ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Former Broncos offensive line coach Dave Magazu, a member of the coaching staff on the 2013 AFC Championship team, has passed away at the age of 64, his family informed the Broncos.
Magazu, who grew up in Taunton, Massachussetts, was born on June 10, 1957. He and his wife, Carrie, had five children: Anthony, Damon, Dominick, Roman and Olivia.
Magazu coached in the NFL for 14 years, including four with the Broncos. During his time in Denver from 2011-14, he was a member of the coaching staff when the team won the 2013 AFC Championship and reached Super Bowl XLVIII.
A former defensive lineman at Springfield College, Magazu found his calling to coach lineman on the other side of the ball by accident.
"It was funny, my very first job I was going to be a graduate assistant at Ithaca College … and when I showed up the offensive line coach never showed," Magazu said in 2014. "And the head coach Jim Butterfield, came to me and said 'Hey, I'd like you to work on the offensive side of the ball.' Then I kind of liked it and stuck with it for however many years it's been."
It would eventually be more than 30 years overall, as Magazu traveled the country as a college coach — including stops at Western and Eastern Michigan, N.C. State, Colorado State, Michigan, Kentucky, Memphis and Boston College, among others — and then as a coach in the NFL.
After four seasons at Boston College, where he helped develop future Pro Bowlers and a future first-round pick, Magazu reached the pros, hired to coach tight ends for the Panthers and head coach John Fox.
In his first season, Magazu and the Panthers emphasized the run game, and his group helped the offensive line pave the way for 2,091 rushing yards, then a franchise record. In part because of that ground game, Carolina would reach Super Bowl XXXVIII that season.
In 2007, Magazu returned to coaching offensive linemen, and his work again helped the Panthers find unprecedented rushing success. In 2009, Carolina became the first team in NFL history to have two players each with 1,100 rushing yards in a single season, and center Ryan Kalil would earn a Pro Bowl selection.
In Magazu's four seasons in Charlotte, the Panthers averaged 134.5 rushing yards per game, which ranked fifth in the league over that span. Kalil and tackle Jordan Gross combined for four Pro Bowls during that time, as well.
When he joined the Broncos in 2011, again for head coach John Fox, Magazu was able to recreate the same kind of success. Denver's offense averaged a league-leading 164.5 rushing yards per game, which set a franchise record with 2,632 rushing yards on the season. Several lineman added individual accolades that year, as well, as Ryan Clady was named to a Pro Bowl, Orlando Franklin was selected to Football Outsiders' All-Rookie Team and Chris Kuper was named a first-team All-Pro by the Dallas Morning News.
When future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning arrived in Denver, Magazu's line ensured that he would stay clean in the pocket. In 2012, the group allowed the second-fewest sacks that season, and they then allowed the fewest in 2013 and 2014.
After a coaching change following the 2014 season, Magazu continued his career in Chicago, where he stayed for two seasons, and later coached in the Alliance of American Football, as Fox told 9NEWS' Mike Klis.
