Durga-Prabhat Seelamsettiis an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Deer Valley for AZPreps365.com.

The hallmark of every great football team is an even greater coach, a quality that Deer Valley coach Daniel Friedman has embodied for years.  From a young age, Friedman had a gift for the game and that success has been reflected in the Valley.

Before football, Friedman had a unique upbringing and introduction to the sport unlike many of his colleagues. He was born on Okinawa island at an Army base in which his father was stationed off the coast of Japan. It was here his mother and father would meet and live for seven months until moving back to Long Island, N.Y. They lived here for seven years before moving to Scottsdale.

Asked about his life in New York, Friedman said, “I loved it there. The food back home was incredible and I had a lot of great friends. It was just a nice place to be.”

It was here that he would be introduced to football, when he found a flyer for tackle football at his school and began playing.

Upon arriving in Arizona, Friedman continued to pursue his passion for football. This passion would eventually develop into untapped talent, as Friedman shined at Horizon high school as a fullback and linebacker.

After high school, Friedman planned to play football in college. Despite being one of the best players on the roster, he struggled to find opportunities to play the sport he loved.

“I was undersized as a high school football player,” he said. “I was the MVP of my team my junior and senior year. I wanted to play college football but I didn't have any opportunities with my size.”

He eventually landed a spot at Scottsdale Community College, but quickly left the program due to lack of playing time. The decision to step away from the game he loved proved fruitful, however, as he landed a job as his high school’s assistant coach.

This job would mark the beginning of a coveted coaching career. “I found out that I had a real passion for coaching here,” he said. “For the eight years I was there we had some great football teams.”

In fact, in just his second year as assistant coach, Horizon won a  state championship.

After his time at Horizon, Friedman bounced around to different schools in the area and had success. He landed at North Canyon for a year and then worked three years at Desert Mountain as defensive coordinator.

With 12 years as an assistant coach under his belt, Friedman finally got another opportunity at his old high school. His former mentor Doug Shaffer told him that in two years he would retire and the job would be his. Unfortunately for Friedman, two years turned into four and upon Shaffer’s retirement the job was given to someone else.

When asked about the let down, Friedman simply said, ““Everything happens for a reason.”

This motto would hold true and pay off for Friedman, as he began landing many head coaching jobs. His first job was at Barry Goldwater in 2002 where he coached for five seasons. Over the next 11 years, Friedman went on to coach three more schools, one of which was 6A, play in multiple playoff games along with a conference championship and win the Big School Coach of the Year award in 2008. Now Friedman resides at Deer Valley, where he has coached for three years.

In spite of having such a profound and intellectual football background, Friedman lives a simple and happy life completely separate from football. When asked what he does in his free time he said, “I love hanging out with my family, especially my wife who’s been with me through this whole journey.”

Friedman is also father to three boys; twins Haden and Zachary who graduated from ASU as entrepreneurs and youngest son Logan who is pursuing a career in audio engineering.

“The one good thing about this pandemic in 2020, is that I’ve gotten to spend more time with my kids and wife,” he said.

He also enjoys playing golf and drinking wine.

When looking back on his career and everything he had accomplished, the thing he valued most were the connections he made.

“The relationships you build with people, from players to coaches, it’s just incredible,” he said.

As of now, Friedman remains committed to improving the Deer Valley program and the young men involved. As for where Friedman’s long and impressive coaching career may take him in the future, one thing is certain: A great line of winning will likely follow, but more importantly is the example and discipline he continues to exhibit in his role every day.