Dave Canales (born May 7, 1981) 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 wi ...

coach who is the

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in asso ...

for the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

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 majo ...

(NFL). He previously served as the

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of an American football or Canadian football team who is in charge of the team's offense. Generally, along with the defensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator, this coach r ...

for the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The cl ...

in 2023. Canales played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...

Azusa Pacific Azusa Pacific University (APU) is a private, evangelical Christian university in Azusa, California. The university was founded in 1899, with classes opening on March 3, 1900, in Whittier, California, and began offering degrees in 1939. The univ ...

and previously served as an assistant coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...

and the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

(USC).

Early life and playing career

A native of

Harbor City, California Harbor City is a highly diverse neighborhood in the Harbor region of Los Angeles, California, with a population upward of 36,000 people. Originally part of the Rancho San Pedro Spanish land grant, the Harbor City was brought into Los Angeles a ...

, Canales attended Carson High School in

Carson, California Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the South Bay region of Los Angeles, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International Airport. Incorporated on February 20, 1968, ...

, where he played wide receiver and

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. He played

Azusa Pacific University Azusa Pacific University (APU) is a private, evangelical Christian university in Azusa, California. The university was founded in 1899, with classes opening on March 3, 1900, in Whittier, California, and began offering degrees in 1939. The uni ...

, then a NAIA program in

Azusa, California Azusa (Tongva: ''Asuksa-nga'') is a city in the San Gabriel Valley, at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located 20 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Its population was 50,000 in 2020, ...

. In his college career, Canales recorded 27 receptions for 293 yards and one touchdown. He graduated in 2002 from Azusa Pacific with a degree in

business administration Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

Coaching career

Carson HS

Canales began his coaching career serving as the head coach and offensive coordinator of the freshman/sophomore team at his alma mater, Carson High School, from 2004 to 2005.

El Camino College

Canales made the jump to college coaching in 2006 by joining El Camino (Calif.) College. He served as tight ends coach and special teams coordinator in his first year, before transitioning to quarterbacks coach in his final season with the team (2007-08). During his tenure, the school won the California Community College State Championship in 2006 and also secured two Mission Conference titles.

USC

During his time at El Camino College, Canales formed a relationship with

Pete Carroll Peter Clay Carroll (born September 15, 1951) is an American football coach who is the head coach and executive vice president for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He was previously the head football coach at USC from ...

, the head coach of the

USC Trojans The USC Trojans are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC), located in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ''Trojans'', the women's athletic teams are referred ...

. In 2009, Canales joined Carroll at USC, where he served as an assistant strength coach for one season.

Seattle Seahawks

In 2010, Canales followed Carroll after the latter's acceptance of the

' head coaching position. He won his first Super Bowl title when the Seahawks defeated the Denver Broncos in

Super Bowl XLVIII Super Bowl XLVIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos and National Football Conference (NFC) champion Seattle Seahawks to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for th ...

. Canales spent 13 years with the Seahawks, serving in a variety of capacities on the offensive side of the staff. From 2010 through 2017, Canales served as wide receivers coach, before taking on the roles of quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator from 2018 through 2022. Canales was credited with assisting in the resurgence of

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Am ...

Geno Smith Eugene Cyril "Geno" Smith III (born October 10, 1990) is an American football quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at West Virginia, leading the Mountaineers to multiple bowl game ...

's career. In the 2022 season, Smith was highly effective as the team's starting quarterback and was named

NFL Comeback Player of the Year The National Football League Comeback Player of the Year Award refers to a number of awards that are given to a National Football League (NFL) player who has shown perseverance in overcoming adversity, in the form of not being in the NFL the previo ...

, while also earning his first

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

appearance.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On February 16, 2023, Canales was hired by the

as their offensive coordinator under head coach

Todd Bowles Todd Robert Bowles (born November 18, 1963) is an American football coach and former player who is the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach of the New York Jets. He ...

, replacing Byron Leftwich.

Carolina Panthers

On January 25, 2024, Canales was hired as the head coach of the

Head coaching record

Personal life

Canales and his wife, Lizzy, have four children: Ashby, Benjamin, Beatrice and Amaya.

References

External links

Carolina Panthers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canales, Dave 1981 births Living people American football defensive backs American football wide receivers Azusa Pacific Cougars football players Carolina Panthers head coaches High school football coaches in California Junior college football coaches in the United States People from Carson, California Players of American football from Los Angeles Seattle Seahawks coaches Sports coaches from Los Angeles Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaches USC Trojans football coaches