The Big Lead

Scot Loeffler joining Eagles as quarterback coach not a troubling sign for mid-major college programs

By Sam Westmoreland

Sep 2, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Bowling Green Falcons head coach Scot Loeffler looks on before a game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images
Sep 2, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Bowling Green Falcons head coach Scot Loeffler looks on before a game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images / Randy Sartin-Imagn Images
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Bowling Green head coach Scot Loeffler is heading to the NFL in a rather unique role.

According to ESPN's Adam Rittenberg, Loeffler will be the Eagles' new quarterbacks coach, replacing Doug Nussmeier, who became the Saints' offensive coordinator.

College head coaches leaving for NFL assistant jobs is not an uncommon occurrence, especially for coaches who aren't from Power 4 programs. But Loeffler isn't going to be a coordinator, which tends to be where those coaches end up. With alarm bells sounding about the lack of upward mobility for Group of Five coaches who find success, many may see Loeffler's move as another sign that mid-major schools aren't a viable way to get a power conference job.

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But, a closer look reveals that the move says more about Loeffler and his standing in the sport than it does about the state of the coaching industry.

Loeffler's biggest claim to fame comes from his time as the quarterbacks coach at Florida under Urban Meyer. While he was only there for one season, he worked with Tim Tebow and helped him improve his passing game immensely. Outside of that season, and one at Temple, he's largely pinged around the college game as a one or two-year assistant, before Bowling Green hired him as head coach.

His tenure with the Falcons hasn't exactly been sunshine and roses, either. Three straight ugly losing seasons, followed by three straight seasons with a bowl appearance, and three straight bowl losses.

Loeffler isn't a hot, up-and-coming coach who hasn't gotten the shot he deserves (that title in the MAC still belongs to Toledo head coach Jason Candle). He's not someone who has built something and hasn't been recognized for it (like Eastern Michigan coach Chris Creighton).

He was a mid-to-lower tier offensive coordinator who kept getting looks because he unlocked Tebow's passing game, and moved on quickly when teams realized he wasn't the secret of Florida's success that season who got the Bowling Green job because of his ties to Urban Meyer.

He didn't get a sniff for bigger college jobs because he has yet to find consistent success in any coordinator job in college, and hasn't shown enough at Bowling Green to merit a look at higher levels. He didn't get an NFL offensive coordinator job because, well, if you're not a great college coordinator, there's no indication you'll be a great NFL coordinator.

There are plenty of reasons to be uneasy about the state of coaching at the mid-major level. But Scot Loeffler going from a head coaching job to being a quarterbacks coach in the NFL isn't one of them.

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