Dave Huxtable leaves Pitt for NC State

At least it's not the head coach this time.

Once again, Pitt will head to the BBVA Compass Bowl with an interim coach, this year at defensive coordinator, as it was announced last night that Dave Huxtable will be taking the same position with ACC foe North Carolina State:

A veteran assistant, Huxtable adds ACC experience to Doeren’s staff. Huxtable, who has also worked as the defensive coordinator at North Carolina and Georgia Tech, agreed to a contract at N.C. State worth $450,000 annually that runs through the 2015 season.

Huxtable and Doeren have not previously worked together.

....

"The more I talked with Dave, the more impressed I was with him," Huxtable said Friday night. "He did a great job at Northern Illinois."

But why leave for NC State? Pitt doesn't release current salary information, so there's no way to verify if this is a raise, but I'd imagine Pitt is paying in the ballpark of a half million for coordinators. Huxtable replaced Doeren at Wisconsin, so while they never overlapped, it seems fair to assume they know a lot of the same people and that's how this match-up formed.

"Coaching style" seems to be the buzz coming from the South Side:

On Huxtable, it's my understanding the move was mutual. DH had a very vocal coaching style, contrasting w/ Chryst's laid-back demeanor #Pitt

— Sam Werner (@SWernerPG) December 15, 2012

Similar thoughts are echoed in DiPaola's article, calling his coaching style abrasive:

Huxtable, who often displayed an abrasive coaching style that contrasted with coach Paul Chryst‘s laid-back demeanor, will join the staff of new Wolfpack coach Dave Doeren, who was hired after two years at Northern Illinois. Huxtable will not coach Pitt in the BBVA Compass Bowl on Jan. 5, but Chryst has not named a replacement.

Obligatory reaction from Chryst and a player:

“We appreciate Hux‘s contributions to our program this year and wish him the best in his new opportunity,” Chryst said in a statement.

Senior safety Andrew Taglianetti said he appreciated Huxtable‘s passion and intensity for the game.

“You didn‘t want to be the one getting yelled at by him, but you appreciated it when it happened,” Taglianetti said. “Even when he yelled at someone else, you fed off it and said, ‘Let‘s get it going here.‘

“That is something North Carolina State is really going to like. He has taught us well these past 14 weeks. I don‘t think we will lose a step for the (Compass Bowl) because of the groundwork he laid.”

Both Pittsburgh papers calling this a mutual decision is not an accident. Whether that's the truth or just what's leaking on the Pittsburgh side of things remains to be seen, but either way, Pitt's losing an astounding defensive coach. Style be damned, I really liked Hux as a coach at Pitt. But then again, I didn't have to work with him.

Best of Some amount of luck to Hux in the ACC.

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