Dante Scarnecchia to be inducted into Patriots Hall of Fame as contributor

A red jacket will soon be over the shoulders of retired New England Patriots assistant coach Dante Scarnecchia.

The 75-year-old has been selected by team owner Robert Kraft for induction into the Patriots Hall of Fame as a contributor, it was announced Thursday following the nomination committee’s annual meeting.

“Dante Scarnecchia is recognized as one of the greatest assistant coaches of all time,” Kraft said in a statement. “He is the first Patriots assistant coach to receive this honor and I can’t think of a more deserving person. You would be hard pressed to find anyone who made greater on-field contributions over his 34 seasons with us, which propelled us to 10 of our 11 Super Bowl appearances and helped us claim five of our six Super Bowl championships. He earned the respect of his fellow coaches and players, many of whom credited Dante for making them the best they could be. I am proud that his legacy will be preserved in our Hall of Fame forever.”

Enshrinement ceremonies will be held later this year.

Entering the NFL ranks in 1982 after stops at California Western, Iowa State, Southern Methodist, Pacific and Northern Arizona, Scarnecchia initially served as special teams coach and tight ends coach for New England. He returned to the organization in 1992 after two seasons with the Indianapolis Colts before taking on the titles of special assistant, defensive assistant and again special teams coach.

Named offensive line coach in 1999 and then assistant head coach in 2000, Scarnecchia continued in that capacity on Bill Belichick’s Patriots staff until his first retirement in 2013. He was the longest-tenured coach in the league at the time of his second retirement, which did not arrive until after a run that spanned from 2016 through 2019.

A Super Bowl XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, LI, LIII champion, Scarnecchia marks the fourth person to be inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame as a contributor, joining founder Billy Sullivan in 2009, longtime play-by-play announcer Gil Santos in 2012 and longtime cheerleader director Tracy Sormanti in 2021.

The former Dr. Z Award winner from the Pro Football Writers of America was recently announced as one of 17 recipients for Awards of Excellence from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.