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Veteran coach has helped orchestrate
one of the nation’s most potent running attacks at Wisconsin
1/3/2022 12:00:00 PM
BLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech Football head
coach Brent
Pry announced Monday that Joe Rudolph has joined
his coaching staff as associate head coach/run game coordinator/offensive line
coach. Rudolph has spent the past seven seasons serving as associate head
coach/offensive coordinator/offensive line coach at the University of Wisconsin
under head coach Paul Chryst. A three-year letterman on the offensive line at Wisconsin, Rudolph was
part of head coach Barry Alvarez's squads that helped revitalize the program by
winning the 1993 Big Ten championship and the 1994 Rose Bowl.
Since his arrival in
Madison in 2015, the Badgers have averaged 212.3 rushing ypg, a mark that ranks
fifth among Power Five squads. Only Georgia Tech, Ohio State, Oregon and
Oklahoma have been better over that seven-season span. Wisconsin averaged 4.9
yards per carry and racked up 194 rushing TDs during his tenure as the Badgers
made three Big Ten Championship Game appearances.
Rudolph has also coaching
a litany of highly-decorated Wisconsin offensive linemen, many of whom have
gone on to excel in the NFL ranks. The illustrious list includes five
first-team All-America selections on the offensive line. T Ryan Ramczyk
was a consensus All-America pick in 2016, was a first-round pick of New Orleans
in the 2017 and earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2019. C Tyler Biadasz won
the Rimington Trophy as the nation's top center in 2019 and was also a
consensus All-America pick under Rudolph. G Beau Benzschawel twice earned first-team
All-America honors for the Badgers. In 2017, T David Edwards was also a
first-team All-America selection, while fellow T Michael Deiter earned
second-team honors.
It was business as usual
for Rudolph and the Badgers' ground game in 2021, as Wisconsin ranked 15th in
the nation, averaging 215.4 rushing yards per game. With Rudolph
directing the running game, freshman RB Braelon Allen earned second-team
All-Big Ten honors after finishing second in the conference and 21st in
the country averaging 100.8 rushing ypg. Additionally, G Josh Seltzner and TE
Jake Ferguson earned first-team All-Big Ten honors, while T Logan Bruss earned
second-team accolades and T Tyler Beach earned third team all-conference in
2021.
The Badgers' imposing line — a semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award presented
to the nation's top unit in 2017 — led the way for a historic season by RB
Jonathan Taylor. Taylor ran for 1,977 yards to set the FBS freshman rushing
record, while UW averaged 222.9 yards per game and 5.0 yards per carry. Taylor
would go on to rack up 2,194 rushing yards in 2018 to earn the Doak Walker
Award as the nation's top running back. For good measure, he added 2,003 ground
yards in 2019 and another Doak Walker trophy to finish his three-year
collegiate career with 6,174 rushing yards and 50 TDs before entering the NFL
as a second-round NFL Draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts.
Pro Football Focus rated Biadasz the nation's top center in 2019, while
sophomore reserve Cole Van Lanen graded as the top tackle in the country.
Remarkably, the Badgers claimed four of the five offensive line spots on the
first-team All-Big Ten squad in 2018 (Benzschawel, Biadasz, Edwards and
Deiter). Deiter was named Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year. Rudolph's
blocking unit also helped the Badgers excel through the air in 2019 as QB Jack
Coan completed a school-record 236 passes for 2,727 yards, the third-highest
single-season total in UW history.
Under Rudolph's direction in 2016, Ramczyk and UW's offensive front helped pave
the way for first-team All-Big Ten RB Corey Clement to average 105.8 rushing
ypg and score 15 touchdowns. The Badgers averaged 203.1 rushing ypg to rank
third in the Big Ten.
Little came easy for Rudolph's unit during the first season of his return to
Madison in 2015, with the Badgers forced to use eight different starting
lineups on an offensive line beset by injuries. By the end of the 2015 season,
Rudolph was using four redshirt freshmen to complement senior All-Big Ten
selection Tyler Marz. The payoff for one of Rudolph's best coaching jobs was a
10-3 season that culminated with a win over USC in the Holiday Bowl.
Senior WR Alex Erickson earned first-team All-Big Ten honors after recording 77
receptions for 978 yards, while senior QB Joel Stave became UW's all-time
winningest quarterback while attempting a single-season school record 370
passes in 2015 as the Badgers averaged a school-record 32.2 passing attempts
per game that season.
Prior to returning to Madison, Rudolph spent three years as the offensive
coordinator/tight ends coach under Chryst at Pitt (2012-14). In 2014, Pitt had
its best offensive season under Rudolph as the Panthers averaged 31.8 points
and 435.4 yards per game. Pitt ranked third in the ACC in total offense and
fifth in the league in scoring offense.
Much of that production came from RB James Conner, who earned 2014 ACC Player
of the Year honors by rushing for 1,765 yards and an ACC single-season record
26 TDs. In total, Rudolph's offensive players at Pitt earned a total of 12
all-conference honors. That included two-time All-ACC performer WR Tyler Boyd,
who earned Freshman All-America honors in 2013.
In Rudolph's debut campaign at Pitt in 2012, he helped orchestrate an
effectively balanced offensive attack that produced a 3,000-yard passer and
1,000-yard rusher. QB Tino Sunseri passed for 3,288 yards with 21 touchdowns
and only three interceptions. RB Ray Graham rushed for a career-high 1,042
yards and earned first-team All-Big East honors. It marked the first time in school
history Pitt had a 3,000-yard passer and 1,000-yard rusher in the same season.
Rudolph additionally played an instrumental role in Pitt's 2013 recruiting
class and was selected one of the country's top 25 recruiters by Rivals.com.
In his first coaching stint with the Badgers, Rudolph coached UW's tight ends
from 2008-11 and contributed to the two highest-scoring offenses in school
history. The Badgers averaged 44.1 points per game in 2011 and 41.5 points per
game in 2010 en route to back-to-back Big Ten championships.
During that stint with the Badgers, he coached four UW tight ends who went on
to play in the NFL ranks: Travis Beckum, Garrett Graham, Lance Kendricks and
Jake Byrne. Beckum was taken in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft by the
N.Y. Giants, Kendricks was a second-round pick of the St. Louis Rams in 2011
and Graham was selected in the fourth round by the Houston Texans in 2010.
Kendricks was a first-team All-America selection and finalist for the John
Mackey Award as a senior in 2010, leading the Badgers in receptions (43),
receiving yards (663) and TD receptions (five).
Rudolph previously served as tight ends coach at Nebraska in 2007. He also
assisted on all special teams units, overseeing the punt team. Prior to
Nebraska, Rudolph served as a strength coordinator (2006) and offensive
graduate assistant coach at Ohio State (2004-05), helping the Buckeyes to the
2007 BCS National Championship Game.
Rudolph graduated from
Wisconsin in 1995 and later earned his master's degree in business
administration from Carnegie-Mellon in 2004. He spent time in the NFL playing
for both Philadelphia and San Francisco.
Rudolph and his wife, Dawn, have three sons, Alex, Andrew and Austin.
RUDOLPH'S COACHING CAREER
|
2022 |
Virginia Tech |
Associate Head Coach / Run
Game Coordinator / Offensive Line |
|
2015-21 |
Wisconsin |
Associate Head Coach /
Offensive Coordinator / Offensive Line |
|
2012-14 |
Pitt |
Offensive Coordinator / Tight
Ends |
|
2008-11 |
Wisconsin |
Tight Ends |
|
2007 |
Nebraska |
Tight Ends |
|
2006 |
Ohio State |
Strength Coordinator |
|
2004-05 |
Ohio State |
Graduate Assistant |
BOWL GAMES COACHED (17)
|
2021 |
Las Vegas Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2020 |
Duke's Mayo Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2020 |
Rose Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2018 |
Pinstripe Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2018 |
Orange Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2017 |
Cotton Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2015 |
Holiday Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2015 |
Armed Forces Bowl |
Pitt |
|
2013 |
Little Caesars Pizza Bowl |
Pitt |
|
2012 |
BBVA Compass Bowl |
Pitt |
|
2012 |
Rose Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2011 |
Rose Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2009 |
Champs Sports Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2008 |
Champs Sports Bowl |
Wisconsin |
|
2007 |
BCS National Championship |
Ohio State |
|
2006 |
Fiesta Bowl |
Ohio State |
|
2004 |
Alamo Bowl |
Ohio State |
PROMINENT NFL PUPILS
|
G |
Cole Van Lanen |
D6-2021 – Green Bay |
|
RB |
Jonathan Taylor |
D2-2020 – Indianapolis |
|
C |
Tyler Biadasz |
D4-2020 – Dallas |
|
G |
Michael Deiter |
D3-2019 – Miami |
|
G |
David Edwards |
D5-2019 – L.A. Rams |
|
T |
Brian O'Neill |
D2-2018 – Minnesota |
|
TE |
Troy Fumagali |
D5-2018 – Denver |
|
T |
Ryan Ramczyk |
D1-2017 – New Orleans |
|
RB |
James Conner |
D3-2017 – Pittsburgh |
|
G |
Dorian Johnson |
D4-2017 – Arizona |
|
T |
Adam Bisnowaty |
D6-2017 – N.Y. Giants |
|
WR |
Tyler Boyd |
D2-2016 – Cincinnati |
|
FB |
Derek Watt |
D6-2016 – San Diego |
|
T |
T.J. Clemmings |
D4-2015 – Minnesota |
|
QB |
Tom Savage |
D4-2014 – Houston |
|
WR |
Devin Street |
D5-2014 – Dallas |
|
TE |
Lance Kendricks |
D2-2011 – St. Louis |
|
TE |
Garrett Graham |
D4-2010 – Houston |
|
TE |
Travis Beckum |
D3-2009 – N.Y. Giants |
