David Blackwell is the latest coach to show that, when it comes to college football, you can indeed go home again.
East Carolina announced Thursday morning that Blackwell has accepted the job as Scottie Montgomery‘s new defensive coordinator. Blackwell replaces Kenwick Thompson, who was demoted from the post two weeks into the 2017 regular season.
Blackwell was an offensive lineman for the Pirates in the early nineties, and began his coaching career as an undergraduate assistant at ECU.
“While David’s credentials speak volumes about his accomplishments on the defensive side of the ball, his endearment for this program and ingrained Pirate spirit is unequivocal,” Montgomery said in a statement. “We’re excited to welcome him home and ready to embrace a new era of relentless pursuit that uniquely ties into our past.”
Blackwell comes his alma mater from Jacksonville State, where he spent the past four seasons as the FCS program’s coordinator. He also served as the Gamecocks’ linebackers coach
Prior stops in Blackwell’s 20-year coaching career include USF (co-coordinator, linebackers coach), Clemson (linebackers) and Pitt (linebackers).
