David graduated from Albemarle High School in 1968 where he played baseball and wrestled. After graduating from Appalachian State University in 1972 he returned to Albemarle to coach wrestling. After six years there, he moved to Asheboro for three years, then he and his family moved to Statesville where he finished his coaching career. His overall record was 231-42, including a 156-10 record at Statesville High School. During his career his teams won 10 conference championships and in 1992 Statesville won the 3A state championship. He was chosen conference Coach of the Year 10 times, and was chosen 3A Coach of the Year in North Carolina in 1992 by Mat News.

After retiring from coaching David remained active in wrestling and was the official scorekeeper at the state wrestling championships for the next 26 years. He finished his career as the Athletic Director for the Iredell-Statesville School System where he started middle school wrestling. In 2009 David was named NC Athletic Director of the Year by the NC Association of Athletic Educators.

In 2010 David was inducted into the NC Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and in 2014 he was inducted into the NC Athletic Directors Hall of Fame. In 2018 he was inducted into the Iredell County Sports Hall of Fame and in 2020 he was chosen for the NC High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame.