Breaking down some of the O-line coaching options for UVa

Virginia’s offseason has been busy in recent weeks with the 2023 recruiting class wrapping up and the transfer portal open for business. And early this week, Tony Elliott was given yet another task: Finding a new offensive line coach.

After seven seasons in Charlottesville, assistant coach Garett Tujague departed on Monday to join the staff at NC State. There, he will reunite with former UVa play-caller Robert Anae, whose hire was announced on Monday as well. Tujague oversaw the offensive line throughout the Bronco Mendenhall era in Charlottesville, and was one of three Mendenhall assistants retained by Elliott. He was also named the program’s recruiting coordinator last offseason.

Tujague leaves behind an interesting legacy and was seemingly well liked by both fans and his players. Still, UVa’s offensive line is far from a finished product, in part because of a rash of transfers out and some recruiting misses in recent cycles. The next O-line coach will have a big job on their hands, as the Cavalier offense looks to pick up the pieces and put a rough 2022 season behind them.

With Tujague off to Raleigh, we’re taking a look at some potential fits to take over his vacant position in Charlottesville.

Joey Orck

Offensive analyst

At Clemson, internal hires were a way of life when coaching changes happened. That was the case when Elliott was promoted to Co-OC when Chad Morris departed, and it will be interesting to see if Elliott continues that internal promotion track at Virginia, starting with this decision.

If he does, Orck would be one of two logical fits. Before joining UVa’s staff as an analyst helping out Tujague with the line, Orck was at Presbyterian for nine seasons. He started there as the offensive line coach and put together some successful lines. He eventually rose to the offensive coordinator role, continuing to help out with the linemen. Before Presbyterian, Orck spent five seasons at Vanderbilt as a GA and eventually a quality control coach, similar to what he did at UVa in 2022. During his time in Nashville, Orck overlapped on the Vanderbilt staff with UVa OC Des Kitchings.

Jay Guillermo

Graduate assistant

The other potential promotion would be Guillermo, who came along to UVa as a member of Elliott’s first staff. Guillermo played at Clemson while Elliott coached there and eventually became a team captain and had a successful career, starting at center. After his playing days ended, Guillermo coached high school ball for a yea and then worked as a GA at Georgia State before moving to coach tight ends at Western Carolina for two seasons. It would be a big promotion for a relatively young coach, but Guillermo also fits the bill of an internal hire and a coach with connections to the head coach, and now, a familiarity with the UVa program. It is worth noting, however, that unlike Orck, Guillermo has not served as a full-time OL coach at a previous stop.

Gordon Sammis

OL coach UCONN

Sammis has quietly worked his way up the coaching ranks after since leaving Charlottesville. He played at Virginia and graduated in 2007 before working for Mike London as a grad assistant from 2010-12. After that, Sammis got a full-time job at Columbia as the offensive line and tight ends coach, and was also the recruiting coordinator. Sammis stayed in the Ivy League for three seasons before taking a job on Scott Wachenheim’s staff at VMI. He spent two years in Lexington before going to Lafayette and eventually landing back with London at William & Mary. Sammis was on London’s staff for three seasons, helping get that program back on track, with the line leading the way in a productive running game.

Sammis made the jump to the FBS ranks this year, joining Jim Mora’s staff at UConn. With his rise, Sammis is potentially ready for a move to a P5 school, perhaps his alma mater? The question becomes whether he is on Elliott’s radar for the job or not.

Scott Wachenheim

Former head coach at VMI

Speaking of Wachenheim….UVa’s former offensive line coach resigned from the VMI head coaching job, one he held from 2015-2022 after serving as the OL coach in Charlottesville for four seasons. He led an impressive turnaround at VMI, turning a downtrodden Keydets program into conference champs in 2020-21 and another winning season in the fall of 2021.

Wachenheim is an experienced coach and prior to his time at Virginia he worked in the NFL and as an offensive line coach at Rice, Liberty and Utah State. It’s unclear at this time whether Wachenheim, now 60, is ready to jump back into coaching, and if this is the type of job that would interest him.

Jackson Matteo

Head coach at Woodberry Forest

This might seem like a stretch but Matteo certainly falls under the UVa connection category. He was a very solid player in orange and blue and then transitioned into coaching, working with Mendenhall’s staff for the majority of his time in Charlottesville. Matteo worked as a grad assistant and analyst before he accepted the head coach position at Woodberry Forest School in January. He has offensive line experience, probably has some familiarity with various players on the roster, and certainly has a significant amount of knowledge about the UVa program and culture.

Robbie Caldwell

Former OL coach at Clemson

He’s retired, but there are some very obvious connections here, and maybe Elliott makes a run at trying to get the 68-year old to jump back in after a year off. Caldwell hung it up last offseason after serving as Clemson’s offensive line coach from for a decade, where he coached alongside Elliott. Before that, Caldwell spent one season as Vanderbilt’s head coach after head coach Bobby Johnson retired mid-summer before the 2010 season. His group went 2-10 and he was off to Clemson, but in that one season in Nashville his offensive coordinator was Kitchings and Orck was on staff as a GA, too.

It seems like a long shot, but maybe Elliott’s relationship with Caldwell is enough to make him consider a short-term gig in Charlottesville, and if not, he would probably be great counsel for UVa’s head coach as he goes through the search.

Terry Heffernan

Former OL coach at Stanford

No specific connections here, just an experienced offensive line coach looking for a job. Stanford made a coaching change following the season and Heffernan wasn’t retained by incoming head coach Troy Taylor. He was Stanford’s offensive line coach for the last two seasons. Before that, he was an assistant offensive line coach with the Buffalo Bills for two years and an associate head coach and offensive line coach at Eastern Kentucky for three years prior. Heffernan also spent time at Louisville and Michigan as a grad assistant, and three years with the Detroit Lions as a quality control coach.

Bob Bodine

Offensive Coordinator and OL coach at Mercer

Bodine is another experienced coach with some connections to UVa’s staff. He works for Bobby Lamb at Mercer, the father of UVa QB coach Taylor Lamb. He was also the offensive line coach at Army, overlapping with UVa assistant Keith Gaither in West Point. Bodine has a wealth of OL coaching experience, from places like Jackson State and VMI, up to Georgia Southern and now at Mercer. He helped develop Mercer lineman Jason Poe, a productive FCS player who is now a member for the San Francisco 49ers.

Steed Lobotzke

OL coach at Air Force

Virginia had a lot of success pulling a pair of coaches from the Air Force Academy last year, and maybe they Hoos will look to Colorado Springs once again for this opening. Lobotzke has been the offensive line coach at Air Force for the last eight seasons and before that worked for more than a decade in the ACC. He was Wake Forest’s OC and offensive line coach under Jim Grobe, serving as the play caller for 11 seasons. There he worked with Troy Calhoun, who eventually brought him to Colorado Springs. Lobotzske, like UVa DC John Rudzinski, is an Air Force alum who also coached at Winston Salem State, and at Ohio with Grobe before heading to Wake.