John Fox (American football)

NFL Coach 2
Name=John Fox


Caption=John Fox talking to players Chris Gamble (middle) and Ken Lucas during an August 2, 2007 training camp practice in Spartanburg, SC.
fontcolor=#1E90FF
Color=black
DateOfBirth=birth date and age|1955|2|8
Birthplace= Virginia Beach, Virginia
College=San Diego State
Career Highlights=y
DatabaseFootball=FOXJOH01
PFRCoach=FoxxJo0
coach=yes
coachingyears=1978

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

1986-1988


1989-1991

1992-1993

1994-1995

1996

1997-2001

2002-"present"
coachingteams=San Diego State University
(graduate assistant)
Boise State University
(defensive backs coach)
Long Beach State University
(defensive backs coach)
University of Utah
(defensive backs coach)
University of Kansas
(defensive backs coach)
Iowa State University
(defensive backs coach)
Los Angeles Express
(defensive backs coach)
University of Pittsburgh
(defensive coordinator & defensive backs coach)
Pittsburgh Steelers
(defensive backs coach)
San Diego Chargers
(defensive backs coach)
Los Angeles Raiders
(defensive coordinator)
St. Louis Rams
(personnel consultant)
New York Giants
(defensive coordinator)
Carolina Panthers
(head coach)
Record=55-46-0 (Regular Season)
5-2 (Postseason)
60-48-0 (Overall)
Championships=2003 NFC Championship

John Fox (born February 8, 1955) is the third and current head coach of the Carolina Panthers of the NFL.

Fox was born in Virginia Beach, Virginia and raised in San Diego, California after moving there at age 15. Fox played football at Castle Park High School and Southwestern College (California) in Chula Vista from 1974-1975 before going to San Diego State, where he played defensive back with future NFL player & head coach Herman Edwards. Fox received a bachelor’s degree in physical education and earned teaching credentials from San Diego State.

In 1983, John Fox was a member of Mike Gottfried's University of Kansas staff, as the secondary coach. While there he roamed the sidelines of the oldest standing stadium west of the Mississippi River. He coached at the school that produced such legends as John Hadl, John Riggins, and Gale Sayers.

Fox began his first professional football coaching stint in the short-lived United States Football League with the Los Angeles Express. He entered the NFL in 1989 as the secondary coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, later also holding this job with the San Diego Chargers. Fox was the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Raiders and later that of the New York Giants during Super Bowl XXXV, which they lost.

In 2002 Fox was signed as the third head coach of the Panthers, whose previous coach George Seifert had led the team to a disastrous 1-15 record in 2001. Fox's first regular season game was a 10-7 victory over the Baltimore Ravens which ended the Panthers' 15-game losing streak dating to the previous season. Fox and the Panthers posted a 7-9 record for the 2002 season (his first with the team), demonstrating a drastic improvement over the previous season.

In the 2003 season Fox led the Panthers to Super Bowl XXXVIII, losing 32-29 to the New England Patriots on a last-minute field goal by Adam Vinatieri (which was also the margin of victory for the Patriots in their Super Bowl victories in Super Bowl XXXVI and Super Bowl XXXIX). In taking the Panthers to the Super Bowl, Fox joined Vince Lombardi as the only coaches to inherit a team that had won only one game in the season immediately prior to their hiring, and then took that team to the Super Bowl. John Fox took the Carolina Panthers to the NFC Championship game in the 2005 season, but they were defeated by the Seattle Seahawks.

The 2006 season was disappointing for Fox and the Panthers, as a team that had Super Bowl aspirations fell out of the playoffs.

Head Coaching record