Quick Facts
Biography
David Elson is an American football coach who is currently the defensive coordinator for Western Illinois University. Between 2003–2009 Elson was head coach of the WKU Hilltoppers football program representing Western Kentucky University (WKU). Elson oversaw the transition of WKU from a Football Championship Subdivision (formerly known as Division I-AA) to a Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly known as Division I-A) program, the highest division in college football; in his final season, the Hilltoppers joined the Sun Belt.
Elson joined the Hilltoppers staff as a defensive backs coach in 1996. He served as defensive coordinator for the 2001 and 2002 season before he was promoted to head coach. The rise to college football's highest level was difficult for the program, and Hilltoppers went 2-20 in Elson's final two seasons.
On November 9, 2009 Elson was fired by the university, finishing out the 2009 season. WKU alumnus and Stanford running backs coach Willie Taggart replaced him.
In March 2010, Indiana University head football coach Bill Lynch announced that Elson will be a defensive quality control coach. Coach Lynch noted this would mainly be an administrative role, but that he would be involved in coaching decisions. The Hoosiers made their first road trip of the year to play Elson's former team, the WKU Hilltoppers in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Elson spent the 2011 football season as a high school assistant coach/defensive coordinator for KHSAA State Finalist Franklin-Simpson High School in Franklin, Kentucky.
On January 4, 2012, it was announced that Elson would become the defensive coordinator at New Mexico State University.
On January 13, 2013, Elson was announced as the new secondary coach for the Southern Illinois Salukis where he as a grad assistant from 94-95.
On January 20, 2016, after 2 years at SIU, Elson accepted the position as defensive coordinator at Western Illinois under new head coach Charlie Fisher.
Personal life
Elson and his wife, Kathy, have three daughters.
Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Rank# | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WKU Hilltoppers (Gateway Football Conference) (2003–2006) | |||||||||
| 2003 | WKU | 9–4–0 | 5–2–0 | T–3rd | L NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal | 8 | |||
| 2004 | WKU | 9–3–0 | 6–1–0 | 2nd | L NCAA Division I-AA First Round | 11 | |||
| 2005 | WKU | 6–5–0 | 4–3–0 | T–4th | |||||
| 2006 | WKU | 6–5–0 | 4–3–0 | T–4th | |||||
| WKU Hilltoppers (FCS Independent) (2007) | |||||||||
| 2007 | WKU | 7–5–0 | |||||||
| WKU Hilltoppers (FBS Independent) (2008) | |||||||||
| 2008 | WKU | 2–10–0 | |||||||
| WKU Hilltoppers (Sun Belt Conference) (2009) | |||||||||
| 2009 | WKU | 0–12–0 | 0–8–0 | 9th | |||||
| Total: | 39–44–0 | ||||||||
| #Rankings from final Coaches' Poll (FCS/I-AA). | |||||||||