South Raleigh News

Monte Kiffin, former head football coach of NC State, passed away on Thursday at the age of 84 in Oxford, Mississippi. Kiffin was hired 40 years ago as NC State's head football coach and left a lasting legacy during his three-year tenure from 1980 to 1982.

Kiffin, a former Nebraska player and assistant, was a protégé of Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne and also served as an assistant under former NC State coach Lou Holtz at Arkansas. Known for his defensive acumen, Kiffin had an extensive career as an assistant coach and defensive coordinator in the National Football League.

Wolfpack fans remember Kiffin for his unique personality and memorable antics. He once had to be talked out of wrestling an alligator at the Orange Bowl as an assistant coach. To promote his first spring football game, he dressed in red-and-white clothes with a cowboy hat and mask, interrupting the NC State orchestra's spring concert by riding in on a white horse while they played "The William Tell Overture." On another occasion, he strapped on a parachute and jumped out of a helicopter from five feet off the ground before his first career game.

Before facing rival North Carolina for the first time, Kiffin participated in a one-round title bout with former heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier at Reynolds Coliseum during a students-only pep rally.

Kiffin's antics caught the attention of local and national media, especially when he led his team against national powers like Penn State and Miami and ACC contenders such as Maryland, Clemson, and North Carolina.

After leaving NC State, Kiffin held various coaching positions in the NFL with teams including the Green Bay Packers, Buffalo Bills, Minnesota Vikings (twice), New York Jets, and New Orleans Saints. In 1996, he became the defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers where he won Super Bowl 37.

Kiffin is regarded as one of the most influential defensive minds in both college and professional football history. He was known for creating the Tampa 2 scheme characterized by speed over size and strength, prioritizing preventing scores over yardage prevention, using multiple defenses from one look, and focusing on attacking to cause turnovers.

Football was deeply intertwined with Kiffin's family life. He recently served as a player personnel analyst for his oldest son Lane at Mississippi. His youngest son Chris is currently the linebackers coach for the NFL's Houston Texans.

by Tim Peeler for Coman Publishing