Phillip Dale Lindsey (born January 18, 1943) is an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

coach and former player. He was the head football coach at the

University of San Diego The University of San Diego (USD) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in San Diego, California, United States. Chartered in 1949 as the independent San Diego College for Women and San Diego University ...

. Lindsey has also worked as a coach in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL), the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL), and the

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL).

Early life

Lindsey attended and played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

at Bowling Green High School in

Bowling Green, Kentucky Bowling Green is a city in Warren County, Kentucky, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 72,294 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Kentucky, third-most populous city in the stat ...

, where he was an All-State player.

College career

After high school, Lindsey signed with the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

, where he was part of the infamous Thin Thirty team, but quit the team in the spring of his freshman year. He then transferred to

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University (WKU) is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, United States. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a few decades earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glas ...

, where he starred on the Hilltoppers's undefeated 1963 team that won the Tangerine Bowl.

Professional career

As a player

Lindsey was drafted in the seventh round of the 1965 NFL draft by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

, where he played from 1965 to 1972. He then signed with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

in 1973.

As a coach

After his playing career, Lindsey was a coach for several different NFL teams, including the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

and the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

. He was also a coach for the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

of the

and the

Boston Breakers The Boston Breakers were an American professional women's soccer club based in the Boston neighborhood of Allston. The team competed in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). They replaced the original Breakers, who competed in the defu ...

and the New Jersey Generals of the

. In 1988, Lindsey joined Forrest Gregg at SMU. As the defensive coordinator, he helped to revitalize the historic SMU football program after the NCAA executed its one and only death penalty for a college football program. During the 1989 season, SMU's first season back after 1987, Lindsey's defense was instrumental in SMU's wins over UConn and North Texas. He was terminated as the linebackers coach for the

on January 16, 2007. This was his second stint with Washington. He was one of several former NFL coordinators serving as a position coach on the Redskins' coach staff. Lindsey was hired as the

head coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...

for the

in 2012, a position he held through the 2022 season. The school announced his retirement following the season, but Lindsey maintains he was fired. At the time of his departure he had the most wins of any head coach in school history and held the fourth highest winning percentage in FCS football. Lindsey, now a resident of

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, lost his home in the wildfires of October 2007.

Head coaching record

College

Notes

References

External links

San Diego profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lindsey, Dale 1943 births Living people American football linebackers Chicago Bears coaches Cleveland Browns players Green Bay Packers coaches Kentucky Wildcats football players Portland Thunder (WFL) coaches NFL defensive coordinators New England Patriots coaches New Mexico State Aggies football coaches New Orleans Saints players San Diego Chargers coaches San Diego Toreros football coaches Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaches Toronto Argonauts coaches Washington Redskins coaches Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football players Portland Breakers coaches High school football coaches in Kentucky People from Bedford, Indiana Sportspeople from Bowling Green, Kentucky Coaches of American football from Kentucky Players of American football from Kentucky New Jersey Generals coaches