The Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced that they have hired Butch Davis to be the Special Assistant to the Head Coach on Monday. The decision to hire Davis comes 19 days after the Buccaneers announced Greg Schiano as their new head coach.  

"Butch has been a close friend and mentor of mine going back to our time together at Miami. I am excited to have his extensive football background and knowledge on board," said Head Coach Greg Schiano. "He has had success on every level, and I know he will be a huge asset, not only to me, but to the entire Buccaneers organization."

In his new role with the Buccaneers, Davis will assist and advise Head Coach Greg Schiano in a wide range of football aspects.

"This is a terrific opportunity to be a part of what Coach Schiano is building in Tampa Bay," said Davis. "It is an honor to be here to help Greg and the Buccaneers in any way I can."

Davis joins the team with 30 years of coaching experience at both the collegiate and NFL levels, including 14 as a head coach. In his 30 years, Davis has been a part of teams that have earned a 240-153-2 overall record, two Super
Bowl Championships, five playoff appearances, one NCAA National Championship, 14 bowl game appearances, seven bowl game victories and 10 AP Top 25 finishes.

During his 10 years as a collegiate head coach, Davis coached 32 first-round NFL Draft picks and had more than 90
players who spent time in the NFL ranks, including 80 of whom were drafted. Most recently, Davis was the head coach at the University of North Carolina (2007-10) where he led the team to 28 wins and three bowl game appearances, including a Music City following the 2010 season. Before his arrival, the Tar Heels had only won 19 games in the previous five seasons and had not won a bowl game since 2001. He also led the team to three consecutive bowl games for the first time since the 1992-98 seasons.

Prior to his time with the Tar Heels, Davis was the head coach of the Cleveland Browns (2001-04). Taking over a team that had won just five games in the two previous seasons combined, Davis led the Browns to seven wins in his first season and nine wins the next year, earning a playoff berth that remains the only playoff appearance by the Browns since the team re-entered the NFL in 1999.

Davis earned his opportunity with the Browns after a very successful campaign as the head coach of the University of Miami (1995-00). While with the Hurricanes, Davis led the team to a 51-20 record over six seasons that included three Big East Conference championships and four bowl victories in as many appearances. His teams also ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 on four occasions, including a No. 2 final national ranking in 2000 when the Canes went 11-1 and beat Florida, 37-20, in the Nokia Sugar Bowl.

Davis' first NFL experience came with the Dallas Cowboys, where he served as their defensive line coach (1989-92) and later as defensive coordinator/linebackers coach (1993-94). With Davis on staff, the Cowboys won consecutive Super Bowls - the first, a 52-17 win over Buffalo in Super Bowl XXVII, where Davis coached the defensive line, and then a 30-13 win over Buffalo in Super Bowl XXVIII, where he served as defensive coordinator.

Davis helped Dallas post one of the most spectacular turnarounds in sports history, as the Cowboys went from a lowly 1-15 squad in 1989 to one of the most dominant NFL programs in the 1990s. As defensive line coach in 1992, Davis helped the Cowboys lead the NFL in rushing defense. As coordinator a year later, the Cowboys set a team record by allowing just 21 touchdowns in 16 regular-season games and allowed one offensive touchdown or less in 12 of 16 games.

Davis was also defensive coordinator during Barry Switzer's first season as head coach in 1994, and helped Dallas reach the NFC Championship Game, where eventual Super Bowl Champion San Francisco denied the Cowboys' bid for a three-peat. Davis' defense ranked first in the league in total defense (269.6 yards per game) and pass defense (172.0 yards per game), and third in scoring defense (15.5 points per game). He also coached three Pro Bowl starters - DE Charles Haley, DT Leon Lett and S Darren Woodson - the most Pro Bowl starters for the Cowboys since 1983.

Davis began his collegiate coaching career as tight ends coach (1979) and tight ends and wide receivers coach (1980-83) under Jimmy Johnson at Oklahoma State before following Johnson to Miami as defensive line coach (1984-88).

The Hurricanes went 52-9 in those five years and won the National Championship after beating Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl to cap a perfect 12-0 record in 1987. Davis' line was a key part of the Miami defense that finished second in the nation in both scoring defense (9.7 points per game) and total defense (242.0 yards per game) in 1988. The 1986 Hurricanes set a school record with 49 sacks, broke the mark with 50 in 1988 and held opposing rushers to fewer than 2.3 yards per carry in 1987 and 1988.

Davis played college football at the University of Arkansas for Head Coach Frank Broyles, but his career was cut short due to a knee injury. He began his coaching career as a volunteer assistant in 1973 at Fayetteville (Ark.) High School and went on to coach six years at the high school level.