Blaze Barista enters his first year as the defensive quality control coach at The Citadel, working with the outside linebackers.
Barista comes to The Citadel after spending the 2022 season in a similar role at Central Arkansas where he worked alongside current Bulldog defensive coordinator Raleigh Jackson. In his one season with the Bears, Barista helped mentor outside linebacker Logan Jessup into first-team all-conference honors.
Prior to his time in Conway, Barista spent two seasons as the outside linebackers coach at his alma mater, the University of Dubuque.
Barista was a four-year starter at defensive back at Dubuque where he was named a Second-Team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and the Associated Press as a senior. He was also selected as a finalist for the Cliff Harris Award, honoring the small college defensive player of the year.
On the track, Barista placed second at the 2018 indoor conference championships in the long jump, helping the Spartans capture their first conference championship in program history.
Barista would go on to be selected as the UD Male Athlete of the Year as a senior.
A standout on the field and in the classroom, Barista was a three-time football and two-time track and field Academic All-Iowa and Academic All-American River Conference selection. He was inducted into the National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society and a finalist for the 2019 AFCA Good Works Team.
Barista earned his master’s in sports management from UD in 2022.
