A former NCAA Division II student-athlete with collegiate coaching experience at both the NCAA Division I and Division II levels, Erik Pratt begins his second season at UNC Pembroke in 2024-25, as well as his third year alongside head coach Mark Hall, as the offensive line coach for the Braves.
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Pratt ventured to Pembroke from central Pennsylvania where he spent the 2022 season on the sidelines at Bucknell. He also has previous coaching stops at East Stroudsburg, Wingate and Chowan.
In his first season with the Black & Gold, Pratt led an offensive line unit that allowed just 10 sacks all season, after allowing 27 as a team during the previous season. Pratt would also play a key role in the group paving the way for Division II's 11th-ranked rushing offense, averaging 220 yards per game, while also helping lead the country's 11th-ranked total offense, averaging 453 yards per game.
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As a key offensive coach and recruiting coordinator for the Bison during the 2022 campaign, Pratt’s tight ends accounted for nearly 15 percent of the squad’s total offensive output while logging 19 catches for 195 yards. The unit also proved pivotal in helping to pave the way for an offense that ranked fourth among Patriot League schools in rushing offense, as well as sacks allowed per game.
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Pratt made the second of two stops at Wingate for the 2021 season, serving a full-time role as the tight ends and full backs coach for the Bulldogs, while also undertaking a role as the program’s head of internal football operations. Across two seasons in Wingate, including a previous stint as a graduate assistant coach for the Bulldogs in 2019, Pratt helped pace the perennial South Atlantic Conference powerhouse to 18 victories, including a run to the NCAA postseason in 2019. He also coached three All-South Atlantic Conference (SAC) honorees in Wingate, including all-American Andrew Strickland.
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Mixed between two stints at Wingate, Pratt spent 10 months on Mark Hall’s staff at Chowan, but was idle in the competition arena as the Hawks opted out of the 2020 season per a league-wide mandate by the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
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Pratt dove into the coaching world as a graduate assistant coach at East Stroudsburg for both the 2016 and 2018 seasons where he mentored a pair of All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) linemen. He broke up his tenure at ESU to accept a position with his prep alma mater, Tunkhannock (Pa.) High School, where he was charged with the offensive and defensive lines for the Tigers. He also undertook a stint as an intern in the strength & conditioning department at Georgia Southern for the Spring 2019 semester.
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A former offensive lineman himself, Pratt started 38 games on the offensive line for West Chester from 2008-12 and helped pace the Rams to 32 victories, including a 9-4 campaign in 2008 that culminated with an appearance in the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs. Following a prolific collegiate career, he played three seasons (2013-15) in the Professional Indoor Football League as a member of both the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks and the Harrisburg Stampede.
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A native of Tunkhannock in northeastern Pennsylvania, Pratt earned his bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies from East Stroudsburg in 2016, and completed his graduate work in exercise science at ESU in 2019.
| THE PRATT FILE |
| Coaching Experience |
| 2016 |
East Stroudsburg, Graduate Assistant Coach (Defensive Line) |
| 2017 |
Tunkhannock (Pa.) High School, Assistant Coach (Offensive/Defensive Line) |
| 2018 |
East Stroudsburg, Graduate Assistant Coach (Defensive Line) |
| 2019 |
Wingate, Graduate Assistant Coach (Offensive Line) |
| 2020 |
Chowan, Assistant Coach (Offensive Line) |
| 2021 |
Wingate, Assistant Coach (Tight Ends/Fullbacks) |
| 2022 |
Bucknell, Assistant Coach (Recruiting Coordinator/Tight Ends) |
| 2023-Present |
UNC Pembroke, Assistant Coach (Offensive Line) |
|
| Playing Experience |
| Started 38 games on the offensive line at West Chester from 2008-12. Played three seasons (2013-15) in Professional Indoor Football League for Lehigh Valley Steelhawks, Harrisburg Stampede. |
|
| Education |
| Bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies (East Stroudsburg, 2016); Master’s degree in exercise science (East Stroudsburg, 2019) |
Updated: July 2024
