Dave Huxtable (born December 20, 1956) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

coach who is the senior defensive assistant for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He served as the

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...

at the

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

from 2013 to 2019. He previously served as the defensive coordinator of the

Pittsburgh Panthers The Pittsburgh Panthers, commonly also referred to as the Pitt Panthers, are the athletic teams representing the University of Pittsburgh, although the term is colloquially used to refer to other aspects of the university such as alumni, facu ...

football team.

Coaching career

Huxtable began his coaching career as a graduate assistant with the

Iowa State Cyclones The Iowa State Cyclones are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Iowa State University, located in Ames. The university is a member of the Big 12 Conference and competes in NCAA Division I, fielding 16 varsity teams (6 men's and 1 ...

in 1982 before serving as the defensive coordinator at

Independence Community College Independence Community College is a public community college in Independence, Kansas. It was formerly Independence Community Junior College. History Independence Community College was established in 1925 as grades 13 and 14 of the Independence p ...

. After being a member of the

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Lady Toppers are the athletic teams that represent Western Kentucky University (WKU), located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, competing in the Co ...

staff from 1985 to 1989, he coached linebackers and special teams with the

East Carolina Pirates The East Carolina Pirates are the athletic teams that represent East Carolina University (ECU), located in Greenville, North Carolina. All varsity-level sports teams participate at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division ...

from 1990 to 1991. During that time, he coached linebacker Robert Jones, who was later selected in the first round of the

1992 NFL Draft The 1992 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1992, at the Marriott Mar ...

by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

. From 1992 to 1997, Huxtable was a member of the

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets is the name used for all of the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), located in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. The teams have also been nicknamed the Rambl ...

. He was the linebackers coach during his entire tenure, also serving as special teams coordinator from 1992 to 1994 and defensive coordinator from 1996 to 1997. While with the Yellow Jackets, he coach linebacker

Keith Brooking Keith Howard Brooking (born October 30, 1975) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft and also played for the Dallas Cowboys an ...

, who was later selected in the first round of the

1998 NFL Draft The 1998 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 18–19, 1998, at the Theater at M ...

by the

. Following his time with Georgia Tech, Huxtable returned to East Carolina for two seasons, serving as linebackers coach in 1998 and defensive line coach in 1999. After a year away from coaching, he was a member of the

North Carolina Tar Heels The North Carolina Tar Heels are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to individuals from the state of North Carolina, the ''Tar Heel ...

staff from 2001 to 2003. Again, he was linebackers coach during his entire tenure, also serving as special teams coordinator in 2001 and defensive coordinator from 2002 to 2003. He then joined the

UCF Knights The UCF Knights are the sport, athletic teams that represent the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida. The Knights participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I (NCAA Division I F ...

, serving as linebackers coach and special teams coordinator from 2004 to 2007 and defensive coordinator from 2008 to 2010.

Pittsburgh

In 2012, Huxtable left his position as linebackers coach at Wisconsin to become the defensive coordinator at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

NC State

In 2013, Huxtable joined the staff at

, serving as defensive coordinator under head coach

Dave Doeren David William Doeren (born December 3, 1971) is an American football coach who is currently the head football coach at North Carolina State University, a position he has held since the 2013 season. Doeren previously served as the head football ...

. On December 2, 2019, Huxtable was relieved of his duties after the Wolfpack's 4–7 season, in which Huxtable's defense ranked 74th nationally.

Atlanta Falcons

In 2023, Huxtable was hired away from the Alabama Crimson Tide Football to be a defensive assistant with the

. This will be his first coaching job in the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

Personal

Huxtable is a graduate of

Eastern Illinois University Eastern Illinois University is a public university in Charleston, Illinois. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradually expanded into a co ...

. He is married with two children and is a native of

Elgin, Illinois Elgin ( ) is a city in Cook and Kane counties in the northern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. Elgin is located northwest of Chicago, along the Fox River. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 114,797, the seventh-large ...

References

External links

NC State profile

UCF profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huxtable, Dave 1956 births Living people East Carolina Pirates football coaches Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football coaches Iowa State Cyclones football coaches Junior college football coaches in the United States NC State Wolfpack football coaches North Carolina Tar Heels football coaches Oklahoma State Cowboys football coaches Sportspeople from Elgin, Illinois Pittsburgh Panthers football coaches UCF Knights football coaches Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football coaches Wisconsin Badgers football coaches Eastern Illinois University alumni Coaches of American football from Illinois Alabama Crimson Tide football coaches