If you include the new strength and conditioning coach, Ben Sowders, then its been a really good offseason for Pittman as far as staff turnover goes. Please check your email for a confirmation. Today, he was named 247Sports' Offensive Coordinator of the Year. Currently, Texas Tech has a plethora of quarterbacks and offensive weapons. He lost two quarterbacks to injury and one to the transfer portal during camp and both of USF's starting tackles to injury. Zach Kittley is coming back to Lubbock to be the offensive coordinator under Joey McGuire #WreckEm #GunsUp pic.twitter.com/r00VCKW1ox. Erik Ezukanma could return next year to increase his draft stock. Kittleys unit ranked second nationally, averaging 528.0 yards and 43.1 In that case, the spot route runner should be open as he settles into the window between the flat and hook defender: If the cornerback jumps the flat, throw to the corner (cover 2 rules): Against cover 3, the cornerback should bail to his deep third and cancel out the corner, leaving the apexed flat defender in the precarious position of covering both the spot and the flat. (Syndication Lubbock Avalanche-Journal). All the credit goes to the players and the staff there I inherited Bailey Zappe, the staff before me clearly saw something in Zappe that was very special.. 27 in scoring offense and No. Zappe completed 69.2% of his passes for 5,545 yards with 56 touchdowns and 11 interceptions before the bowl game. Sterns, who was also a senior graduate transfer from Houston Baptist, led the nation in receptions (150), TD receptions (17), and receiving yards (1,902). During his time at Texas Tech, he worked with current NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes who went on to become the Leagues Most Valuable Player in 2018 and Super Bowl LIV champion and game MVP a year later. The Hilltoppers averaged 527.5 yards per game (second-best) and 7.07 yards per play (third-best). ?? Wide receiver Jerreth Sterns led the nation in receptions (137) and receiving yards (1,718) while catching 14 touchdowns. After Dowell Loggains left, Pittman hired Morgan Turner from Stanford as the new tight ends coach. 2)Yards per play: 7.1 (No. Offensive coordinator Zach Kittley, quarterback Bailey Zappe, and wide receiver Jerreth Sterns all made the move to Bowling Green. Despite attending Abilene Christian University to pursue a career playing basketball, Kittley had to be honest with himself and admit there were things he loved more than hooping. He most likely took this iteration of the play from his time learning under Kingsbury. Last season, Ruggieros Demon Deacon offense finished No. If the cornerback is playing off, he will eliminate the corner route in his progression and have an easy read on the Sam, just like on stick. In this case, the under coverage gets distorted as the flat defender expands with the pre-snap motion and jumps the swing, allowing the spot to settle in the open void between the flat and hook defenders: The same play with the same result against Old Dominion: Hitting the spot route in the red zone out of a compressed set, shared by @_MoveTheChains_: WKU would usually pair snag with double slants on the backside. The Brock product started his career at Texas A&M, but injuries dampened his time in College Station. The Hilltoppers find themselves near the top of this list after totaling 6,857 yards of total offense, most in the country by a team that played 13 games during the season. His two older brothers were good athletes and he was too, but he always seemed to ask me more questions about training or the profession than his brothers. & Margaret Talkington Leadership Academy, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging. Kittley most recently coached at Houston Baptist and Texas Tech. The #2 receiver does a good job of stemming and getting on the defenders toes to break open on the corner: Here against Marshall, they again put the back in tear motion before the snap. Sports Editor Jake Moore can be reached at [emailprotected] Follow him on Twitter @Charles_JMoore. Toronto had 94 field goal attempts to Chicagos 71 and outrebounded the Bulls 47-35, including a 19-6 advantage on the offensive glass. Zach was helping me with the track team as a freshman in college when one day he said to me, Dad, I want to coach Football. Kittley was outspoken about Zappe as a Heisman Trophy contender, though he didn't get much play in the national conversation. What he's been able to do with the Tar Heels under Mack Brown with quarterbacks Sam Howell and Drake Maye is really impressive when you consider how dreadful North Carolina's defense has been the past few seasons. WebZach Kittley, the architect behind one of the nations top offenses this past two years at both Houston Baptist at Western Kentucky, enters his first season on the Texas Tech staff as The tailback would cheat his alignment out and run a shoot with an aiming point 2-3 yards out of bounds. The two reunite at Oklahoma with the help of wide receiver Marvin Mims. I knew the regiment at football would either make him or break him.. Kittley was hired by Western Kentucky after three seasons in a similar role at Houston Baptist where he, similarly, built one of the nations top offenses at the FCS level. Considering the potential return of offensive playmakers Spencer Rattler, Jaheim Bell and Antwane Wells among others for a program inside the top 25, Beamer is expected to swing for the fences with this search for a new play-caller. The spot route presents another man beater element to the play with the rub it places on the defender covering the flat route. First reported by @AaronDickens. The spot route presents another man beater element to the play with the rub it places on the defender covering the flat route. While there are some questions regarding fit Kittley comes from an Air Raid, pass-heavy background this is the kind of hire that would be most intriguing. The Red Raiders, who averaged more than 30 points per game in each of those three seasons, were also second nationally in total offense and scoring offense in 2015. The next play-caller will have notable personnel to work with in 2023 and beyond. Warren Ruggiero is a name that not a lot of Razorback fans are probably familiar with but could be a solid option as offensive coordinator. Kittley will have even more talent at his disposal. I said, well, you need to go over to football and ask Sonny Cumbie [wide receivers coach for Texas Tech] that you want to volunteer to do anything he wants you to do and learn from him. Zappe is 342-of-483 (70.8%) for 4,170 passing yards, with 42 touchdowns compared to only seven interceptions. They were No. Against 2 high zone structures, whether it be cover 2 or cover 4, the vertical component of the play should play out as the primary feature, with the cornerback being forced to choose between the corner and the flat route. The Chiefs eventually selected Mahomes with the No. Houston Baptist was Kittleys first full-time coaching position after his time on the Texas Tech staff. Symons' record set in 2003 and his 56 touchdowns are five short of Joe Burrow's record set in 2019. The cornerback jumps the shoot, isolating Sterns on the corner route against an outmatched linebacker: Against UTSA they put the back on tear motion, which allows Zappe to identify man coverage when the backer vacates the box to run with him. We knew if we came in and operate[d] the game plan we would not get blown out by 40 points, Kittley said. "To me, what I've seen the last 10 years or so with the Heisman Trophy first and foremost you have to be a winner and you do have to have the stats to back that up. Don Williams of the Lubbock-Avalanche Journal and RedRaiderSports.com first broke the news around 10:15 p.m. on Sunday indicating that sources confirmed Kittley was hired by Texas Tech after interviewing for the job earlier in the day. One of the great young minds in the game, Kittley helped coach NFL MVP and Super Bowl Champion Patrick Mahomes for three years at Texas Tech, and Quarterbacks, Kittley believed, could and should change some calls at the line of scrimmage. Kittley is the youngest coach to be named 247Sports' Offensive Coordinator of the YearKittley's quick rebuild at Western Kentucky was possible because of the transfer portal as four of his players at FCS Houston Baptist quarterback Bailey Zappe and three receivers followed him to the Conference USA school last offseason. Shortly thereafter, about ten minutes later, Pro Football Focus also that tweeted that Texas Tech hired Kittley to McGuires staff, according to Aaron Dickens. Tyler Shough is back from injury and is a perfect scheme fit for Kittleys air raid offense. Kittley had joined a program that was bringing in future Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, one of the most promising young minds the NFL has seen in recent memory. 2018-20 Houston Baptist Offensive Coordinator (Quarterbacks) Kittleys pass heavy offensive philosophy is firmly rooted in the air raid, stemming from his time as a student assistant and GA under Kliff Kingsbury. However, it is not confirmed yet as Zach hasnt mentioned his income publicly. Some air raid coaches will teach their quarterback to note the depth of the cornerback pre-snap. He followed a year later by leading the Chiefs to a win in Super Bowl LIV, becoming the youngest quarterback in NFL history to be named Super Bowl MVP in the process. He began as a student assistant before moving his way up as an offensive intern and eventually a graduate assistant. Alumni Association. The Gamecocks are coming off back-to-back wins over top 10 opponents for the first time in program history and the offense flourished during those two outings, including a 63-point explosion against Tennessee. Just dont wreck it. Its kind of a thing where were out on the field no matter what down or distance it is, I have the full range of the offense to check in or out of any play that I want. The good news for Sooner faithful is Jeff Lebby and Dillon Gaberial are no slouches. Hambys praise of WKU seemed to have a strong effect on Kittley. Whenever I was still at HBU I was kind of nervous that [Zappe] might go to the NFL on me, Kittley said. Below are 3 different variations of the snag concept from the Cardinals 2019 playbook: In the clip below, Western Kentucky runs snag in the red zone on a critical 4th down. Typically this play is designed to defeat split safety coverage, whereby the safety widens to carry the corner from #2, leaving a void in the middle of the field. Thats kinda what makes it work.. Zappe, just the sixth quarterback in FBS history to record at least 5,000 passing yards and 50 touchdowns, was named the Conference USA Most Valuable Player as well as the winner of the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award. Barry Lunney Jr., the former Arkansas quarterback, tight ends coach and interim head coach, was passed over in the head coaching search that yielded Sam Pittman in 2019. He runs a similar offensive scheme to Kendall Briles the slow mesh version of the RPO which focuses on tempo and passing slightly more than the traditional RPO scheme. Dan Mullen would be considered a consensus homerun for Sam Pittman even though it would likely be very temporary. He also had three rushing touchdowns. When coach Helton reached out to me to gauge my interest, coming here to lead this offense, I had already known how great it was hearing from coach Hamby, Kittley said. Snags versatility is also evidenced by its structural answers to defeating man coverage. Mahomes closed his Red Raider career ranked third all-time in passing yards (11,252), touchdown passes (93), attempts (1,349) and completions (857) despite foregoing his senior season to enter the NFL Draft. And Im glad I did that because I learned so much from that short experience but it wasnt for me college athletics is very intense, its like a full time job all the time so youd better love what youre doing. WKU stood out as an early candidate. The Red Raiders had an explosive introduction to new offensive coordinator Zach Kittley. Mahomes led the Big 12 in passing yards in 2015 (5,052) and led the NCAA as a whole in 2016 (5,052) while working with Kittley. Jeff Grimes is a name that might not be on a lot of radars but would be a very intriguing hire. When Zach played football in high school he started both ways on offense and defense. @KliffKingsbury #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/TxJpjm4l2n. High schools were starting to run spread offenses and Zach just understood where to tell his teammates where to line up. This is Kittleys second stint on the Texas Tech coaching staff as he previously served in various roles under Kliff Kingsbury from 2013-17, rising from a student assistant to graduate assistant and assistant quarterbacks coach his final three seasons. BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) - WKU offensive coordinator Zach Kittley is returning home to Lubbock, Texas to serve as the offensive coordinator of his alma mater Texas Tech Red Raiders. When the strong safety would begin to cheat down in an effort to eliminate the stick concept (often in the red zone), Y corner was the obvious constraint play because it took advantage of the open void that was now left behind the cornerback: As the safety came down, the Y would run a 4 step corner, giving a slight head fake to the Mike before cutting to an aiming point 1 yard inside the back pylon ( it is better to be too high on the corner route than too flat because it is easier to come back to the ball). 9. Against 2 high zone structures, whether it be cover 2 or cover 4, the vertical component of the play should play out as the primary feature, with the cornerback being forced to choose between the corner and the flat route. The Red Raiders also made a big move by hiring Zach Kittley as offensive coordinator (well get to that) and is rumored to be considering hiring Ewers high school coach. 2 nationally)Passing offense: 434.6 ypg (No. Kittley expressed confidence that his style of air raid offense will be able to thrive in Conference USA, citing the experience he gained when his Huskies faced North Texas and La Tech in 2020. There is where the real learning happened. This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. The Big 12 will be moving much faster in 2022 than we saw in 2021. Trickett previously served as OC at FAU and spent the past three seasons on staff at West Virginia. I had a quality control position available for me there at Texas Tech to stay if I wanted to but it was tugging at my heart that maybe I needed to move on., I was sitting on the airplane at this point after the bowl game, I checked my email and I had an email from the head football coach at HBU just reaching out for interest in possibly becoming the offensive coordinator, Kittley continued. WKU (8-5) is scheduled to play the Appalachian State Mountaineers in the Boca Raton Bowl on Saturday, December 18 at 10 A.M. CT inside FAU Stadium. Kittley expressed confidence that his style of air raid offense will be able to thrive in Conference USA, citing the experience he gained when his Huskies faced North That was the most points ever scored by an unranked team against a top 5 opponent and vanquished much of the negativity surrounding South Carolina's lack of production this season. Stephen Hamby returns home to coach the unit after making WKU one of the better offensive lines in all of college football. Kittley was a late add to Texas Tech's first-year staff under Joey McGuireafter the Red Raiders first went after Sonnie Cumbie. Related: Early Big 12 Predictions for 2023 WebFor Students; Student Employment; WKU Athletics Minority Fellowship; WKU Red Wave; Forms/Requests; Book Big Red; Donation Requests; Site Feedback; For Fans; Alumni Tailgates I think this offense can be successful in this conference, Kittley said. The Y and Z were essentially exchanging positions from where they were on the stick play. His two older brothers were good athletes and he was too, but he always seemed to ask me more questions about training or the profession than his brothers. Offensive minds like Mike Leach, Art Briles and Lincoln Riley are out of the league now but new faces such as Steve Sarkisian, Jeff Lebby and Sonny Dykes all have great offensive resumes of their own. 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