Trent Figg is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

coach. He is the head football coach for

Calvin University Calvin University, formerly Calvin College, is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church and stands in the Reforme ...

, a position he has held since 2023. He was previously the associate head coach of the defense and defensive backs coach for the

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa The University of Hawaii at Mānoa is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Hawaiʻi system and houses the main offic ...

. Figg played college football at

William Jewell College William Jewell College is a private liberal arts college in Liberty, Missouri, United States. It was founded in 1849 by members of the Missouri Baptist Convention and endowed with $10,000 by William Jewell. It was associated with the Missouri ...

in Missouri, where he also spent the first 5 years of his coaching career upon graduation. While primarily a defensive coach, he has spent multiple stints on the offensive side of the ball. Besides Hawai'i and William Jewell, Figg has also coached at Missouri State,

Arizona State Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is one of the largest ...

, and Southern Arkansas.

Playing career

Figg was a member of the

William Jewell Cardinals The William Jewell Cardinals are the athletic teams that represent the William Jewell College, located in Liberty, Missouri, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division II ranks, primarily competing in the Great Lakes Valley Confer ...

football team from 2004 to 2007. He spent time at

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

, and outside

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

. He was named an Academic All-American in 2007.

Coaching career

Following his graduation from William Jewell, he joined the Cardinals' coaching staff for the 2008 season as outside linebackers coach and was also put in charge of operations. Figg was named

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

s coach in 2010 and went on to coach linebackers in 2011 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 ...

s in 2012 for the Cardinals. In 2013, Figg spent one year as a defensive graduate assistant for

. The following year, Figg went to Southern Arkansas, where he was named special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach. In

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, he returned to William Jewell for a second stint; he stayed for two seasons as the defensive coordinator and associate head coach for the Cardinals. After returning to Southern Arkansas for the 2017 season as defensive coordinator, associate head coach, and recruiting coordinator, Figg was hired at Missouri State in 2018. There he served as the special teams coordinator and running backs coach for two seasons. In

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, he departed to take the chief of staff position with the

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

program. In March 2021, he was promoted to an on-field position as the associate head coach of the defense and defensive backs coach for the Rainbow Warriors. Near the end of the season, Figg was mentioned in a scandal centered around allegations surrounding former Hawai'i head coach

Todd Graham Michael Todd Graham (born December 5, 1964) is an American college football coach and former player who serves as an offensive analyst for TCU. He was most recently the head football coach at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Playing car ...

's treatment toward players and football alumni. After Graham announced his resignation and

Timmy Chang Timothy Kealii'okaaina Awa Chang (born October 9, 1981) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is currently the head coach of the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. During his playing career at Hawaii, he set several major college foot ...

took over as head coach, Figg was not retained. While on the staff during his second stint at William Jewell, Figg was selected to serve as the defensive coordinator for the

United States men's national American football team The United States National American Football Team often referred to as Team USA represents the United States in international men's American football (Tackle Football) competitions. It is currently controlled by USA Football and is ...

in the

2016 World University American Football Championship The 2016 World University American Football Championship was an international college American football tournament that was held from June 1 to June 11, 2016 in Monterrey, Mexico, at Estadio Tecnológico. It was the 2nd World University Championshi ...

, held in

Monterrey Monterrey (, , abbreviated as MtY) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León. It is the ninth-largest city and the second largest metropolitan area, after Greater Mexico City. Located at the foothills of th ...

. The United States finished in second place, with

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

defeating them in the final game to claim the championship. On January 6, 2023, Figg was named the first football coach at

in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Personal life

Figg was born in

Chillicothe, Missouri Chillicothe is a city in the state of Missouri and the county seat of Livingston County, Missouri, Livingston County, Missouri, United States. The population was 9,107 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The name "Chillicothe" is Shaw ...

. He attended

, graduating in 2008 with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

secondary education Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education. Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...

and

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

. In 2012, he earned a

Master of Education The Master of Education (MEd or M.Ed. or Ed.M.; Latin ''Magister Educationis'' or ''Educationis Magister'') is a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum an ...

educational leadership Educational leadership is the process of enlisting and guiding the talents and energies of teachers, students, and parents toward achieving common educational aims. This term is often used synonymously with school leadership in the United States a ...

from

Northwest Missouri State University Northwest Missouri State University (NW Missouri) is a public university in Maryville, Missouri, United States. It has an enrollment of 9,152 students. Founded in 1905 as a teachers college, its campus is based on the design for Forest Park (St. ...

. Figg and his wife Tori () have three children.

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Figg, Trent Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Arizona State Sun Devils football coaches Calvin Knights football coaches Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football coaches Missouri State Bears football coaches Northwest Missouri State University alumni Southern Arkansas Muleriders football coaches William Jewell Cardinals football coaches William Jewell Cardinals football players People from Chillicothe, Missouri Coaches of American football from Missouri Players of American football from Missouri 20th-century American people 21st-century American people