In 1966, he was appointed to his first head coaching job, at Pater Noster High School in Los Angeles.
[3] In 1975, Burt was hired as the head football coach at United States International University (USIU) in San Diego, but resigned after one season, in January 1976, citing a his long commute.
He was living in Garden Grove and teaching at La Quinta High School in Westminster, California while coaching part-time at USIU.
[4] Burt worked as the defensive line coach at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1976.
After three years at Hawaii, Burt moved on to California State University, Fullerton, where he served as defensive coordinator for six seasons under head coach Gene Murphy.