Past Popular Notre Dame Assistant ‘Name to Watch’ for Philip Rivers’ NC State Staff
· Yahoo Sports
North Carolina State is turning back to a popular legend to resurrect its football program. Legendary NFL quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers and Indianapolis Colts Philip Rivers will soon handle head coaching duties for the Wolfpack. But Rivers could immediately make a splash assistant hire, which will grab the attention of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
One insider revealed that Rivers is already hitting the ground running with forming his future staff in Raleigh. Including targeting this past popular ND assistant.
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Who Could Join Philip Rivers at North Carolina State
College football insiders for The Athletic Bruce Feldman and David Ubben leaked out one potential name who Rivers looks ready to go after.
“Rivers has reached out to potential staff members over the past week to gauge their interest, according to a person familiar with the conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity because the move isn’t finalized. One potential name to watch is former Notre Dame offensive coordinator Chip Long,” Feldman and Ubben revealed.
That can mean Rivers will hire a 2018 finalist for the Broyles Award, annually handed to the nation’s top assistant coach.
Long worked under previous ND head coach Brian Kelly from 2017 to 2019. Both enjoyed their greatest success in the 2018 campaign, which saw ND finish 12-1 overall but lost 30-3 to a Trevor Lawrence-led Clemson team in the Cotton Bowl. Ian Book led the Fighting Irish behind center for Long’s offense that season.
Philip Rivers Would Hire Seasoned Offensive Coordinator Here
Rivers possibly looking at Long as OC shows that he’s willing to allow a seasoned veteran to call a college football offense.
Long has served as an OC at multiple stops, not just limited to his time in South Bend. He was both the coordinator and quarterback coach for Tulane in 2021. But that Green Wave team under former coach Willie Fritz succumbed to a 2-10 mark. So Long left after one season in New Orleans.
Long landed in Atlanta with Georgia Tech the following season, including overseeing the tight ends room. But that Yellow Jackets team watched Geoff Collins get fired and replaced by current head coach Brent Key. Long parted ways from Ga. Tech after the 2022 season. Southern Miss represents Long’s last OC stop of the 2024 season. But that Golden Eagles team fell to 1-11 overall.
Unfortunately, Long owns a string of bad results after his ND run. But he brings a plethora of experience with calling plays.
Who Else Could Philip Rivers Pursue?
Long likely won’t be the only name surfacing.
Here’s one more prominent name to keep a close eye on. And this one coming with ties to the Chargers and Colts with Rivers: Frank Reich.
He’s currently the offensive coordinator for the New York Jets, but things have trended downward under head coach Aaron Glenn. The head coach’s job security is coming into question which, in turn, would impact the rest of the staff.
But Reich previously led Stanford in an emergency situation for 2025 following Troy Taylor’s firing. His deep OC past and ties to Rivers could make him a candidate to watch here.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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