Steve Canter is in his second year as a member of the RhodeIsland coaching staff after joining the Rams in July 2012 as thequarterbacks coach.
In 2012, Canter helped junior quarterback Bob Bentsen rank sixthin CAA Football in passing efficiency with a rating of 129.6.Bentsen also enters his senior season as the most accurate passerin Rhode Island history, completing 58.8 percent of his passes.
Canter came to Rhode Island from Norfolk State, where he wasNSU’s quarterbacks coach and recruitingcoordinator. During his time at Norfolk State, Canterhelped the Spartans win the 2011 MEAC championship and earn a spotin the FCS playoffs, where they faced CAA school Old Dominion.Norfolk State led the MEAC in passing offense and passingefficiency last season, and quarterback Chris Walley was the 2011MEAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year under Canter'swatch.
Walley connected on 68.7 percent of his passes, second-highestin the country for FCS quarterbacks, topping his previous mark of61.4 percent from 2010. He also passed for a MEAC-high 2,672 yardsand 19 touchdowns, the highest figures any Spartan quarterback hasposted since 1995.
As a team, the Spartans led the MEAC in passing offense (236.6yards per game) en route to the conference title in 2011. That wasan increase of nearly 70 yards per game from 2010, when theSpartans finished third in the conference in passing.
Canter served as a part-time assistant coach with NSU in 2008,when he coached the tight ends. In 2009, Canter left NSU to becomethe graduate assistant for defense at his alma mater, VirginiaTech. He coached the Hokies rovers and WHIP linebackers, includingAll-American Cody Grimm, a 2010 Tampa Bay Buccaneers draft choice.Canter worked with a Hokies squad that finished 10-3 and won theChick-fil-A Bowl.
Prior to joining the college coaching ranks, Canter was the headcoach at Landstown High School in Virginia Beach for two seasons(2006-07). His teams there went 13-7. Nine of his players earnedDivision I scholarships, including former NSU All-MEAC linebackerAnthony Taylor.
Canter was an assistant coach at Landstown in 2005 when theEagles went 13-1 and advanced to the state Group AAA Division 6championship game. That team featured current Minnesota Vikings ProBowler Percy Harvin.
Canter lettered one year as a fullback at Virginia Tech, in2003. That season, he received the Frederick Cobb Award, which ispresented to the Hokies’ most spirited and enthusiasticplayer.
After earning his bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinarystudies in 2003, Canter was a graduate assistant for the Hokiesduring their 2004 ACC championship season that culminated in aSugar Bowl berth. During that season, he worked closely with tightend Jeff King, now with the Arizona Cardinals.
Canter, a Virginia Beach native, received his master’s inhealth promotion from Virginia Tech in 2004. Canter and his wifeStephanie have one son, David.
updated 8/20/13
