A former Cowboys coordinator and one of the greatest defensive minds in football history has received recognition from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Monte Kiffin was named this week as one of 15 recipients of the Hall of Fame’s Award of Excellence. This is the third year for the award, meant to honor assistant coaches, athletic trainers, equipment managers, public relations personnel and film/video directors who have made significant contributions to the sport. The recipients are not nominated or voted on by the Hall of Fame.
Kiffin served as the Cowboys defensive coordinator for the 2013 season in what was Jason Garrett’s third full year as head coach. He had already been coaching at the college and pro levels for over 45 years, created the revolutionary Tampa-2 defense, and won a Super Bowl ring with the Buccaneers by the time he came to Dallas.
Despite having a defensive roster anchored by DeMarcus Ware, Sean Lee and Jason Hatcher in a Pro Bowl year, the 2013 Cowboys struggled to just an 8-8 finish and missed the postseason.
Kiffin lost the DC job to Rod Marinelli for 2014 but stayed with the team as an assistant head coach for the defense. Dallas put together a 12-4 season, finished in a three-way tie for the NFC East title, and made it to the divisional round of the playoffs.
Kiffin’s fingerprints can be seen all over NFL defenses even today, and his influence still remains in Dallas. Mike McCarthy comes from the Marty Schottenheimer coaching tree, as did Kiffin. And the current Cowboys defense, which was put together by Dan Quinn, is based on philosophies Quinn developed under Pete Carroll, who in turn was mentored by Kiffin.
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Using safeties as linebackers, prioritizing speed over size, deploying multiple defenses from a single look, emphasizing takeaways and being willing to give up yards but not allowing teams to score — all are signatures of the scheme Kiffin invented.
Now 84, Kiffin works as a consultant and player personnel analyst at Ole Miss, where his son Lane is the head football coach.
Former offensive coordinator Ernie Zampese, equipment manager “Buck” Buchanan and longtime PR exec Greg Aiello are among the previous Awards of Excellence winners with Cowboys ties.
This year’s Awards of Excellence recipients will be recognized in Canton June 26-27.
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