Ranking The Top-5 Offensive & Defensive Coordinators In College Football: Kevin Wilson

By mmp15f
May 9, 2020

I only considered those who currently serve as coordinators, so head coaches who also call plays (e.g. Lincoln Riley) don’t count.

I looked at a bunch of different factors, and I included a brief explanation for each of my choices. Please feel free to share your two lists, and any other thoughts/comments below. This is obviously pretty subjective so I’d be interested in reading some differing opinions.

 

TOP-5 OFFENSIVE COORDINATORS:

1. Kevin Wilson (Ohio State)

Between winning the Broyles Award, his accomplishments during his time at Oklahoma, his overachieving offenses at Indiana, and his role in turning OSU into an offensive powerhouse, his resume speaks for itself.

2. Tony Elliott (Clemson)

He’s won the Broyles Award, 2 National Championships, and Clemson’s offenses under him have been consistently near the top.

3. Joe Moorhead (Oregon)

He had good offenses during his time at Fordham, and I think he deserves most of the credit for turning Penn State into 10+ win program again after seeing the way he transformed their offense. I didn’t agree with Mississippi State’s decision to fire him.

4. Steve Sarkisian (Alabama)

He’s fielded good offenses in college as both a Head Coach and an OC. His 2019 offense at Bama finished #6 nationally in YPG, and they performed well in their last few games even after Tua got hurt.

5. Kirk Ciarrocca (Penn State)

He helped PJ Fleck build both Western Michigan & Minnesota. The offensive improvement at Minnesota while he was there was impressive, and he was nominated for the Broyles Award in 2019. I’m selfishly hoping he doesn’t do as well at Penn State.

TOP-5 DEFENSIVE COORDINATORS:

1. Brent Venables (Clemson)

This was the most obvious choice on either list. He’s won a Broyles Award, 3 National Championships as a DC, and he’s been fielding great defenses since his Oklahoma days.

Dabo Swinney was 29-19 at Clemson before hiring Venables. Since Venables has been there, Clemson is 101-12.  

2. Jim Leonhard (Wisconsin)

In his 3 years as DC, Wisconsin’s defense has finished #2, #29, and #6 nationally in YPG, and he’s been nominated for the Broyles Award twice. I think Wisconsin’s defense will be one of the best in the country as long as he’s there.

3. Kevin Steele (Auburn)

Steele has fielded a lot of great defenses over the years, and his 2019 defense held LSU to their season low of 23 points. He’s also been nominated for the Broyles Award twice during his career (most recently in 2019).

4. Morgan Scalley (Utah)

Utah’s defense has improved every year since he became DC. In 2019, they finished 2nd nationally in YPG, and he was a Broyles Award finalist.

5. Chris Ash (Texas)

He had good defenses at Wisconsin, and he helped improve our defense tremendously after the disaster we saw in 2013. Even though he was technically the Co-Coordinator with Fickell, I think he deserves a lot of credit for the defensive improvements we saw in 2014 & 2015.

How Ohio State football’s Ryan Day and Kevin Wilson could contrast and coexist as play callers in 2020

Today 5:00 AM

Ohio State coach Ryan Day said offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson may take on more play calling in 2020.

By Nathan Baird, cleveland.com

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State football coach Ryan Day and offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson took dissimilar routes to their current occupations.

Day, who turns 41 next week, is a New Englander who played at New Hampshire. He rose quickly through the coaching ranks as a quarterback guru. Wilson, 58, played offensive line at North Carolina. He spent over 25 years in coaching before his first head coaching shot at Indiana in 2011.

Yet from time to time both men are of the same mind. Wilson recalled a specific moment from last December’s Fiesta Bowl against Clemson.

“I said the same thing he called and we called it simultaneously, and he gets on and he said, ‘That was eerie,' ” Wilson said.

Cute, but here’s what really matters: Did the play work?

“Actually, protection broke down ... but Justin (Fields) made us look good,” Wilson said. “He made us look smarter than we are and it ended up being a good call, so we got away with it.”

Back in January, Day said his first season as a head coach gave him a new perspective on time management. His primary duty is to oversee all aspects of the program. He also keeps a portion of his attention on offense. Specifically, he could not completely separate himself from the quarterback room.

Day said he entered 2020 conscious of letting go of some of those attachments, and trusting the rest of his staff. That could mean more direct input from Wilson from possession to possession.

“After going through it for a year, it’s very difficult with all the things that come with this job to be in that room all the time coaching the quarterbacks,” Day said. "Certainly (I’m) involved with the offense.

“And Kevin is a huge part of what we do on offense, and he’s going to continue to do more. We’ve talked even about moving forward, having him share some of the play calling roles with me. And we’ll continue those conversations as we go through the spring.”

Day immediately preceded Wilson as OSU’s offensive coordinator, then promoted the tight ends coach into that role. While Wilson’s rise was not as abrupt as Day’s, he made his name leading some of the most powerful offenses of the past 15 years.

Wilson preceded Sean Payton as OC at Miami of Ohio, spent three seasons at Northwestern and shared the co-OC title with Chuck Long at Oklahoma. After taking over the title in 2006 — with the help of Adrian Peterson and Sam Bradford — Wilson’s offenses averaged 448.5 yards per game over the next five seasons. The 2008 Sooners averaged 51.1 points per game and totaled 7,670 yards.

During his head coach tenure at Indiana, Wilson shared play calling duties with Kevin Johns, and at times took the lead. In a 2016 CBS Sports article, he described that process as a collaborative one, born in staff-wide meetings early in a week of game prep. He and Johns scripted the opening plays of drives, because Wilson felt those “drive-starters” were key to building an offensive rhythm.

Wilson feels his background and experience — and his resulting read on the field — complement the vision Day brings from his younger viewpoint. Occasionally, one sees things the other does not. This shared concept is not a radical one for their relationship, as it has already existed the past two years in some capacity.

“We kind of do it collectively, as far as like, ‘Hey, what run do you like? Give me this, give me that,’ ” Wilson said. "'What do you think in here or there?'

“He’s got final say. So even if you’re calling, he’s always going to say hey, give me this or don’t do this or whatever.”

Day already took a gamble this offseason when he promoted former quality control coach Corey Dennis to quarterbacks coach. Day’s obvious continued influence in the room mitigates that risk somewhat.

Even as Wilson potentially calls more plays, he will do so with a shared mind with the head coach.

Kevin Wilson Has Been Here Before

May 14, 2018
By Tony Gerdeman

Ohio State offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson has been around and has run a variety of offenses in his time. He’s had run-first quarterbacks, pass-only quarterbacks, and dual threats that allowed him to be whatever he wanted whenever he wanted it.

So while moving from a dual-threat quarterback like J.T. Barrett to a pass-first guy like Dwayne Haskins might be jarring for the Ohio State identity, it is nothing new for Wilson.

When he was at Indiana, his quarterbacks had a disastrous 2014 thanks to injuries and inexperience. Starter Nate Sudfeld missed the final six games with an injury, which then threw the situation into a tailspin. Things got so bad that the Hoosiers were eventually playing a linebacker at the position.

In 2015, however, Sudfeld was good to go and played in 12 of Indiana’s 13 games. He ran the ball 46 times, most of which were actually sacks. He was a pass-first guy, but the offense didn’t suffer because of it.

In fact, Indiana led the Big Ten in total offense that year, averaging 504.3 yards per game. They were first in passing with 293.8 yards per game. Perhaps most impressively, however, was that they were also able to finish second in the conference in rushing, averaging 210.5 yards per game.

The Hoosiers had a pair of 1,000-yard rushers that season. Jordan Howard carried the ball 196 times for 1,213 yards and Devine Redding carried it 226 times for 1,012 yards. Only Northwestern (600 att.) ran the ball more than Indiana (592 att.) in 2015.

The quarterback may have been pass-first, but the offense was as balanced as any in the country. And Kevin Wilson hasn’t forgotten it.

“We basically ran the same offense at my previous school,” he said. “So all of the sudden when I had a quarterback that wasn’t a great runner, there was two kids with 1,000 yards because those carries went to the second tailback. And then all of the sudden we were, instead of the quarterback pulling it and keeping it, he was throwing it and that’s why he had three receivers with over 50 catches.”

Looking at Ohio State’s offense, they currently have two tailbacks that have rushed for 1,000 yards in a season. Now, with the quarterback carries dropping considerably, there is a legitimate shot at both Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins rushing for 1,000 yards in 2018.

The offense will still be recognizable, because the staples won’t change. Just like Indiana in 2015, the running game will be the key, but the distribution of the ball from the quarterback is what will be different.

“But it was still inside zone, power,” Wilson said. “It was the same plays, but where the balls got distributed. So again, as we go, the offense isn’t changing. We’re going to develop what we got and then those quarterbacks, in time, we put it together to, is it read, is it run, is it, you do a little bit of both.”

Kevin Wilson's offensive line background is helping the Buckeyes

He may be the tight ends coach, but Wilson is going to help fix all aspects of the offense.

By Patrick Murphy

May 15, 2017

COLUMBUS – Before Kevin Wilson became known as one of the best offensive minds in college football, before he worked with Adrian Peterson (Heisman finalist) or Sam Bradford (Heisman winner) at Oklahoma or turned a non-football power like Indiana into an offensive Big Ten program, he was a football player.

Despite his success with skill position players and offenses as a whole, Wilson wasn't a quarterback or a wide receiver. The recently hired Ohio State offensive coordinator was an offensive lineman at North Carolina, where he walked on in 1980 and worked his way into a scholarship as a guard/center.

If you didn't know this about Wilson, it's not surprising. Even his new players, specifically the offensive linemen, didn't know that either when the former Hoosiers coach was hired by Urban Meyer in January.

"He actually has an offensive line background," Billy Price said of his new offensive coordinator this spring, "which I didn't know."

While the talk about Wilson's hiring has focused on the passing game and helping to bring some creativity back to the Buckeyes offense, he can also assist an offensive line in flux. Four starters from last year's unit return but questions hover over this line.

Will Price make as smooth of a transformation from guard to center as his predecessor? Can Isaiah Prince live up to potential of his recruiting or will the staff need to find a new right tackle? Who is the starter at right guard?

Offensive line coach Greg Studrawa is looking for answers to these as the Buckeyes head into fall, but he's not alone. Although he's designated to the tight ends, Wilson is finding time to work with the front five as well.

"When the tight ends are in special teams or doing passing stuff, he’s working with us directly," Price explained. "Today he was on my case a little bit just to make sure because he’s an offensive coordinator so he is responsible for us as a head."

Although the line opened holes for Ohio State backs to rush for a Big Ten-best 245.23 rushing yards per game last year, the group was not as productive in pass protection. The Scarlet and Gray were in the bottom half of the conference with 28 sacks allowed in 2016, not good enough by Buckeye standards.

Working on timing between J.T. Barrett and his receivers on deep ball will certainly improve the offense, but giving the quarterback time to find players downfield is just as, if not more, important.

Considering Wilson is in charge of the offense, this matters just as much to the former offensive lineman.

It's only been 15 full practices, but it appears Wilson's addition to the staff is already helping in more ways than even those involved with Ohio State expected. This gives these offensive linemen another coach with experience both playing and coaching the position, which should only be beneficial to all involved.

"He’s doing a real good job with us," Price said of Wilson. "He’s helping Isaiah, helping Jamarco, myself. You’ve got to take a great player to be an elite player and it’s having that support system and the role models around you and he’s doing a fantastic job. I’m really glad he’s here."

Kevin Wilson Makes J.T. Barrett Legitimate Heisman Candidate

By Thomas Scurlock

January 14, 2017

Just what J.T. Barrett needed?

Newly minted Ohio State offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson, perhaps Urban Meyer’s greatest coaching hire ever, is a quarterback whisperer. Will he turn J.T. Barrett into a Heisman Trophy winning quarterback?

Wilson’s history suggests he will, not can do it.

Set aside what he helped accomplish at Miami, Northwestern and Indiana, impressive coaching in its own right and instead look at what achieved between 2003-2010 as Oklahoma’s offensive coordinator.

Jason White became the full-time starter for the Sooners in 2003 and proceeded to throw for 7051 yards with 75 touchdowns and 19 interceptions over two seasons capturing the 2003 Heisman Trophy.

With White at the helm, the Sooners made back-to-back BCS Championship appearances.

After a two-year blip with Paul Thompson and Rhett Bomar, Wilson unleashed Sam Bradford on the Big 12 in 2007.

Over two seasons, Bradford passed for 7841 yards with 76 touchdowns and 16 interceptions winning the 2008 Heisman Trophy. Bradford led the Sooners to the 2009 BCS Championship where they lost to Florida 24-14.

Bradford was injured early in the 2009 season and Wilson’s offense did not miss a beat when Landry Jones took over the reins.

Landry passed for 7916 yards with 64 touchdowns and 26 interceptions over the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

If you are keeping count, over six seasons Wilson’s quarterbacks totaled 22,808 yards with 215 touchdowns, 61 interceptions and two Heisman trophies.

By comparison, Barrett has thrown for 6381 yards with 69 touchdowns and 21 interceptions over three seasons. Commendable, especially given Ohio State’s history with quarterbacks, but it rings a little hollow without the hardware.

I wrote last week, and I believe my colleague Charlie Lockhart agrees, that Barrett’s leap from good quarterback to great quarterback might be more simple than we think.

Take more chances. Trust the receivers to make plays. Don’t worry about turnovers.

No coach would argue that turnovers are good, but Barrett was too conservative with his decision making last season. In 2014, he threw 10 interceptions which is consistent with Wilson’s quarterbacks at Oklahoma.

Look at DeShaun Watson who threw up 50-50 balls time after time against Alabama in the championship game. Why? He knew his receivers would win the battle most of the time and if not, he trusted his defense to bail him out.

That’s Wilson’s top priority in the spring. Get Barrett to trust his playmakers like he did against Oklahoma where Noah Brown made him look good.

Barrett already owns most of Ohio State’s quarterback records. I expect Wilson to do what he has done for most of his quarterbacks making the records untouchable.

If J.T. Barrett wins the Heisman, he’ll bury the criticisms surrounding him today while leading the Buckeyes back to the playoffs to finish off what they let slip away in 2016.

Kevin Wilson Has Indiana Moving Forward, So Appreciate It

Kevin Wilson is just the second head football coach to bring IU to back-to-back bowls.

By Sam Beishuizen | Staff Writer

November 28, 2016

IU football's 26-24 win against Purdue wasn't the prettiest of victories.

It wasn't a sexy win. The Hoosiers grinded it out against an in-state rival that only had the Old Oaken Bucket left to play for. But IU won, clinching its second consecutive bowl bid in the process.

You know what that looks like?

Progress.

You know who deserves credit for it?

Kevin Wilson.

It took time for Indiana's head coach to build the Hoosiers into a competitive program, and his work is far from over. Back-to-back six-win bowl seasons aren't out of this world good, fine.

But for Indiana football, that's a significant accomplishment.

By beating Purdue for a fourth consecutive year—and oh by the way, only one other IU coach has ever done that…ever—Wilson became just the second Indiana head coach to lead the Hoosiers to back-to-back bowl teams. The other way Bill Mallory, who did it twice.

Mallory's 1991 team was the last in program history to win a bowl game. Wilson's going to have the chance to make that stat far less relevant at the end of December against whatever opponent in whatever bowl the Hoosiers get sent out to.

Yes, around the same time Zander Diamont was kneeling in the end zone for a safety to win the game against Purdue—that was a percentage play, by the way—Michigan and Ohio State were heading to overtime in a battle of College Football Playoff candidate teams. Indiana football isn't exactly front page news on a national landscape.

But Kevin Wilson is quietly doing a hell of a job at a school where the mighty basketball program will forever shadow the football program that is too often the butt of jokes among its own fan base.

This year, Indiana claimed the Old Oaken Bucket and Old Brass Spittoon in the same season for just the fifth time ever. The Hoosiers did so reinventing themselves, finishing their regular season ranked No. 40 in total defense (credit Wilson's hiring of Tom Allen there) and No. 53 in total offense.

No, the wins weren't pretty. Indiana's six victories came against opponents with a combined winning percentage of just 30.5 percent. But the wins came. Isn't that what matters?

Because remember, IU had only won six games or more in a single season ONCE in the 16 years before Wilson accepted the head coaching duties before the 2011 season. In six years, he's now gotten Indiana to the bowl eligibility mark twice.

There's a reason IU extended the man's contract through 2021 in January.

With plenty of key pieces returning next season, including who many projected to be the best offensive weapon in Simmie Cobbs back from injury, Indiana seems destined to be in a pretty spot to head to a third straight bowl game for just the third time. Another win against Purdue would mark five in a row, the longest such streak in a rivalry that dates back 119 years.

Recruiting appears to be in a good place. The classes have continually gotten better, players have developed and in-state prospects are choosing the Hoosiers now with seven Indiana natives already pledged in the 2017 class. IU fans complain about Tom Crean missing in-state talent all the time, but the same can't really be said for Wilson any more. These are Hoosiers choosing the Hoosiers.

The climb up the Big Ten's pecking order is a steep one, especially in the Big Ten East. The Michigans and Ohio States of the world are going to rule, and Penn State is surging back into national contention.

But did you notice who finished fourth in the Big Ten East behind three programs with a legitimate chance at making the College Football Playoff to fight for a national championship? You probably can guess.

Kevin Wilson's Hoosiers.

Indiana football isn't elite. It isn't going to become elite any time soon. Attendance is bad, and doesn't seem to react to the team winning. The pulse among students remains dull. There's so many bowl games that being one of 80 teams in the postseason doesn't seem to resonate all that much, and that's understandable. That is what it is.

But what Wilson is doing is noteworthy whether we choose to admit it or not.

He's fixing IU football.

Kevin Wilson named Indiana's new head coach

By Indiana Athletic Department Release

December 7, 2010

BLOOMINGTON-- BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana University Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Fred Glass today introduced Kevin Wilson as the new head football coach at Indiana University. Last night, Glass and Wilson agreed to terms on a seven-year deal that will pay Wilson $1.2 million per year.

"I am thrilled that Kevin Wilson will lead our football program," Glass said. "He is committed to compliance, academics, character and winning. He has helped lead successful programs at Miami (Ohio), Northwestern and Oklahoma. I believe his leadership, vision, confidence, teaching, commitment, discipline and toughness herald a terrific new era for Indiana football."

"I'm extremely pleased that Kevin Wilson, who has been one of the nation's top assistant coaches for several years, has agreed to come to IU to lead our football program," Indiana University President Michael A. McRobbie said. "He has proven to be a great innovator, motivator and teacher, while coaching some of the most prolific offenses in NCAA history and numerous All-American athletes. He clearly has the talent and experience we were hoping to obtain as we embark on what we fully anticipate to be an exciting new era of IU football. I look forward to welcoming him to IU."

Wilson just completed his ninth successful regular season at Oklahoma University, helping Coach Bob Stoops lead the Sooners to victory over Nebraska in the Big 12 title game. Oklahoma played in a major bowl game in each of the nine seasons during Wilson's tenure.

He led three of the most productive offenses in college football history in 2003, 2007 and 2008. The 2008 offense set NCAA records by scoring 60 or more points in five straight games and 716 for the season.

Some of Wilson's prominent pupils include St. Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford, Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, Cincinnati Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham, Indianapolis Colts tight end Brody Eldridge, Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive lineman Davin Jospeh and Washington Redskins offensive lineman Jammal Brown.

In charge of the offensive line at Oklahoma for four years and tight ends and fullbacks for the last five, Wilson served as position coach for three All-Americans, an Outland Trophy Winner (Brown), a Mackey Award Finalist (Gresham) and a two-time Rimington Trophy Finalist (Vince Carter). In 2007, three of Wilson's tight ends, Gresham, Eldridge and Joe Jon Finley, earned All-Big 12 honors.

In 2010, two of his offensive lineman became first round picks in the NFL Draft (Davin Joseph and Brown), as did tight end Gresham. In his nine years at Oklahoma, 22 players on the offensive side of the ball went on to get drafted into the NFL, including seven first-round selections, with three going among the first 10 picks and two in the top five.

Wilson won the Frank Broyles Award for the nation's top assistant coach in 2008, the second time he had been named a finalist for the prestigious award. In 2007, the National Football Foundation of Oklahoma gave Wilson the Merv Johnson Award for coaching with integrity.

Prior to Oklahoma, Wilson was the offensive coordinator for Randy Walker at Northwestern for three years (1999-01), also serving as assistant head coach in his last year there. Northwestern won the Big Ten Conference title in Wilson and Walker's second year.

Prior to Northwestern, Wilson also coached with Walker as an assistant coach at Miami of Ohio for nine years (1990-98). For seven of his years at Miami, Wilson was offensive coordinator alongside former Indiana Coach Terry Hoeppner, who served as defensive coordinator.

Interestingly and importantly, Randy Walker had been coached by former Indiana Head Coach Bill Mallory when Mallory was at Miami. In turn, Wilson was coached by Walker at the University of North Carolina, where Wilson walked on as an offensive lineman and earned a scholarship while playing on several outstanding teams. Wilson earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees from UNC.

A native of Maiden, N.C., Wilson was a three-sport star at Maiden High School and Valedictorian of his senior class.

"I am excited by the opportunity to be the head football coach at Indiana University," Wilson said. "I am confident we can win here and win in the right way."

Glass noted the tremendous support provided by Indiana University President Michael McRobbie throughout the search. "We would not be here today with this outstanding new coach if President McRobbie's commitment to excellence did not extend to the athletic department and its football program," said Glass. "We were in daily contact, often multiple times a day, to ensure that we got the right coach for Indiana University."

Kevin has been married to his wife Angie for 15 years and they have five beautiful children: daughters Elaina (14), Makenzie (12), and Marlee (10) and sons Trey (11) and Toby (7).

Which assistants are ready to move up?

June 5, 2010

Rivals.com Staff

At the College Football Roundtable each week, we ask members of the coverage staff for their opinions about a topic in the sport. We will have two questions this week, one today and one Sunday.

TODAY'S QUESTION: Which current college assistant are you confident will have a head-coaching job next season at an FBS school?

Tom Dienhart's answer:

I think the time finally will come for Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson to score a head-coaching job. He has come close in the past, particularly when the Mississippi State job opened after the 2008 season. Wilson has proven to be an innovative mind who has built some of the nation's most prolific attacks during his run in Norman, which began in 2002. Wilson won the Frank Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant in 2008, when his offense set NCAA records by scoring at least 60 points in five consecutive games and 716 for the season. Before joining Bob Stoops, Wilson was the architect of some high-flying Northwestern offenses. The guy can coach, and his time will come.

Oklahoma's Wilson leads Offensive Coordinator list

August 30, 2009

From Rivals.com staff's "Preseason offensive coordinator power rankings"

We continue our preseason power rankings at each position with offensive coordinators.

One thing to note about offensive coordinators: There are numerous head coaches who oversee their offenses, and we do not rank those guys on this list.

You can check out our post-spring practice power rankings here. We will update the power rankings each week during the regular season and release the final rankings for the season after the BCS title game.

The rating of a player and coach can fluctuate each week during the season depending on how they fared the previous week, but the power rankings measure overall career performances as well as their most recent results.

OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR POWER RANKINGS

1. Kevin Wilson, Oklahoma
BUZZ: He oversaw an offense that scored a record number of points last season, and he has his quarterback, two 1,000-yard running backs and the best tight end in the nation returning this season.

2. Galen Hall, Penn State
BUZZ: Hall is a veteran assistant who has seen it all. He deserves kudos for helping Joe Paterno ? his college coach, by the way ? see the light and upgrading the Nittany Lions' offense the past few seasons.

3. Gary Crowton, LSU
BUZZ: He has a long track record of success, and it was his offense that led the way when the Tigers won the national title in 2007.

4. Norm Chow, UCLA
BUZZ: Here's another guy with a long track record. Don't hold last season's inept Bruins offense against him. An offensive staff of Bill Walsh, Sid Gillman and Don Coryell couldn't have done anything with what Chow had to work with.

5. Shawn Watson, Nebraska
BUZZ: He's underrated nationally and has overseen some potent units of late. It wasn't bad offenses that got Bill Callahan run out of Lincoln.

6. Andy Ludwig, California
BUZZ: Ludwig is in his first season with the Golden Bears. He had the magic touch last season with unbeaten Utah, pushing all the right buttons for the Utes.

7. Greg Davis, Texas
BUZZ: This guy has been a frequent target of derision, but he deserves credit for the work he has done of late. The Longhorns had no running back to rely on last season, but Davis still put a potent unit on the field every week. He works well with QB Colt McCoy.

8. Sonny Dykes, Arizona
BUZZ: His dad, Spike, was an offensive innovator when he was coach at Texas Tech. Sonny also is a former assistant to Mike Leach at Texas Tech. He will have his work cut out for him this season with an untested quarterback.

9. Dana Holgorsen, Houston
BUZZ: He's a rising star and a guy to keep an eye on. Houston was magnificent offensively last season and should be so again. Art Briles oversaw a powerful offense when he was Houston's coach, and after he left, Holgorsen made some tweaks and revved it up even more.

10. Mike Bobo, Georgia
BUZZ: Bobo has guided some strong units in his time in Athens. He's good at matching his season philosophies with the talent he has on hand. Last season, he had Matthew Stafford and Knowshown Moreno. This season, it's Joe Cox and Richard Samuel. Watch the numbers end up being close to the same.

Wilson key to Sooners' machine

Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson was honored with the Frank Broyles Award, given to college football's top assistant coach. Steve Sisney / The Oklahoman file

July 21, 2009

by: JOHN E. HOOVER World Sports Writer

Kevin Wilson had an extraordinary year.

The Oklahoma Sooners' offensive coordinator put together the most prolific offense in NCAA history. The Sooners scored more points than any college football team since 1904. They scored 50 points nine times, the most by any team in the history of the game. That included 60 points or more in a record six consecutive games.

The 2008 edition set school records for points and total yards.

OU had the Heisman Trophy winner (Sam Bradford), became the first Big 12 Conference team with two 1,000-yard rushers (DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown) and four offensive first-team All-Americans (Bradford, Jermaine Gresham, Duke Robinson, Phil Loadholt).

Lastly, Wilson was honored with the Frank Broyles Award, given to college football's top assistant coach.

In June, Wilson was given a $100,000 raise, easily the highest on the Sooner staff. But head coach Bob Stoops said Wilson's raise wasn't necessarily a reflection of his 2008 success.

"I think it's a reflection of his success through the years," Stoops said. "It's built and built."

Wilson, 47, came to OU in 2002 as the offensive line coach after three seasons as offensive coordinator under the late Randy Walker at Northwestern. Wilson also was offensive coordinator at Miami (Ohio) from 1992-98.

At both schools, Wilson and Walker helped innovate the current trend of zone-read options for dual-threat quarterbacks, incorporating it into spread formations that Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez originally created on the NAIA level.

"He's one of the early innovators of all of that style of offense, no question," Stoops said.

College football coordinators now command salaries once reserved for head coaches. Oklahoma State's four primary coordinators average $312,500. Elsewhere in the Big 12, Texas' coordinators last year were paid $425,000 each; Texas A&M's averaged $365,000. OU defensive coordinator Brent Venables makes $395,000. Wilson's salary now stands at $385,000.

"You can just look at what's happening around the country," Stoops said. "That's what the market reflects."

Stoops remains impressed with Wilson's track record of adapting his system and play-calling to the Sooner roster, from Adrian Peterson and Jason White to Paul Thompson and Allen Patrick to Sam Bradford and DeMarco Murray/Chris Brown. Ultra-talented players come and go; replacements are either touted or not. But the OU offense continues to set records annually.

"Kevin has been so smart in how he's adapted to our personnel," Stoops said. "He has such an experience in so many different ways in moving an offense; he understands it. He's coached in a variety of spots and he understands, and he plays to our strengths.

"That's a compliment to him and our whole offensive staff. He understands what we're good at and what our personnel is good at."

Wilson's challenge this season: ensure that an almost entirely new offensive line can provide protection for Bradford and give Murray and Brown effective running space.

If four new offensive line starters can't cut it, the Sooner offense could take a significant step back from its 2008 productivity.

"In our world, we have to anticipate the worst and prevent the disaster," Wilson said in the spring. "So I'm anticipating the worst.

"It's no different than a kid taking a foreign language or an upper-level math, where they're learning. These guys are learning how to play hard, and they're learning how to go every day. That's kind of foreign to a lot of people. It's a foreign skill, bringing your best every day.

"It sounds common. But just look in the work force, at your own work environment, and you'll see guys that don't bring it every day. And that's what we're asking these young guys to do."