Former USC, NFL assistant Dave Levy dead at 91

Field Level Media|published: Wed 15th November, 23:02 2023

Sep 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; The SC Trojans logo at midfield at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before a game between the Fresno State Bulldogs and the Southern California Trojans. credits: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Dave Levy, who won four national championships as an assistant coach at USC before spending more than 20 years in various professional leagues, died of natural causes in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Wednesday, the school announced.

He was 91.

Levy coached on John McKay's USC staff from 1960-75, helping the Trojans to national titles in 1962, '67, '72 and '74. After McKay left to coach the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL, Levy served as an assistant athletic director for four years.

He joined the San Diego Chargers in 1980, coaching the offensive line and tight ends before becoming offensive coordinator. In 1989, he moved on to the Detroit Lions (1989-96), serving as running backs coach for the first two seasons of Barry Sanders' NFL career before moving to offensive coordinator.

Levy then spent two years in NFL Europe as an assistant with the Amsterdam Admirals (1999-2000), a year with the Los Angeles Xtreme of the XFL (2001), and one with the Calgary Stampers of the CFL (2003).

He also coached high schools, most notably at Long Beach Poly in Southern California, where he won a pair of CIF championships in the 1950s.

A 2015 inductee to the USC Athletic Hall of Fame, Levy actually played football and baseball at rival UCLA.

—Field Level Media

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