Super Bowl Champion Monte Coleman, Arkansas-Pine-Bluff Coach, Dies
Monte Coleman bridged Pine Bluff, Washington’s Super Bowl dynasty and Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s 2012 HBCU title, leaving a coaching blueprint that lasted beyond wins.
Monte Coleman carried Pine Bluff all the way to Washington’s championship defenses, then brought that same standard back to Arkansas-Pine Bluff, where his name became tied to one of the program’s defining runs. He died on April 26 at 68, and the loss reached far past one campus because Coleman stood at the intersection of Black college football, the NFL and the kind of mentorship that shapes programs long after the final whistle.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff announced the death and called Coleman its head football coach and an NFL legend. The Golden Lions said the impact of his life would be felt for generations. That was not just sentiment. Coleman was a native of Pine Bluff, starred at Pine Bluff High School and walked on at the University of Central Arkansas before becoming the first UCA player ever drafted by an NFL team, a path that still reads like a blueprint for every overlooked prospect who needs one more chance.
Washington selected Coleman in the 11th round of the 1979 NFL Draft, and he spent 16 seasons with the franchise, appearing in more than 200 games and helping deliver three Super Bowl titles in XVII, XXII and XXVI. His place in Washington history was formalized in the Ring of Fame, and the Commanders called him one of the greatest players in franchise history and a pillar of the championship defenses that defined that era. He finished his NFL career with 1,002 tackles, 49.5 sacks, 17 interceptions and 13 forced fumbles.
His coaching legacy mattered just as much to HBCU football. Coleman coached at Arkansas-Pine Bluff from 2008 to 2017, and local coverage credited him with a 40-71 record while noting that his crowning achievement came in 2012, when he led the Golden Lions to the HBCU National Championship. That season gave UAPB a rare statement on a crowded HBCU landscape, with Coleman’s NFL credibility reinforcing what the program could become when discipline, recruiting and expectation met opportunity.
UAPB’s loss also echoed in Conway, where the University of Central Arkansas mourned its distinguished alumnus. Coleman’s journey linked Pine Bluff, Conway, Washington, D.C. and the SWAC into one career arc, a reminder that HBCU football is built not only on scores and standings, but on figures who carry knowledge from one generation to the next.
Know something we missed? Have a correction or additional information?
Submit a Tip
