Staff Directory
Damon Magazu
- Title:
- Safeties
- Email:
- Phone:
- (252) 737-4570
Follow @Damon_Magazu
Damon Magazu enters his third year as the safeties coach at East Carolina, a position he officially began on Jan. 2, 2024.
During the 2025 campaign, Magazu’s group was headlined by all-conference performer Ja’Marley Riddle (first team) and team co-captain Teagan Wilk as both started all 13 games during the Pirates’ Military Bowl Championship season. Riddle, who led the team with 70 tackles, registered 4.0 TFLs (-4 yards), picked off a team-best three passes (45 return yards), broke up six passes and recovered one fumble for a 15-yard return. Wilk tallied 54 stops, fourth on the team, with 2.0 TFLs (-5 yards), two interceptions (55 return yards) to go along with three pass break ups and a quarterback hurry.
Â
In all, his group registered 189 tackles, 8.0 TFLs (-12 yards), five interceptions (100 yards), 12 pass breakups, two quarterback hurries, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble. He helped the Pirate defense rank among the FBS leaders (Top 30) in fumbles recovered (second/14), TLFs (fourth/7.8 pg), red zone defense (seventh/.705), 3rd down conversion percentage (ninth/.305), sacks (23rd/2.62 pg), scoring defense (25th/20.1 ppg) and rush defense (26th/120.2 ypg). ECU’s third down conversion rate of 30.5 percent established a new program record.
In his first year as the Pirates’ safeties coach, Magazu’s group tallied 243 tackles (115 solo) with 9.9 TFLs (-17 yards) which included 1.0 sack (-5 yards). Omar Rogers, who earned, who earned Third-Team All-American Conference honors, led ECU in tackles with 104 (43 solo) becoming the first defensive player to reach 100 stops in a season since linebackers Zeek Bigger (140) and Brandon Williams (124) hit the century mark in 2014. Rogers picked off one pass, tallied 5.5 TFLs, 1.0 sack and two pass breakups.
Â
Riddle shared the team lead in interceptions with three for 63 yards, registered 64 stops (27 solo) with 3.5 TFLs (-7 yards) and four pass breakups. The freshman picked off two passes against Temple, which included a 55-yard return for a touchdown, and followed that with another interception against Florida Atlantic.
Â
Mazagu's appointment to the Pirates' staff ends a three-year stint at UNLV where he helped the Rebels to the 2023 Guaranteed Rate Bowl against Kansas. This past season, he played a role in the Rebels holding opponents to 415 yards per game, including 239.2 passing yards per contest, and picking off 17 passes on the year. Magazu mentored Mountain West Honorable Mention selection Jaxen Turner, who tallied 59 tackles (31 solo) with 3.0 TFLs (minus 18 yards), four interceptions and a pair of forced fumbles.
Â
In 2022, his safeties helped UNLV finish 10th in the nation during the regular season with 15 total interceptions, which was the most for the program since 2012. He also tutored Jonathan Baldwin, who won Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week after the season-ending victory over UNR.
Magazu came to Las Vegas in 2020 after spending the previous two seasons at Oklahoma where he helped coach the Sooner secondary as a graduate assistant under head coach Lincoln Riley, who served on the Pirates staff from 2010-14. In his two seasons in Norman, the Sooners twice won the Big 12 Championship, extending their streak to five straight conference titles, and made back-to-back appearances in the College Football Playoff.
Prior to Oklahoma, Magazu returned to East Carolina serving as a defensive graduate assistant under Houston (2016-17). His distinguished playing career, which began in 2010, included appearances in 50 games (37 starts), 265 tackles and 11 interceptions – none perhaps any bigger than his rookie-year pick against NC State's Russell Wilson in the Pirate endzone which preserved ECU's 33-27 overtime win at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
Â
The oft-elected team captain was a two-time All-Conference USA selection who was earned the program's defensive player-of-the-year award in 2013, was a Rock Roggeman Heart-of-the-Pirate Award honoree and recipient of the 2014 National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame Bill Dooley Chapter Outstanding Scholar Athlete Award.
Magazu graduated from ECU in 2013 with a bachelor's degree in business administration. While an undergraduate student, he was a multiple Dean's List selection before completing his education with an overall grade point average of 3.30.
Â
He and his wife, Brittany, have two daughters, Danykah and Zaiya.
Â
Damon Magazu enters his third year as the safeties coach at East Carolina, a position he officially began on Jan. 2, 2024.
During the 2025 campaign, Magazu’s group was headlined by all-conference performer Ja’Marley Riddle (first team) and team co-captain Teagan Wilk as both started all 13 games during the Pirates’ Military Bowl Championship season. Riddle, who led the team with 70 tackles, registered 4.0 TFLs (-4 yards), picked off a team-best three passes (45 return yards), broke up six passes and recovered one fumble for a 15-yard return. Wilk tallied 54 stops, fourth on the team, with 2.0 TFLs (-5 yards), two interceptions (55 return yards) to go along with three pass break ups and a quarterback hurry.
Â
In all, his group registered 189 tackles, 8.0 TFLs (-12 yards), five interceptions (100 yards), 12 pass breakups, two quarterback hurries, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble. He helped the Pirate defense rank among the FBS leaders (Top 30) in fumbles recovered (second/14), TLFs (fourth/7.8 pg), red zone defense (seventh/.705), 3rd down conversion percentage (ninth/.305), sacks (23rd/2.62 pg), scoring defense (25th/20.1 ppg) and rush defense (26th/120.2 ypg). ECU’s third down conversion rate of 30.5 percent established a new program record.
In his first year as the Pirates’ safeties coach, Magazu’s group tallied 243 tackles (115 solo) with 9.9 TFLs (-17 yards) which included 1.0 sack (-5 yards). Omar Rogers, who earned, who earned Third-Team All-American Conference honors, led ECU in tackles with 104 (43 solo) becoming the first defensive player to reach 100 stops in a season since linebackers Zeek Bigger (140) and Brandon Williams (124) hit the century mark in 2014. Rogers picked off one pass, tallied 5.5 TFLs, 1.0 sack and two pass breakups.
Â
Riddle shared the team lead in interceptions with three for 63 yards, registered 64 stops (27 solo) with 3.5 TFLs (-7 yards) and four pass breakups. The freshman picked off two passes against Temple, which included a 55-yard return for a touchdown, and followed that with another interception against Florida Atlantic.
Â
Mazagu's appointment to the Pirates' staff ends a three-year stint at UNLV where he helped the Rebels to the 2023 Guaranteed Rate Bowl against Kansas. This past season, he played a role in the Rebels holding opponents to 415 yards per game, including 239.2 passing yards per contest, and picking off 17 passes on the year. Magazu mentored Mountain West Honorable Mention selection Jaxen Turner, who tallied 59 tackles (31 solo) with 3.0 TFLs (minus 18 yards), four interceptions and a pair of forced fumbles.
Â
In 2022, his safeties helped UNLV finish 10th in the nation during the regular season with 15 total interceptions, which was the most for the program since 2012. He also tutored Jonathan Baldwin, who won Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week after the season-ending victory over UNR.
Magazu came to Las Vegas in 2020 after spending the previous two seasons at Oklahoma where he helped coach the Sooner secondary as a graduate assistant under head coach Lincoln Riley, who served on the Pirates staff from 2010-14. In his two seasons in Norman, the Sooners twice won the Big 12 Championship, extending their streak to five straight conference titles, and made back-to-back appearances in the College Football Playoff.
Prior to Oklahoma, Magazu returned to East Carolina serving as a defensive graduate assistant under Houston (2016-17). His distinguished playing career, which began in 2010, included appearances in 50 games (37 starts), 265 tackles and 11 interceptions – none perhaps any bigger than his rookie-year pick against NC State's Russell Wilson in the Pirate endzone which preserved ECU's 33-27 overtime win at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
Â
The oft-elected team captain was a two-time All-Conference USA selection who was earned the program's defensive player-of-the-year award in 2013, was a Rock Roggeman Heart-of-the-Pirate Award honoree and recipient of the 2014 National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame Bill Dooley Chapter Outstanding Scholar Athlete Award.
Magazu graduated from ECU in 2013 with a bachelor's degree in business administration. While an undergraduate student, he was a multiple Dean's List selection before completing his education with an overall grade point average of 3.30.
Â
He and his wife, Brittany, have two daughters, Danykah and Zaiya.
Â
03/03/26 Inside Pirate Athletics
Tuesday, March 03
ECU Softball vs Campbell
Sunday, March 01
ECU Softball vs St. John's
Sunday, March 01
ECU Softball vs Rider
Saturday, February 28
