Oregon Coaching Staff to Remain Together for Alamo Bowl

The staff will be back for just one more game as the season comes to a close.

Author:
John Rustik
Publish date:
Dec 14, 2021 9:57 PM EST

As the Oregon Ducks prepare for the Alamo Bowl against Oklahoma, it seems they won’t have to worry about any of their coaches departing before the bowl game, with the exception of course being Mario Cristobal.

During the drama of Cristobal’s departure, numerous coaches had accepted head coaching jobs or other coaching jobs elsewhere, leaving Oregon completely gutted when it came to coaching staff. While there are many coaches leaving, athletic director Rob Mullens seemed confident all coaches would see the rest of the season out.

“The staff is extremely committed to finishing the season, the commitment they made to the student athletes,” Mullens said. “We were able to go to the Fiesta Bowl, but it wasn’t a true bowl experience, and so we’re a year into the process of trying to get back to normal and these student athletes to have an experience.”

This announcement is good news for a Ducks team that is trying to end the season on a positive note despite the end of the season being such a cluttered mess.

One coach returning for the bowl game that is interesting is Offensive Line Coach Alex Mirabal, who has already accepted a job offer from Cristobal and will likely be joining Miami after the conclusion of this season.

As well as Mirabal, Strength and Conditioning Coach Aaron Feld, Running Backs Coach Jim Mastro and current interim Head Coach and Wide Receivers Coach Bryan McClendon were also offered jobs at Miami, but they have yet to accept their offers and will seemingly make their decision after the bowl game.

“Alex has a real commitment to his student athletes,” Mullens said of the Ducks' offensive line coach. “He has a great connection, and he wanted to finish out what he started with this group and we welcomed him back to coach this bowl game.”

Beyond Mirabal, both Joe Moorhead and Tim DeRuyter will be coming back with their offense and defensive schemes. Moorhead, who is set to be the next head coach at Akron, had announced earlier this month that he would be coaching the bowl game, so his return isn’t much of a surprise. DeRuyter will also coach out the rest of the season before joining Texas Tech next season as its defensive coordinator. Joining DeRuyter will be Safeties Coach Marcel Yates.

Linebackers Coach Ken Wilson was also recently hired as a head coach. After this season, he will be the head coach at Nevada.

“Ken Wilson got a tremendous opportunity at the University of Nevada,” Mullens said. “He’s staying through. Coach DeRuyter, Coach Yates, they’re all still here coaching these young men through the bowl.”

When asked if there were any coaches that weren’t going to come back, Mullens seemed sure that there won’t be anyone leaving before the Alamo Bowl.

“Off the top of my head, I don’t know of anybody that’s – I think everyone’s here coaching.”

The Ducks will hope to start the next era of Oregon football with some excitement as they face off against the Oklahoma Sooners on Dec. 29 in San Antonio.

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