Moon Township, Pa. -- Robert Morris University head football coach Bernard Clark announced the additions of Rafael Tolentino and Delbert Tyler to his staff. Tolentino will serve as the assistant head coach and defensive line coach while Tyler has been named the assistant defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator.
Tolentino was most recently the head football coach at King High School in Tampa, Fla., where he oversaw all aspects of the program in 2016 and 2017. Prior to that, he served as an assistant at Oak Ridge High School (Orlando, Fla.) and Freedom High School (Orlando, Fla.).
"I met Rafael on the recruiting trail many years ago and we developed a relationship over the years. The thing that stands out to me about him is how organized and structured he is and how on top of things he is," said Clark. "He also had a drive for his players when they were in school and he fought to get them into colleges. He's extremely structured and he's ex-military, so he believes in a lot of the things that I believe in."
Tolentino served in the United States Air Force, earning the Good Conduct Medal and the Air Force Commendation Medal. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Western Oregon in 2003 and went on to get his Masters of Liberal Arts degree in 2004.
In spring of 2013, Tolentino served as linebackers coach at Culver-Stockton College. Immediately before his time with the Wildcats, Tolentino served as the linebackers coach for one season at South Dakota School of Mines in Rapid City, S.D. During his one year with the Hardrockers, Tolentino's linebackers made up five of the top 11 tacklers on the team.
Tolentino began his coaching and teaching career in 2003 at Glendale Community College in Glendale, Ariz., immediately following his graduation from Western Oregon. While at Glendale, Tolentino helped the squad to a NJCAA National Championship in 2005. He served in several capacities while there, coaching running backs, rovers and outside linebackers in his three seasons. Individually, Tolentino coached an NJCAA All-America running back in 2003, an All-America defensive back in 2004 and two all-conference linebackers in 2005.
Tolentino has an extensive background as an educator and coach. From 2006 through 2011, he taught algebra in the Central Florida Area School District while serving in several different roles with the football team. He began as the secondary coach in 2006 before being promoted to defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator over his final five seasons there.
Tyler will serve Robert Morris as the assistant defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator. A graduate of Gateway High School, Tyler spent 2017 as the graduate assistant defensive line coach at Eastern Michigan University where he also assisted in recruiting and breaking down film.
"Delbert is a young man from Monroeville, played at Gateway and loves this area," said Clark. "I coached Delbert at Hampton and so I saw the coach in him on the field. He was the guy on the field who lined everybody up and made sure they were where they were supposed to be. He wanted to take on a role of helping this program and so he's going to be our recruiting coordinator as well as helping the defensive line and I think he's going to do a great job for us."
Tyler molded defensive linemen Maxx Crosby and Jeremiah Harris into All-Mid-American Conference players under his tutelage at EMU. Crosby finished 2017 with 16.5 tackles for loss and 11 sacks while Harris accumulated 12.5 tackles for loss and six quarterback takedowns.
Prior to his time with the Eagles, Tyler spent one season coaching the defensive line at the University of Findlay. In addition to his coaching duties, Tyler broke down film and ran the scout team while also recruiting portions of Ohio. He also served the same duties as an assistant linebacker coach at ASA College of Miami during the 2016 season.
A native of Monroeville, Tyler was a four-year starter and a defensive captain at Hampton University where he played under Clark. Upon graduation in the spring of 2014, Tyler was invited to the Pittsburgh Steelers rookie mini-camp in 2014 as a linebacker. The Gateway graduate had an accomplished career at Hampton, finishing as the program's second all-time leading tackler with 386 stops. He was a three-time All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference team member.
