HBU played just four games and ended the year with a 1-3 record, but more important than what was in the win-loss column were the eye-popping offensive numbers put up by the Huskies receiving corps and quarterback Bailey Zappe. WKU stood out as an early candidate. Zach Kittley left. I knew the regiment at football would either make him or break him.. 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). The quarterback will now throw off of the flat defenders movement: If executed correctly, snag should be impossible to defend with zone coverage. ?? 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. The two shared a handshake and a few words. Familiar staples of the system originally made famous by Hal Mumme and Mike Leach were omnipresent in WKUs offense, particularly a heavy dose of 4 verticals and Y stick (although they preferred the Y stick/slot fade variation). 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 Jayhawks also return their leading rusher Devin Neal who had over 700 yards and eight touchdowns as a freshman. Red Raiders go into midseason open week with quarterback again a focal point of conversation Heres a look at seven candidates that could be on Arkansas radar as the next offensive coordinator. The gamble paid off. A deal is not in place at this time, but could be by the end of the weekend. 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. Led by transfers Bailey Zappe and Jerreth Sterns, WKU finished the season averaging 44 points and 536 yards per game, second behind only Ohio State in total offense. First reported by @AaronDickens. Its unusual for a coach to have to replace a coordinator this late into the off-season, but these are unusual times for college football. Now Kittley returns to his home state of Texas and his alma mater of Texas Tech, where he learned under Air Raid aficionado Kliff Kingsbury from 2013 to 2017. Zappe led the nation with 35 passing touchdowns in 2019 and ranked second in passing yards per game for a Huskies offense that was third nationally in passing offense with 334.3 yards per game through the air. The tailback would cheat his alignment out and run a shoot with an aiming point 2-3 yards out of bounds. Under Lunney, Illinois ranked behind Arkansas in almost every major offensive category in 2022. Kittleys version of the play is similar but puts the #2 receiver on a deeper 10 yard corner. The corner route is in and of itself an excellent man beater route, especially considering the potential mismatch with a linebacker or safety on an inside receiver. 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 Zach Kittley finished up his first season with Western Kentucky on Saturday as the WKU Hilltoppers defeated Appalachian State 59-38. 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. Sign up for the Longhorns Wire newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning. Arkansas was No. I love that place, Kittley said. Have confirmed that Zach Kittley has agreed to return to Texas Tech as offensive coordinator. Kansas should be an improved offense in 2022. Tyler Shough hasnt announced whether he is coming back yet but they also have Donovan Smith, Behren Morton, Maverick McIvor, and Parker McNeil at quarterback. 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. Zappe completed 69.2% of his passes for 5,545 yards with 56 touchdowns and 11 interceptions before the bowl game. DeRuyter and Tech's offensive coordinator Zach Kittley both spoke on March 31 after Tech's Pro Day One of the young quarterbacks Kittley mentored was future 2018 NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes II. Zach 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 offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. 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. It was weird being on the visiting sideline and seeing the Masked Raider run out.it was kind of a rush for me.. 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. Over the years the Big 12 conference has built a reputation of having some of the best high flying, up-tempo offenses in the country. It was a wild three years for us at HBU, Kittley said. BREAKING: WKUs Zach Kittley has been hired as Texas Tech's Offensive Coordinator, per @AaronDickens 2021 QB1 Quinn Ewers visited Texas Tech today pic.twitter.com/2Y3rtLE4li. 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 were also second nationally in total offense and scoring offense in 2015. The former Mississippi State and Florida head coach has an abundance of SEC experience and is one of top offensive minds in college football. 114)Passing offense: 164.3 ypg (No. I think this offense can be successful in this conference, Kittley said. When I left [HBU], there was a little inkling in me thinking that he would leave, he had an SEC offer and a Big 12 offer. I know Zach was a really good hoops player, but Im glad he chose to coach football because the game is better with sharp, young coaches like him in it., Excited for my guy! Within the air raid system, snag (or Y corner) developed as the companion play to Y stick. The success of the offense helped Kittley land the offensive coordinator role at Texas Tech under new head coach Joey McGuire. 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 stayed helping Sonny the first year and then Sonny left to take the TCU offensive coordinator job and [Texas Tech head coach] Kliff Kingsbury called me and told me how valuable Zach was to them and [that] he was going to take him as his GA and help with the quarterbacks. Kevin Barbay, Appalachian State OC (Photo: Will Turner, 247Sports) However, the weakness of triangle concepts like snag are brought to bear when the defense responds by over rotating to the triangle side. 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 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). Zappe actually broke the previous FBS record set by Texas Techs own B.J. Kittleys offense at Western Kentucky averaged a whopping 44 points per game in 2021. "You've got a rock star son," McGuire said. 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. USF recently fired head coach Jeff Scott, which means his top-end assistants are being courted by other programs as we speak. The Chiefs eventually selected Mahomes with the No. Erik Ezukanma could return next year to increase his draft stock. Trickett previously served as OC at FAU and spent the past three seasons on staff at West Virginia. 120)Yards per play: 4.6 (No. Kittley was a late add to Texas Tech's first-year staff under Joey McGuireafter the Red Raiders first went after Sonnie Cumbie. Sources said that current Tech offensive coordinator Sonny Cumbie, Western Kentucky offensive coordinator Zach Kittley, and SMU offensive coordinator Garrett I knew the regiment at football would either make him or break him., Sonny was gracious to take him on and Zach went to work and impressed him and the staff, Kittley continued. 39 in scoring offense in 2022. Dan Mullen would be considered a consensus homerun for Sam Pittman even though it would likely be very temporary. Just as it started to look like Sam Pittmans coaching staff was in place for the 2023 season, offensive coordinator Kendal Briles has officially decided to jump ship to TCU. #WreckEm https://t.co/S8w9ERrcNu, Strong endorsements on our new OC! 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. While he was a key recruiter for some of Arkansas biggest prospects over the last few seasons, Loggains hasnt been an offensive coordinator since 2020 when he was in the NFL with the New York Jets. Mahomes is one of two NFL Draft selections to tutor under Kittley as Western Kentucky gunslinger Bailey Zappe heard his name called in the fourth round this past May by the New England Patriots. Turner has built quite a resume of tight ends that have gone on to be successful in the NFL and is also regarded as a great recruiter. Zappe became the highest-drafted quarterback in Western Kentucky following a record-setting final collegiate season where he snapped the NCAA FBS records for single-season passing yards (5,967) and passing touchdowns (62). 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. Without him out there, people didnt know where to line up. Outside of the quarterback position, the Big 12 returns some of the most electric players in the country. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Design a site like this with WordPress.com, Bill Walsh, the Stick Concept, and the Constraint Theory of Offense, Air Coryell and how Lincoln Riley compliments stick with the drive concept, Run and Shoot Part 1: History and Secrecy, Run and Shoot Part 2: Mouse Davis and the Switch Concept. 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. 27 in scoring offense and No. Copyright 2021 WBKO. One downside is However, it is not confirmed yet as Zach hasnt mentioned his income publicly. 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. Whenever I was still at HBU I was kind of nervous that [Zappe] might go to the NFL on me, Kittley said. Sports Editor Jake Moore can be reached at [emailprotected] Follow him on Twitter @Charles_JMoore. Despite entering the contest as 40-point underdogs, the Huskies kept the game close and almost pulled out the win. Our kids came to play, I think it really opened a lot of eyes across the country [to say] wow, these guys are legit and can really get it done.. Houston Baptist also ranked second in the Southland Conference and 12th nationally after posting 426.6 yards of total offense that season. ?? Sterns has also been successful this season, catching 137 passes for 1,718 yards and 17 touchdowns. Satterfield was one an expiring contract with the Gamecocks and his future with the program prior to Matt Rhule's arrival at Nebraska was shaky at best. Subscribe to 247Sports YouTube for the latest college football, basketball and recruiting news including live college commitments. That process led him to Western Kentucky offensive coordinator Zach Kittley, who made an incredible jump from 115th to 2nd nationally in scoring in his first season calling the offensive shots, setting all kinds of Kittley worked alongside Kingsbury in the development of Patrick Mahomes II as a graduate assistant, tutoring the future NFL MVP into becoming the nations leading passer in 2016 and an eventual top-10 selection by the Kansas City Chiefs. He has a quarterback battle on his hands between Max Duggan and Chandler Morris, two guys that have flashed potential in the past. The offense averaged a whopping 33.8 points per game. At Central Michigan,Barbay helped tailback Lew Nichols III lead the nation with 1,848 rushing yards as a redshirt freshman. Another primary passing play the Hilltoppers used throughout their record breaking 2021 season was the snag concept. Texas Tech made one of the more underrated moves of the offseason with the hire of offensive coordinator Zach Kittley. 3)10-plus yards pass completions: 223 (No. 1), 2020Scoring offense: 19 ppg (No. WKU is doing it all behind a pass-heavy offense that is throwing the ball over 68 percent of the time. As this was happening, the Z would run a lazy slant/snag route (he was coached to fake a fade against a rolled corner) and take the Ys place on the stick. He most likely took this iteration of the play from his time learning under Kingsbury. Houston Baptist was Kittleys first full-time coaching position after his time on the Texas Tech staff. https://longhornswire.usatoday.com/lists/big-12-football-best-offenses-rankings-texas-longhorns-oklahoma-sooners-baylor-2022/, Big 12 conference will also have new quarterbacks leading their offense in 2022, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Briles' play-calling decisions have come under fire at times this season for the Razorbacks, much of that due to personnel issues due to injuries, among other things. 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. Typically this would be double slants to fill the open void left by the Mike, or some sort of dig/pivot or levels concept designed to place a high/low stretch on the flat defender. He was always telling players where to line up and I knew right quick that he had a mind for the game. Please. Kittleys unit ranked second nationally, averaging 528.0 yards and 43.1 I have no way of knowing for sure without access to their playbook, but it is possible that this is kind of an option route, where their outside receiver is coached to work back toward the sideline if he doesnt initially get the ball on the slant: Backside slant touchdown throw on a redzone 4th down: Again on 4th down, UTSA is in man free and Zappe works the vertical/out combo to the backside: Here against Marshall, Zappe works a high/low combo on the backside flat defender: Later on in the game they run snag and go, where the outside receiver basically fakes snag and then runs vertical. Zach left Texas Tech in 2018 to join Houston Baptist as their offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. 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. WebThe Hilltoppers had 16 big plays, and three of them went for touchdowns. Now the defense has a numbers advantage to the snag side: This is why the complimentary passing concept placed to the backside is so important-it must take advantage of this overreaction by the defense. Both have SEC connections from their time at Auburn and are considered to be elite recruiters. 3 in the country in total offense in 2021. Mullen helped develop some stud quarterbacks at the college level like Alex Smith, Tim Tebow and Dak Prescott. He began as a student assistant before moving his way up as an offensive intern and eventually a graduate assistant. Longo makes $1 million with the Tar Heels and likely would need a pay bump to be courted away from Chapel Hill. That was a telltale time I knew he was destined to be a coach.. The Red Raiders held on to win 35-33, but Kittley was able to leave Lubbock with his head held high. Kittleys offense at Western Kentucky averaged a whopping 44 points per game in 2021. Zach Kittleys electric offense this past season at Western Kentucky put the normally below-the-radar Hilltoppers program onto the national scene. "Zach Kittley represents one of the top, young offensive minds in college football, and 2015-17 Texas Tech Graduate Assistant (Assistant Quarterbacks) Kliff Kingsbury truly took him under his wing and let Zach do a lot to learn that offense.. Kittley, 30, has shaken up the sport in short order thanks to his potent variation of the Air Raid offense, which took Houston Baptist by storm in the FCS for three years and lifted the Hilltoppers out of a malaise this fall. 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 most recently turned Houston Baptist into This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. He developed a quarterback with only one FBS scholarship offer into a household name at WKU. Shortly thereafter, about ten minutes later, Pro Football Focus also that tweeted that Texas Tech hired Kittley to McGuires staff, according to Aaron Dickens. Symons' record set in 2003 and his 56 touchdowns are five short of Joe Burrow's record set in 2019. However, Wake Forest star quarterback Sam Hartman did leave for Notre Dame this off-season. Stick is a short, ball control passing concept that places a horizontal stretch on the flat defender: Against a split coverage team, Mumme and Leach would ensure that stick was a prominent part of the game plan. Here out of empty Zappe initially checks the snag side, then looks back side and hits the slant return. WKU Football hired Houston Baptist University offensive coordinator Zach Kittley in December of 2020 to reshape the Hilltoppers offense. Youre probably thinking that it would favor Texas Tech by quite a bit, but you would be wrong. 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