CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – SEPTEMBER 21: University of North Carolina cornerbacks coach Dre Bry during the game between Appalachian State University and the University of North Carolina on September 21, 2019 at Keenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Andy Mead/ISI Photography/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE (Charlotte Sports Live) – A former UNC football star and coach will join Biff Poggi's Charlotte 49ers staff, the team announced Wednesday.
Dre Bly, who played cornerback for 11 years in the NFL, will be the Niners' defensive analyst. He was the cornerbacks coach for the Detroit Lions last year and held the same position with the Tar Heels four seasons before that.
Known for his recruiting prowess on coach Mack Brown's UNC staff, Bly was named Rivals.com's ACC Recruiter of the Year in 2022. That year, three of the top five players in the state went to Chapel Hill, and the year before that, three of the top five players went to Chapel Hill. The top four signed with the Heels.
Bly began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Myers Park High School in Charlotte from 2015 to 2017. He then became a minority coaching intern with the New Orleans Saints during the 2017 preseason and a coaching intern with the Miami Dolphins during the 2018 preseason.
As a player, Bly was drafted in the second round of the NFL draft by the St. Louis Rams. There he became a Pro Bowler and his two-time champion in Super Bowl XXXIV.
Bly had quite a playing career at UNC. As a freshman in 1996, he led the nation in interceptions with 11, becoming the first freshman in ACC history to earn first-team All-American honors and the fifth freshman in NCAA history to be named AP All-American. America's First Team. That year, Carolina finished 10th in the AP Top 25 with a 10-2 record.
Bly earned First Team All-America honors the next two seasons, becoming the first player in ACC history to earn that honor three times.
One of Bly's sons, Trey, played defensive back for the 49ers for four years and is currently a defensive student assistant with the program.
