Steve Canter is in his third year of his second stint as a member of the Spartans’ coaching staff. Canter serves as NSU’s quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator.
The last two seasons, Canter helped mold former Spartan quarterback Chris Walley into the top signal-caller in the MEAC. Walley was named MEAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year and earned first-team All-MEAC honors last season after shattering his own school record for completion percentage. Walley connected on 68.7 percent of his passes, second-highest in the country for FCS quarterbacks, topping his previous mark of 61.4 percent from 2010. He also passed for a MEAC-high 2,672 yards and 19 touchdowns, the highest figures any Spartan quarterback has posted since 1995.
As a team, the Spartans led the MEAC in passing offense (236.6 yards per game) en route to the conference title in 2011. That was an increase of nearly 70 yards per game from 2010, when the Spartans 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 become the graduate assistant for defense at his alma mater, Virginia Tech. He coached the Hokies rovers and WHIP linebackers, including All-American Cody Grimm, a 2010 Tampa Bay Buccaneers draft choice. Canter worked with a Hokies squad that finished 10-3 and won the Chick-fil-A Bowl.
Prior to joining the college coaching ranks, Canter was the head coach at Landstown High School in Virginia Beach for two seasons (2006-07). His teams there went 13-7. Nine of his players earned Division I scholarships, including former NSU All-MEAC linebacker Anthony Taylor.
Canter was an assistant coach at Landstown in 2005 when the Eagles went 13-1 and advanced to the state Group AAA Division 6 championship game. That team featured current Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowler Percy Harvin.
Canter lettered one year as a fullback at Virginia Tech, in 2003. That season, he received the Frederick Cobb Award, which is presented to the Hokies’ most spirited and enthusiastic player.
After earning his bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies in 2003, Canter was a graduate assistant for the Hokies during their 2004 ACC championship season that culminated in a Sugar Bowl berth. During that season, he worked closely with tight end Jeff King, now with the Arizona Cardinals.
Canter, a Virginia Beach native, received his master’s in health promotion from Virginia Tech in 2004. Canter and his wife Stephanie reside in Virginia Beach and have one son, David.
