Patriots to honor team legend with prestigious accolade
The New England Patriots will have two team legends entering the Patriots Hall of Fame this offseason, and we know the identity of one of them. Retired offensive line coach/assistant head coach Dante Scarnecchia will be inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame as a contributor later this year. Owner Robert Kraft announced Thursday that […]
The New England Patriots will have two team legends entering the Patriots Hall of Fame this offseason, and we know the identity of one of them.
Retired offensive line coach/assistant head coach Dante Scarnecchia will be inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame as a contributor later this year. Owner Robert Kraft announced Thursday that Scarnecchia would receive the honor at the nomination committee meeting at which the longtime O-line coach was present. Scarnecchia is just the fourth person to selected as a contributor, joining team founder Billy Sullivan, long-time play-by-play announcer Gil Santos, and long-time cheerleader director Tracy Sormanti.
“Dante Scarnecchia is recognized as one of the greatest assistant coaches of all time,” Kraft said in a statement. “He is the first Patriots assistant coach to receive this honor and I can’t think of a more deserving person. You would be hard pressed to find anyone who made greater on-field contributions over his 34 seasons with us, which propelled us to 10 of our 11 Super Bowl appearances and helped us claim five of our six Super Bowl championships. He earned the respect of his fellow coaches and players, many of whom credited Dante for making them the best they could be. I am proud that his legacy will be preserved in our Hall of Fame forever.”
The nomination committee will decide on three team hall of fame candidates, then fans will vote on who will be inducted alongside Scarnecchia. ESPN’s Mike Reiss tweeted that Julius Adams, Pete Brock, Chuck Fairbanks, Russ Francis, Logan Mankins, Lawyer Milloy, Bill Parcells, John Smith, Mosi Tatupu, Mike Vrabel and Wes Welker were nominees discussed Thursday in the meeting.
Scarnecchia began coaching with the Patriots in 1982 as a special teams coach and tight ends coach. He left for the Indianapolis Colts from 1989 to 1990 before returning to New England in the same role from 1991 to 1992. He was a special assistant from 1993 to 1994, a defensive assistant from 1995 to 1996 and special teams coach from 1997 to 1998. He began coaching offensive line in New England in 1999 and kept that role until retiring following the 2013 season. He then returned from 2016 to 2019 before retiring again. Scarnecchia added assistant head coaching duties from 2000 to 2013.
Scarnecchia, 75, also coached in the college ranks from 1970 to 1981.
Featured image via Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
