college football’s elite defensive units, Collins worked daily with future NFL defensive backs Darqueze Dennard, Kurtis Drummond and Trae Waynes. Collins also helped with the special teams during his time in East Lansing.
Collins spent nine years coaching high school football in the Detroit Public School League. He worked at three PSL schools (Cass Tech, Mackenzie and Southeastern), producing nine all-state performers and 28 all-city honorees.
A safety at Michigan State, Collins finished his career as a two-year letterman (1996-97) for the Spartans.
He graduated from Michigan State in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in finance. Collins went on to earn a master's degree in kinesiology and coaching from MSU in 2011.
He and his wife, Brandi, have three children: son Archie IV and daughters Amber and BellaRose.
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Hometown: Detroit, Mich.
Alma Mater: Michigan State, 1998
Family: Collins and his wife, Brandi, have three children: son Archie IV and daughters Amber and BellaRose.
COACHING EXPERIENCE
College
Pitt, 2018-present, secondary/cornerbacks.
Central Michigan, 2013-17, secondary; 2017, defensive passing game coordinator.
Michigan State, 2010-12, graduate assistant.
Professional
Detroit Lions, 2014, NFL Coaching Fellowship
