"Dave Barr is extremely diligent, conscientious, and motivated as a coach and as a recruiter," said Taynor. "I have had the opportunity to work with Dave for the past two years and I am confident that, as our defensive coordinator, he will provide our program with the knowledge and leadership of a proven winner."

Barr, who will also serve as Urbana's recruiting coordinator, will work specifically with the Blue Knight secondary in addition to coordinating the defense.

"I want to thank Coach Taynor and Urbana University for providing me this opportunity. I have complete confidence that he is going to do well and his trust in me means a lot," said Barr. "I am extremely excited to install and implement the defense at Urbana. We have the athletes to compete right away.

"I love teaching and all the different forms that it takes, especially in coaching," he added. "I owe so much of what I have achieved to the coaches I have worked with and I want to give that back."

Barr, a native of Havertown, Pa., comes to Urbana after three seasons at NCAA D-II Tiffin University, where he served as the Dragons' safeties/outside linebackers coach, in addition to his duties as recruiting coordinator, Dragon Football Association president and team chaplain.

"The last three years at Tiffin have really prepared me for this opportunity at Urbana," said Barr. "Understanding NCAA D-II recruiting rules will be a huge advantage and having familiarity of some of our future opponents will also prove to be helpful.

"I really want to thank Coach (Paul) Smith and the entire Tiffin staff for getting me ready for this, and certainly all of the players I've had a chance to work with up to this point."

Before his stint at Tiffin, Barr spent three seasons as the linebackers coach at his alma mater, Albright College in Reading, Pa. While at Albright, he also served as the Lions' video coordinator and assistant strength and conditioning coach.

Barr's first collegiate coaching opportunity came at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. He was defensive backs coach and video coordinator for the Crusaders for two seasons.

Barr graduated from Albright in 2002 with a bachelor's degree in business management. He was a senior captain and an all-MAC linebacker for the Lions. He earned his MBA from Tiffin in 2006. Barr is a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging and the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). He is the son of Donna and Dave Barr of Havertown, Pa.

Handzo will work on the offensive side of the ball.

"Matt Handzo is a knowledgeable, innovative and skilled coach in the classroom and on the field," said Taynor. "I have had the pleasure to work with Matt for the past two years and he has demonstrated a strong ability to teach the game on the offensive perimeter. His energy and teaching ability will allow him to succeed at Urbana University."

Handzo, a native of Clinton Township, Mich., was the wide receivers coach at NCAA D-II Tiffin for two seasons, leading the nationally ranked Dragons to several offensive records. During his tenure, Tiffin had the most wins in school history with its 10 victories in 2006 and finished the season ranked 17th in the nation. The following season, Handzo coached two wide receivers to all-Great Lakes Football Conference accolades. The Dragons, which averaged 49 points per conference game, broke 18 university offensive records on their way to earning the 2007 GLFC crown. Handzo was also the director of operations and video coordinator for the Tiffin football program.

"I want to thank Coach Taynor and Urbana University for affording me this opportunity. I am truly grateful that he believes in me and trusts me with the offense," said Handzo. "I am excited about the opportunity to have greater responsibility and ownership of the product we put on the field on Saturdays. I am enthusiastic about putting an electrifying offense on the field, week in and week out."

In addition to serving as offensive coordinator for the Blue Knights, Handzo will work with the wide receivers and quarterbacks.

"I am a high-energy coach. We'll have a lot of fun, but at the same time, I am very demanding about having things done right," said Handzo. "I place high expectations on my players and even higher expectations on myself.

"Our goals are to be the most fundamentally sound team on the field," he added. "We will exhaust every opportunity to give our players, here at Urbana University, a chance to succeed and thrive."

Prior to Tiffin, Handzo coached wide receivers and running backs during the 2006 season at Oklahoma Panhandle State University. He was on the football staff during the 2005 season at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tenn. where he coached wide receivers and running backs, in addition to serving as the assistant academic coordinator. He coached the PFL Freshman of the Year and all-conference running back. He also mentored an all-PFL wide receiver selection.

Handzo got his collegiate coaching start at Kalamazoo College (Mich.) in 2003 as the running backs coach for the Hornets. He coached an all-MIAA selection and the school's all-time leading rusher. He also coached at Traverse City Central High School, serving as the offensive coordinator, as well as, wide receivers and quarterbacks coach.

"I would like to thank every coach who has helped guide and develop me into the coach I am today," said Handzo. "I would, especially, like to thank the coaches at Kalamazoo when I joined the staff, specifically, Tim Rogers and offensive coordinator Brian Coon for giving me my first opportunity to coach at the collegiate level."

Handzo was a four-year letter winner and first team all-MIAA wide receiver for Hope College in Holland, Mich. He led Hope to two MIAA championships (1997 and 1999) during his tenure, in which he started every game in his career, the only player to accomplish the feat in the history of the Hope College football program.

He graduated from Hope College in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in communications. Handzo earned his master's degree in sports administration from Austin Peay State University in 2005. He was inducted into the Detroit Catholic League Coaches Hall of Fame and was named Athlete of the Year in 2000. He is the son of Richard and Judy Handzo of Davisburg, Mich. He also has a brother, Derek.

"I really want to thank my family," said Handzo. "They have been extremely supportive of me in this profession."