Mark D’Onofrio (pronounced duh-NOFF-ree-oh) finished his second season as Stanford’s inside linebackers coach in 2024. D’Onofrio comes to Stanford from Wisconsin, where he most recently coached inside linebackers. He has 12 years of defensive coordinator experience at three different schools – Temple, Miami, and Houston.
For the second season in a row, the inside linebackers were some of the best performers on Stanford's defense. Gaethan Bernadel and Tristan Sinclair made 23 out of 24 possible starts and finished first and third on the team in tackles, respectively. Both finished in the top-15 in the ACC in tackles/game while remaining active in all facets of the game. For the second time in as many seasons, Sinclair was given the team's Al Masters Award for leadership, the highest honor a Stanford football player can receive.
Inside linebackers were among the best positions on the field for Stanford in 2023, led by All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention selection Tristan Sinclair. Both of the team's leading tacklers (Gaethan Bernadel - 87, Sinclair - 71) were inside linebackers, and both made every start on defense. Bernadel burst onto the scene as an All-Pac-12 Third Team honoree by Phil Steele after ranking seventh in the conference in tackles. Sinclair earned Fourth Team All-Pac-12 honors from Phil Steele after nearly doubling his tackle output from 2022 (37).
In 2022, the Wisconsin defense ranked 11th in total defense (303.5 ypg), 10th in rushing defense (99.2 ypg) and fourth nationally at just 2.91 yards per rush attempt. Four different inside linebackers started at least two games for the Badgers, all four starting their first career games during the 2022 season. D’Onofrio was hired to coach Wisconsin’s ILB unit following spring ball.
Junior ILB Maema Njongmeta was named third team All-Big Ten after leading the Badgers with 95 tackles. He added 11.5 TFL, 3.5 sacks, five QB hurries, one interception and one pass breakup. All that coming just one season after he totaled just four tackles on 50 defensive snaps in 2021. Fellow classmate and position mate, Jordan Turner, the Guaranteed Rate Bowl Defensive MVP, was Wisconsin’s second-leading tackler with 68, a season after tallying just six tackles on 24 defensive snaps. Two other inside linebackers – Jake Chaney and Tatum Grass – totaled 58 tackles in 2022 after combining for just nine in 2021.
Prior to joining Wisconsin’s staff, D’Onofrio spent 12 seasons as a defensive coordinator, spanning his time at Temple, Miami and Houston, where he helped develop 20 NFL draft picks.
In his first season at Houston, D’Onofrio’s defense ranked second in the American Athletic Conference in scoring defense at 23.8 points per game, despite facing four of the nation’s top-12 scoring offenses and five of the top 23. Houston also finished second in the AAC in rushing defense (147.9 yards per game), pass efficiency defense (121.5) and red zone defense (77.1 percent). Inside linebacker D’Juan Hines received first team all-conference honors as he finished third in the AAC with 110 tackles. While at Houston, D’Onofrio mentored two former quarterbacks – Hines and Austin Robinson – to first team All-AAC honors.
D’Onofrio followed head coach Al Golden from Temple to Miami, where his prized pupil was linebacker Denzel Perryman, a Dick Butkus Award semifinalist in 2013 and 2014 and the first Hurricanes player since 2007 to earn AP All-America honors. A second-round pick of the San Diego Chargers in 2015, Perryman ranked sixth in the league with 154 tackles this season and was voted to the Pro Bowl.
His 2015 defense at Miami ranked third in the ACC with 25 turnovers gained, while his 2014 defense was fourth in the ACC in total defense, holding nine opponents below 250 yards passing and five teams to less than 100 yards rushing. His 2013 defense was among the nation’s best in takeaways, finishing the year with 27, while the 2011 defense finished the season ninth in the nation in red zone defense and 21st in scoring defense.
At Temple, he transformed a defense that ranked last in the NCAA upon his arrival to 17th in 2010 and helped the Owls become bowl eligible in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history.
Among the other inside linebackers D’Onofrio has mentored during his career were Gary Brackett (Rutgers), a nine-year NFL veteran and starter on the Indianapolis Colts team that won Super Bowl XLI, Ahmad Brooks (Virginia), a first-team All-American in 2004 and two-time All-Pro during his 12-year NFL career, and Sean Spence (Miami), a first-team All-ACC choice in 2011 and six-year NFL veteran. He also helped develop NFL first round draft pick and two-time Pro Bowl tight end Heath Miller in 2004 while at Virginia.
After his final season at Houston, D’Onofrio continued to be active in football, working as a resource for a number of coaches at the high school, college and NFL levels.
D’Onofrio starred as a linebacker at Penn State from 1988-91 and was named team captain as a senior. He was selected in the second round (No. 34 overall pick) of the 1992 NFL Draft by Green Bay and earned a starting role at inside linebacker as a rookie before an injury prematurely ended his professional career.
D’Onofrio and his wife, Lucia, are the parents of sons Jack and Thomas.