After spending 11 years at Fairmont State, including six as the head coach, Mike Lopez enters his third season as the defensive coordinator at Cal U.
Lopez made an immediate impact on the defense in 2013, as the Vulcans finished the year ranked in the top 25 nationally in pass efficiency defense (fifth) scoring defense (seventh) and total defense (22nd) just one year after ranking in the top 50 nationally in only one of those categories. Defensive back Dewey McDonald, who played for Lopez at Fairmont State, received All-America honors and signed with the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent. McDonald played in 12 games as a rookie last season.
Lopez led the Fighting Falcons to a 30-35 overall record after becoming the head coach in 2007. A former player at Fairmont State, he also served as defensive coordinator from 2002-11.
As head coach, Lopez coached 22 All-WVIAC First-Team selections and four All-Americans. He mentored the All-WVIAC brother trio of Vince, Nate and Luke Black. Linebacker Vince Black was selected the 2007 WVIAC Defensive Player of the Year and defensive lineman Luke Black led the league in sacks as a redshirt freshman the following year before attending NFL training camps in 2012.
The Fighting Falcons also excelled in the classroom under Lopez, as the program graduated over 70 percent of its players and nearly maintained a 3.0 grade-point average. Kicker Frank Keenan and McDonald were both selected Academic All-Americans in 2011, marking the first time multiple Fairmont State players received the honor in the same season.
In 2011, Lopez led Fairmont State to its most wins since 2000 as the Fighting Falcons posted a 7-4 record. The Fighting Falcons featured 10 players, including five on defense, on the All-WVIAC teams and boasted the WVIAC Offensive Freshman of the Year in running back Daniel Monroe. Fairmont State finished the year ranked sixth in the country by allowing just 97.3 rushing yards per game and were among the nation’s best with 34 sacks.
Lopez guided the Fighting Falcons to their first winning season in six years after finishing with a 6-5 mark in his first year as head coach in 2007. Fairmont State closed the season on a four-game winning streak and ranked among the top 20 in the country in both scoring defense and rushing defense. The Fighting Falcons led the league with 19 players receiving all-conference status and Vince Black became the first player in more than 15 seasons to be selected the WVIAC Defensive Player of the Year.
A native of West Virginia, Lopez was a standout defensive end and team captain for Fairmont State from 1996-97. As a junior, he helped the Fighting Falcons win the conference title for the first time in nearly a decade. Lopez transferred to Fairmont State after playing two years at Potomac State and being a team captain for the Catamounts.
He earned his degree from Fairmont State in 1998 before completing his master’s degree from West Virginia. In 2001, he served as a graduate assistant for the Mountaineers and then-head coach Rich Rodriguez.
