| Dallas Cowboys | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Vice president of player personnel | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | (1966-10-13)October 13, 1966 (age 58) Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 245 lb (111 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| College: | Rice | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
As a player: | |||||||||||||
As a coach: | |||||||||||||
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As a staff member / executive: | |||||||||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
| Career Arena League statistics | |||||||||||||
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| Head coaching record | |||||||||||||
| Regular season: | 55–26–1 (.677) | ||||||||||||
| Postseason: | 1–3 (.250) | ||||||||||||
| Career: | 153–135 (.531) | ||||||||||||
Will McClay (born October 13, 1966) is anAmerican football executive who is the vice president of player personnel for theDallas Cowboys. He is also a former player and coach, primarily in various roles within theArena Football League.
McClay was born on October 13, 1966, in Memphis, Tennessee, but he grew up outside of Houston, Texas. He attended Missouri City Jr. High and Marian Christian High School. As a freshman, he playedwide receiver and contributed to the team winning the 1981 Class 3A state title. As a senior, he was the startingquarterback, leading the team to win the 1984 Class 3A state titles.[1]
He accepted a football scholarship fromRice University. He was recruited by future NFL head coachMike Nolan to play as adefensive back. He was a four-year starter and a captain. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science.[2]
His football career took off as a player at Rice University, where he started all four years of his collegiate career (1985-1988) as a defensive back. In 1988, he was picked up by the Arena League football Detroit Drive, where he played as a wide receiver and defensive back for four seasons (1989-1992).
His best year was his last, in 1992 when he racked up 34 tackles and one interception. By the end of his playing career he had helped the Drive win three arena league football titles in four appearances.
After his career as a player, he got an opportunity to serve as the Drive's secondary and special teams coach (1993). He took two separate stints as a defensive coordinator for theMilwaukee Mustangs and theFlorida Bobcats in 1995 and 1996 respectively.
He moved into the management side of football in 1997 where he serves as both the defensive coordinator and the director of player personnel for theAnaheim Piranhas. He took the job as an assistant head coach and director of player personnel of theGrand Rapids Rampage in 1998 and 1999.
McClay moved onto theXFL, where he became the director of player personnel, consultant, and scout for theOrlando Rage. He made the jump into the NFL as the assistant director of Pro Scouting for theJacksonville Jaguars (2001) where his main job was to scout teams that Jacksonville did not play that year in attempt to advance scouting information.
He then moved on to theDallas Cowboys player personnel department only to finally come full circle as the defensive coordinator for the Arena LeagueDallas Desperados. In 2002, he served as the inaugural defensive coordinator and that's where he would stay until the beginning of the 2004 season when he was thrust into the role as head coach just days before the season, afterJoe Avezzano was hired byNorv Turner as thespecial teams coach for theOakland Raiders. He would remain head coach for the next five seasons where he accumulated an overall record of 55–28–1 and a 1–3 postseason record.[3]
In 2013, he was promoted to the position of Assistant Director of Player Personnel over Tom Ciskowski, after the Cowboys where criticized in the media for their first round moves in the2013 NFL draft. He also oversaw his firstNFL Draft in 2014. In 2015, he was named Senior Director of Pro/College Scouting. In 2017, he earned the title of Vice President of Player Personnel.[4]
On January 29, 2025, McClay and the Cowboys agreed to a five-year contract extension.[5]