Webb School of Knoxville longtime accomplished head football coach and athletic director, David Meske, will be among the nine inductees to be honored at the 38th Annual Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame Dinner & Induction Ceremony, July 25. Webb School is a private coeducational day school serving students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.
Since taking over Webb School’s varsity football program in 1985, Coach David Meske has amassed a career coaching record of 267-130. He has led the Spartans to seven of its eight all-time football state championships; his first coming in 1996 and second 10 years later. He won back-to-back state titles in 2009 and 2010 and a historical three-peat from 2012 to 2014. Meske’s Spartan teams have finished state runners-up three times, reached post-season play 26 times, played in 15 state semifinals, and made a total of 10 state championship appearances.
In Webb School’s 60-plus-year football history, the Spartans have posted close to 400 wins. Coach Meske has been the head coach for more than half of those victories. Under Meske’s tutelage, ten Spartans have been named Mr. Football finalists and/or winners and numerous players have gone on to play at the collegiate level and beyond.
David Meske is a retired major in the United States Army reserves and also served in Operation Desert Storm. He has won multiple coach of the year and athletic director awards at the local and state levels, including: PrepXtra and KIL Coach of the Year honors, the Amateur Football Award presented by the East Tennessee National Football Foundation Hall of Fame, and an AF Bridges Athletic Director Award. In addition, he was a finalist for the NFL High School Coach of the Year.
Meske earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and a master’s from the University of Tennessee. He came to Webb School in 1984 and in addition to coaching football, his career at Webb has included head wrestling coach (earning KIL Wrestling Coach of the Year honors in 1998), assistant baseball coach, and head boys’ and girls’ track coach. He has also been athletic director at Webb since 1995. In 2015, Webb School named its athletics stadium in honor of David Meske for the service he has given to Webb over the years and to recognize the tremendous impact he has had on the lives of Webb students, coaches, parents, colleagues, and other members of the Webb community.
The annual Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame Dinner & Induction Ceremony, hosted by the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley, is among the most prestigious sports recognition ceremonies in the nation and is one of the most highly attended sports hall of fame banquets in the country.
