Nathan Robert "Rob" Hunt (born March 3, 1981) is a former American
football center and a practice squad
offensive lineman
In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...
in 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 ...
. Originally drafted by the
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
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 ...
in the fifth round of the
2005 NFL Draft
The 2005 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 NFL draft, draft was held April 23–24, 2005 NFL seaso ...
.
Education
Hunt attended Cavalier Public High School, where he was two-time All-Conference, All-Region, and All-State selection. He was also a three-time state wrestling qualifier and two-time state place winner, and state runner-up as a
senior
Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to:
* Senior (name), a surname ...
.
College career
Hunt attended
North Dakota State University
North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota. It was founded as North Dakota Agricultural College in 1890 as t ...
, where he majored in Corporate/Community Health and Fitness. He started 42 games on the
Offensive line
In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...
. He
redshirted
Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...
as a true freshman in 2000.
As a redshirt freshman in 2001, he started 10 games. He helped the team average 35 points and 335 yards-per-game. As a sophomore in 2002, he started 10 games, and helped the team average 338.2 yards-per-game. As a junior in 2003, he started 11 games. He was named a
team captain
In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...
, he also helped the team average 30.1 points and 355.5 yards-per-game. He did not allow a
quarterback sack
In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in th ...
and allowed just one quarterback pressure all season. He had 32 knockdown blocks and a 93.5% blocking consistency. In his Senior season, NDSU football transitioned to
Division I FCS
The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic ...
football. Hunt was a team captain, the Conference Offensive Lineman of the Year, an FCS All-American and was awarded the 2004
Rimington Trophy
The Dave Rimington Trophy is awarded to the player considered to be the best American football center in college football. Dave Rimington was a center who played at the University of Nebraska from 1979 to 1982.
A member of the National College F ...
as the top center in FCS football. Hunt also played in the 2005
Hula Bowl Maui All-Star game held on January 22, 2005.
In July 2017, Hunt was named to the
NDSU Bison
The North Dakota State Bison are the athletic teams of North Dakota State University (NDSU), which is located in the city of Fargo, North Dakota. The teams are often called the "Thundering Herd". The current logo is a bison.
Sports sponsored
...
All-Fargodome team representing the Division II era of Bison football in commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the
Fargodome
Fargodome is an indoor athletic stadium in the north central United States, located on the campus of North Dakota State University (NDSU) in Fargo, North Dakota. Opened in late 1992, the facility is owned by the City of Fargo and built on unive ...
.
National Football League (2005-2008)
The Indianapolis Colts drafted Hunt in the 5th Round of the 2005 NFL Draft. Hunt was released by the Colts near the end of Training Camp on August 30, 2005 and was signed to the Denver Broncos' practice squad on September 4, 2005.
Hunt spent the 2005 and 2006 seasons as a member of the Broncos practice squad,
Europe
Hunt signed and played for the
Rhein Fire
Rhein may refer to:
Places
* Rhine, a major river in Europe (german: Rhein, link=no)
* Rhein, a village in the municipality of Morsbach in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
* Rhein (Ostpreussen), a former name of the town Ryn in Poland
Ships
* SM ...
in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
of NFL Europe in the 2006 offseason.
Hunt was signed by the
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The tea ...
for the 2007 offseason and reported to training camp. Hunt appeared in preseason games on August 11, 2007 against the Cleveland Browns and August 16, 2007 against the Miami Dolphins, but was cut before the end of camp.
Hunt spent the 2008 NFL offseason with the
New Orleans VooDoo
Louisiana Voodoo (french: Vaudou louisianais, es, Vudú de Luisiana), also known as New Orleans Voodoo, is an African diasporic religion which originated in Louisiana, now in the southern United States. It arose through a process of syncretis ...
, see below, before being signed by the New Orleans Saints on July 1, 2008. While with the Saints, he played in just one preseason game, against the
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...
, and was inactive against
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
and
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
. However, on August 25, he was waived by the team.
Arena Football League (2008)
On November 28, 2007, Hunt signed with the New Orleans VooDoo of the
Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
, and played offensive line for the VooDoo throughout the 2008 season.
On June 24, 2008, the VooDoo placed him on the Exempt: Other league list, because he was attending training camp with the New Orleans Saints. On September 22, the VooDoo activated him from the Exempt: Other league list. The New Orleans VooDoo ceased operations on October 13, 2008,
which entered Hunt as well as every other player for the VooDoo into the 2009 AFL
Dispersal Draft
A dispersal draft is a process in professional sports for assigning players to a new team when their current team ceases to exist or is merged with another team. Like most other sports drafts, most dispersal drafts are conducted in North America.
...
. However, the Arena Football League subsequently cancelled the 2009 season leaving Hunt without both a team and a league.
After receiving no invites to NFL training camp for the 2009 NFL season and working out for a handful of NFL teams in the fall with no invites to a practice squad or roster, Hunt decided to retire from playing professional football.
Coaching
Hunt served as an assistant offensive line/tight-end/strength and conditioning coach at
Valley City State University
Valley City State University (VCSU) is a public university in Valley City, North Dakota. It is part of the North Dakota University System. Founded in 1890 as Valley City State Normal School, a two-year teachers' college, it was authorized to confe ...
during the 2009 season, taking over as the Offensive Coordinator in 2010, though retaining his duties with the offensive line and strength and conditioning. During his stint at VCSU, Hunt led the top rushing team in the Dakota Athletic Conference in 2010. VCSU also set a record-high 327 rushing yards against Dakota State and broke the record again later in the season, tallying 440 yards rushing against Mayville State (N.D.).
In 2011, Hunt joined the coaching staff of the
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM) is a public university in Moorhead, Minnesota. The school has an enrollment of 7,534 students in 2019 and 266 full-time faculty members. MSUM is a part of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities s ...
Dragons
A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...
,
an
NCAA Division II
NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...
football school playing in the
Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference
The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the western Midwestern United States. Nine of its ...
. Having served as offensive line coach, Hunt is currently the offensive coordinator for the Dragons. During Hunt's tenure as offensive coordinator, under the leadership of head coach Steve Laqua, the Dragon offense have set and broken numerous offensive records, including single-game yardage and single season yardage and the offense has posted top-five finishes in first downs in the nation. Back-to-Back Dragon quarterbacks have posted career yardage records for the school while Dragon running backs and receivers have posted school-record career numbers in yards, and receptions, and have been awarded all-conference, all-region and all-American honors.
See also
*
.
References
External links
Denver Broncos bioIndianapolis Colts bio*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunt, Rob
1981 births
Living people
People from Pembina County, North Dakota
Players of American football from North Dakota
American football centers
North Dakota State Bison football players
Indianapolis Colts players
Denver Broncos players
Rhein Fire players
Kansas City Chiefs players
New Orleans VooDoo players
New Orleans Saints players
American expatriate sportspeople in Germany
American expatriate players of American football