We do not know of a timeline yet, but it is worth noting that the American Football Coaches Association’s annual convention starts Saturday in San Antonio and runs through the middle of next week. That’s often a good time for interviews as many coaches will be gathering for the convention.
We have not gotten a lot of firm names at this point, but here are some that have been thrown around. It should only be taken for what it’s worth: speculation. A good example is when Dave Doeren hired George Barlow as corners coach. The Pack had a list of three or four other assistants under consideration for the job that did not include Barlow, but once Barlow and Doeren connected the hiring came together quickly.
Tim Beck: If you wanted to go back to the first time Doeren hired an offensive coordinator, Beck was one of three names we heard that did not include Matt Canada. The others were Matt Wells and David Beatty. Wells is now the head coach at Utah State and Beatty is the head coach at Kansas, so they are obviously not candidates. At that time, Beck was the offensive coordinator at Nebraska, and his salary was out of reach for the Pack. However, Beck and Doeren have worked together in the past (for a year at Kansas), and Beck is now at Ohio State sharing (key word) offensive coordinator roles.
Eliah Drinkwitz: The Boise State offensive coordinator is considered an up-and-comer in the industry, and he guided the Broncos to scoring 55 points on Northern Illinois in this year’s Poinsettia Bowl. Undoubtedly, Doeren watched or got feedback on that contest and Drinkwitz’s offense. To be honest, Drinkwitz’s name is the one we heard most often in the first few days after the opening came up. However, we have also heard others are expressing interest in him. One possibility to watch: rumors are that Auburn offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee and head coach Gus Malzahn could be having a parting of the ways. If those rumors are correct, Lashlee is looking to find new work with Malzahn’s help. All of that is unverified, but if it comes to fruition, Drinkwitz coached for a year with Malzahn at Arkansas State in 2012.
Des Kitchings: The in-house candidate, Kitchings quickly earned Doeren’s trust and respect at NC State, and he has done good work with the running backs during his time in Raleigh. He also has a background as a coordinator in the past, specifically for a season controlling the offense at Vanderbilt and for a season handling Air Force’s ground game.
Dwayne Ledford: The Appalachian State co-offensive coordinator’s name has been mentioned quite a bit behind the scenes, but we believe perhaps more for the offensive line position opening presuming that Mike Uremovich-to-NIU as offensive coordinator reports prove true. Ledford recently turned down an offer to coach offensive line at his alma mater East Carolina.
Matt Limegrover: Doeren is known to respect his predecessor at Northern Illinois, Jerry Kill. Limegrover was Kill’s offensive coordinator at Emporia State, Southern Illinois, Northern Illinois and Minnesota, but he was not retained when Kill resigned for health reasons. Limegrover also coached offensive lines at those stops, and he could be a candidate to coach that position at NCSU as well.
Mike Locksley: The former Maryland offensive coordinator is considered one of the premier recruiters in the country. There was a report that Locksley has lined up an interview for the position at NC State, which we cannot confirm yet. The same report indicated he would interview at UNC as well for their opening. Locksley coached twice at Maryland, previously when Debbie Yow was the athletics director, which is his connection to the Pack. He and UNC head coach Larry Fedora have worked together in the past, with a mutual tie-in to former Florida and Illinois coach Ron Zook.
G.A. Mangus: He has not been retained by South Carolina, where he was primary a quarterbacks coach although he took over play-calling duties when Steve Spurrier resigned midseason. South Carolina insiders we talked with Tuesday praised Mangus for improving the offense when he took over as well as his work prior to that with the quarterbacks, notably Connor Shaw. Mangus has gotten extensive tutelage under Spurrier, playing for him at Florida, coaching as a grad assistant there and joining him at South Carolina. He is also a reputedly excellent recruiter. Mangus is also believed to be a potential candidate at Duke for their open coordinator position.
Shane Montgomery: The former Pack quarterback earned credit for developing Ben Roethlisburger at Miami of Ohio as offensive coordinator, and for the past six years has led a balanced offense at Youngstown State. Balance has always been a key word for Doeren when describing his offensive preferences. We don't doubt Montgomery would love to get back to Raleigh.
Doug Ruse: Ruse has been the offensive coordinator for Willie Fritz at both Sam Houston State and Georgia Southern, and he was expected to follow him to Tulane but that hiring seems to be on hold, leading to speculation that Ruse might be in line for a bigger job. He has experience leading both an explosive passing attack and prolific ground attack.
We have not gotten a lot of firm names at this point, but here are some that have been thrown around. It should only be taken for what it’s worth: speculation. A good example is when Dave Doeren hired George Barlow as corners coach. The Pack had a list of three or four other assistants under consideration for the job that did not include Barlow, but once Barlow and Doeren connected the hiring came together quickly.
Tim Beck: If you wanted to go back to the first time Doeren hired an offensive coordinator, Beck was one of three names we heard that did not include Matt Canada. The others were Matt Wells and David Beatty. Wells is now the head coach at Utah State and Beatty is the head coach at Kansas, so they are obviously not candidates. At that time, Beck was the offensive coordinator at Nebraska, and his salary was out of reach for the Pack. However, Beck and Doeren have worked together in the past (for a year at Kansas), and Beck is now at Ohio State sharing (key word) offensive coordinator roles.
Eliah Drinkwitz: The Boise State offensive coordinator is considered an up-and-comer in the industry, and he guided the Broncos to scoring 55 points on Northern Illinois in this year’s Poinsettia Bowl. Undoubtedly, Doeren watched or got feedback on that contest and Drinkwitz’s offense. To be honest, Drinkwitz’s name is the one we heard most often in the first few days after the opening came up. However, we have also heard others are expressing interest in him. One possibility to watch: rumors are that Auburn offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee and head coach Gus Malzahn could be having a parting of the ways. If those rumors are correct, Lashlee is looking to find new work with Malzahn’s help. All of that is unverified, but if it comes to fruition, Drinkwitz coached for a year with Malzahn at Arkansas State in 2012.
Des Kitchings: The in-house candidate, Kitchings quickly earned Doeren’s trust and respect at NC State, and he has done good work with the running backs during his time in Raleigh. He also has a background as a coordinator in the past, specifically for a season controlling the offense at Vanderbilt and for a season handling Air Force’s ground game.
Dwayne Ledford: The Appalachian State co-offensive coordinator’s name has been mentioned quite a bit behind the scenes, but we believe perhaps more for the offensive line position opening presuming that Mike Uremovich-to-NIU as offensive coordinator reports prove true. Ledford recently turned down an offer to coach offensive line at his alma mater East Carolina.
Matt Limegrover: Doeren is known to respect his predecessor at Northern Illinois, Jerry Kill. Limegrover was Kill’s offensive coordinator at Emporia State, Southern Illinois, Northern Illinois and Minnesota, but he was not retained when Kill resigned for health reasons. Limegrover also coached offensive lines at those stops, and he could be a candidate to coach that position at NCSU as well.
Mike Locksley: The former Maryland offensive coordinator is considered one of the premier recruiters in the country. There was a report that Locksley has lined up an interview for the position at NC State, which we cannot confirm yet. The same report indicated he would interview at UNC as well for their opening. Locksley coached twice at Maryland, previously when Debbie Yow was the athletics director, which is his connection to the Pack. He and UNC head coach Larry Fedora have worked together in the past, with a mutual tie-in to former Florida and Illinois coach Ron Zook.
G.A. Mangus: He has not been retained by South Carolina, where he was primary a quarterbacks coach although he took over play-calling duties when Steve Spurrier resigned midseason. South Carolina insiders we talked with Tuesday praised Mangus for improving the offense when he took over as well as his work prior to that with the quarterbacks, notably Connor Shaw. Mangus has gotten extensive tutelage under Spurrier, playing for him at Florida, coaching as a grad assistant there and joining him at South Carolina. He is also a reputedly excellent recruiter. Mangus is also believed to be a potential candidate at Duke for their open coordinator position.
Shane Montgomery: The former Pack quarterback earned credit for developing Ben Roethlisburger at Miami of Ohio as offensive coordinator, and for the past six years has led a balanced offense at Youngstown State. Balance has always been a key word for Doeren when describing his offensive preferences. We don't doubt Montgomery would love to get back to Raleigh.
Doug Ruse: Ruse has been the offensive coordinator for Willie Fritz at both Sam Houston State and Georgia Southern, and he was expected to follow him to Tulane but that hiring seems to be on hold, leading to speculation that Ruse might be in line for a bigger job. He has experience leading both an explosive passing attack and prolific ground attack.
