Donte' Pimpleton - Running Backs - Staff Directory - Florida Atlantic University Athletics

Staff Directory

Donte' Pimpleton

Title:
Running Backs

Meet Donte' Pimpleton

Reuniting with Coach Willie Taggart, his former collegiate teammate at WKU, for the fifth time

At FAU

Brings nearly 20 years of coaching experience to the Owls, after teaching the game at both the high school and highest collegiate levels

At UMass

Worked with a running back corps led by Ellis Merriweather who tallied 218 carries for 1,138 yards and five TDs
Merriweather averaged 5.2 yards per carry on his way to becoming the first UMass back to record 1,000 yards since 2008 and the program's single-season rushing record holder at the FBS level. He did so by protecting the ball (no fumbles) and only starting eight games

At Florida State

Was a part of the Seminole staff for the 2018 and 2019 seasons
2019 saw Cam Akers, compete two seasons under Pimpleton's tutledge, a time period that Akers used to become one of the top running backs in FSU's history
Akers' three-year career saw him average 958 rushing yards per season, third all-time among Seminole backs, fifth in carries (586) and sixth most in 100-yard games (11)
The Noles 2019 squad had six players named All-ACC en route to the Sun Bowl
Akers became a second-round selection by the Los Angeles Rams in the 2020 draft
In 2018, his group accounted for 1,769 all-purpose yards and was led by Cam Akers’ team-high 866 all-purpose yards and eight touchdowns. Akers was a big-play threat and steady contributor for the Seminoles as his three runs of 50-plus yards, including an 85-yard rush that tied for the seventh-longest run in program history, tied for fourth in the ACC and he led the team in rushing in 10 of 12 games. Akers recorded his fifth career 100-yard rushing game in the win vs. No. 22 Boston College as FSU produced a 300-yard passer, 100-yard rusher and 100-yard receiver in the same game for the first time in more than two years
Senior Jacques Patrick moved into 16th on the program’s all-time career rushing list in his one season under Pimpleton, rounding out his career with 1,790 yards to sit two spots ahead of Akers’ 1,730 career yards

At Oregon

The 2017 Oregon Ducks ranked second in the Pac-12 and 13th in the NCAA with an average of 251.0 rushing yards per game, and the team’s 40 rushing touchdowns tied for seventh in the nation. Oregon’s rushing total was paced by six 300-yard games and 10 games of more than 200 yards on the ground. In the season opener, UO scored an FBS-high 77 points behind nine rushing touchdowns, the most in a game in 2017 by an FBS team
Pimpleton coached Royce Freeman, a semifinalist for the Maxwell Award and the Doak Walker Award, to second-team All-Pac 12 honors after finishing with 1,475 yards on the ground for an average of 122.9 yards per game. His per-game average ranked 10th in the country, and his 16 rushing touchdowns tied for 14th in the nation. Freeman ended his career with a school-record 5,621 rushing yards, the sixth-highest total in NCAA history. He also broke UO career records with 60 rushing touchdowns, which ranked 10th in college football history, 31 100-yard rushing games, 6,435 all-purpose yards and 64 total touchdowns. Freeman was selected in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos, marking the second straight year a Pimpleton-coached back was drafted

At USF

At South Florida, Pimpleton helped the Bulls to a program-best record of 11-2 in 2016 while completely rewriting the program’s rushing record book. USF set new school records with 3,709 rushing yards, 47 rushing touchdowns, an average of 6.50 yards per rush, an average of 285.7 rushing yards per game, 77 total touchdowns scored, 569 points scored, an average of 43.8 points per game, 300 total first downs and 164 rushing first downs. The Bulls ranked second in the nation in yards per rush, fifth in rushing yards per game and 11th in total offense
His debut season at USF also made its mark on the record books as the team broke records for most rushing yards with 3,205, highest rushing average of 5.41 yards per carry and most rushing yards per game with 246.5. The team’s 28 rushing touchdowns in 2015 ranked second in team history at the time
Pimpleton tutored Marlon Mack for two seasons, helping the school’s all-time leading rusher earn first-team all-conference honors in each season and break 14 school records before being picked in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts.

At Kentucky Wesleyan

Pimpleton spent two seasons at Kentucky Wesleyan as the Panthers’ wide receivers coach in 2013 before being elevated to offensive coordinator in 2014
That season, he directed an offense that broke 10 school records as a team while 13 different individual records fell
The 2014 squad also tied the school record for wins, matching a mark that had stood since 1999. He tutored Keelan Cole, who led Division II in receiving yards, receiving yards per game and receiving touchdowns in 2014 and in 2017 helped the Jacksonville Jaguars win their first division title since 1999.

At WKU

In 2010, Pimpleton joined Coach Taggart’s first staff at WKU
He served two seasons as an offensive quality control assistant before being promoted to wide receivers coach in 2012 and helping the Hilltoppers reach the first bowl game in program history

At Louisville

His first collegiate coaching opportunity came in 2009 when he was hired as an offensive quality control assistant at Louisville

As a High School Coach

Pimpleton began his coaching career in the high school ranks in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, serving as wide receivers and defensive backs coach for one season at Iroquois High School before handling both roles for two years at his alma mater, Fern Creek High School. He spent two seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Doss High School

As a Collegiate Player

Pimpleton played quarterback and wide receiver at WKU following a prep career as an all-state quarterback at Louisville’s Fern Creek High School. At WKU, he gained 1,425 rushing yards with 18 touchdowns and caught 13 passes for 165 yards and four touchdowns in a run-heavy offense. He helped lead the Hilltoppers to the 2000 Ohio Valley Conference championship and earned honorable mention All-Gateway Conference honors in 2001

Professional Career

He played three seasons in the Arena Football League and two more seasons in the American Indoor Football League

NFL Players Coached

Cam Akers
Marlon Mack
D'Ernest Johnson
Royce Freeman
Jacques Patrick
Keelan Cole
Tony Brooks-James
Tyler Higbee

Personal
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
HighSchool: Fern Creek High School
Birthdate: August 12, 1979
Education: Bachelor’s degree in business and communications from WKU in 2002.
Family: He and his wife, Nicole, have one daughter, Anistyn

Year	Position	School
2021	Running Backs	UMass
2018-19	Running Backs	FSU
2017	Running Backs	Oregon
2015-16	Running Backs	USF
2014	Offensive coordinator	Kentucky Wesleyan
2013	Wide Receivers	Kentucky Wesleyan
2012	WKU	WKU
2010-11	Offensive Quality Control	WKU
2009	Offensive Quality Control	Louisville
2007-08	Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks	Doss High School (Ky.)
2006	Wide Receivers/Defensive Backs	Fern Creek High School (Ky.)
2002	Wide Receivers/Defensive Backs	Iroquois High School (Ky.)