Ralphie Report offensive coordinator hot board - Wishful Thinking edition

I’m going to say off the bat: I have no inside information and I don’t think these are the most likely options for the open offensive coordinator position. No one really knows how Karl Dorrell is thinking and we are pretty early into this process. If I had to put money on the most likely outcome of this search, I would probably put it on promoting current QB coach Danny Langsdorf to OC, followed by Dorrell hiring one of his NFL buddies.

HOWEVER. I don’t want to do any of that so I refuse to talk about it. Below are five names that would excite me at offensive coordinator for the Colorado Buffaloes. Not all of them fit my preferred style, but they would show some serious thought into the position and would immediately improve the offensive output. If you disagree with any or all of these names, let me know here or on Twitter and we can yell about it.

Chip Long, OC, Tulane

I’m a huge Chip Long guy. Anyone who doesn’t get along with Brian Kelly is a pseudo-friend of mine. Long coordinated one of the most successful offenses in Notre Dame history. With Ian Book as the quarterback. IAN BOOK. He is a fan of multiple-tempo offenses, with some definite pace to them, which I think would work well at altitude. He’s still young, at 38, and gettable, currently rehabbing at Tulane (whose offense took Oklahoma to the brink early this year). Long has some slight Pac-12 experience, spending time as a recruiting coordinator and tight ends coach for Arizona State. You can slot him in at QB coach, which fits, and he can recruit when needed. His offenses are also run-heavy, a must for any Karl Dorrell coordinator. His run scheme is a bit unorthodox, in that in runs option blocking up front but is usually operated out of the pistol. I’m a huge fan of Long’s scheme and I think the Buffs would look competent in a hurry.

Jason Eck, OC/OL Coach, SDSU

ANOTHER certified Jack Barsch favorite. He entered my radar after his SDSU Jackrabbits took it to CSU during week 1 of the season. I followed SDSU’s season after that and they consistently put points on the board. Eck is an OL coach by trade and he prizes running the ball in his scheme. His teams are physical, and given that they are in the Dakotas, they don’t throw that often. When they do, they BOMB it down the field. Check it out:

The backfield always has more than one back, with a lot of pre-snap motion. Eck is a bit of a rising star and I would love for him to be OL coach if CU can pull it off. However, if it requires a bit more to get him to Boulder, I’m fine with him as OC.

Jeff Tedford, UNEMPLOYED

Aaron Rodgers. Marshawn Lynch. Keenan Allen. All Jeff Tedford products while he’s at Cal. He’d be a slam dunk hire, enough said. However, he’s likely going to be Fresno State’s next head coach.

Justin Fuente, UNEMPLOYED

My wild card pick for the OC position. We’ve seen a lot of failed P5 head coaches brought up for OC positions this year. Tom Herman has been rumored to Florida and Nebraska. Dan Mullen is requested by every team in the country. One name I haven’t seen mentioned? Justin Fuente. The former VT head coach flamed out, but before he was at Tech, he turned Paxton Lynch into a first round draft pick. Before THAT, he turned Andy Dalton into a draft pick at TCU. Fuente, to me, is a solid hire that may turn into a head coach in waiting. He’s young, at 45, and he has plenty of OC experience. Fuente is known as a QB whisperer who has consistently produced NFL talent at the position. This is good news, considering the last CU QB that was drafted was KOY DETMER LAST MILLENIUM. Fuente has deep Texas connections, plenty of staff networks to build a staff from, and would be a splash hire.

LONG SHOT: Jake Spavital, HC, Texas State (Not for Long)

This option is not my favorite, but it makes some sense. Jake Spavital, the head coach from Texas State, is likely to be out of a job soon following a disappointing season. He was a rising offensive star with a more classic air raid approach. He’s still young, at 36, and has a lot of P5 OC experience. He has been an OC and QB coach at California, Texas A&M and West Virginia (he’s a Dana Holgorsen disciple). He’s coached players like Geno Smith, Johnny Manziel, Kyle Allen and some other guys at WVU we won’t mention. Spavital runs a quick pass attack, which isn’t my favorite, but the hurry-up could cause problems.