OTTAWA, Kan. – Ottawa University head football coach, Nick Davis, is pleased to announce the hiring of Dante Bartee as the program's Defensive Coordinator.

"Dante is one of the smartest young coaches in America", said Davis. "We are bringing in a coach with a lot of knowledge from the Alabama and Georgia coaching tree.  We are excited to see how he can help the Braves get better next fall."

Bartee comes to Ottawa University from the University of Southern Mississippi where he was the lead defensive analyst for the Golden Eagles football program. He worked directly with the defensive coordinator and inside linebackers.

Before working at Southern Miss, Bartee was a graduate assistant at the University of California, Berkeley during the 2019 season. He worked with the scout team, coached the inside linebackers, and did breakdowns and analytics. Bartee also supported the staff with on campus recruiting and evaluations. He worked with Cal linebackers, Evan Weaver and Kiun Deng. The linebacker duo produced the most tackles at the NCAA Division I level at their position. Weaver was the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and a consensus All-American at linebacker. Bartee also worked with Cal coaches Peter Sirmon, Tim Deruyter, and Andrew Browning.

Prior to his time at Cal, Bartee was an assistant coach in 2018 at NCAA Division II, Upper Iowa University. He coached both inside and outside linebackers for the Peacocks. Bartee worked with the UIP special teams (kickoffs) and recruiting. Bartee coached two NSIC selections at linebacker.

Bartee also spent time at the high school level. From 2014 to 2018, Bartee coached at Perry High School in Gilbert, Ariz. while attending Arizona State University. He coached running backs, outside linebackers, and defensive backs. Bartee spent one year as co-defensive coordinator and two years as the defensive coordinator. He also was the special team coordinator for four years.

"I am excited to be the new Defensive Coordinator at Ottawa University," said Bartee. "The opportunity to continue the success that Ottawa has had on and off the field with their student athletes is an honor and privilege. I want to continue to build on that success for our players, fans and The University as a whole. I look forward to upholding the high standards that makes Ottawa such a great place to be. Go Braves!" 

Bartee graduated from Arizona State University in 2017 with a degree in justice studies. He is working on his masters in public health at the University of California, Berkeley.