Skip to main content

Ex-Arkansas St. OL coach Hiller is new USF run game coordinator

Former Arkansas State offensive line coach Darren Hiller will be the new offensive line coach and run game coordinator at South Florida.

Former Arkansas State offensive line coach Darren Hiller is the new offensive line coach and run game coordinator for South Florida coach Willie Taggart, according to a source.

Hiller was named Arkansas State’s offensive line coach last month, but resigned less than a week later. He replaces former South Florida co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Danny Hope, who left the program last week because of a family matter.

Prior to Hiller’s brief stint at Arkansas State, he had been Cincinnati’s offensive line coach the past three seasons. While with the Bearcats, five of his linemen were All-American Athletic Conference picks a combined seven times.

Hiller spent 2012 as Nevada’s offensive line coach, helping the Wolfpack finish eighth in the FBS that season in rushing. He was also Arkansas State’s offensive line coach from 2002 through 2011, coaching 16 All-Sun Belt Conference selections.

Coaching hires report card: Grades for every hire of 2015–16 cycle

That was after a season as the offensive line coach at Northwestern State and two years in the same position at Arkansas-Monticello. He was offensive line coach at his alma mater, West Texas A&M, from 1995–98 following a year as a student assistant with the program.

A Fremont, Calif., native, Hiller was an offensive lineman for West Texas A&M from 1992–93 after playing two years at Chabot College.

South Florida had an 8–5 record this past season under Taggart that was capped by a Miami Beach Bowl appearance, the program’s first bowl bid since 2010.

It was the best season in Taggart’s three-year tenure with the Bulls, which has been marked by steady improvement. South Florida won two games in 2013 before doubling that to four in 2014 and again doubling that total this season.