13-02-2025
Virginia Tech targets Bills assistant Christian Taylor to be offensive coordinator: Source
Virginia Tech is targeting Buffalo Bills assistant Christian Taylor for its offensive coordinator vacancy, a source close to the hiring process told The Athletic.
The 41-year-old Taylor, the offensive coordinator and running backs coach at William & Mary from 2020-23, spent last season as a defensive quality control coach with the Bills. His offense at William & Mary proved to be one of the most creative in all of football. In 2023, Taylor was honored as the AFCA FCS Assistant of the Year. Taylor and his staff were adept at finding all sorts of unique ways to utilize their personnel.
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The most creative offense in CFB is one you probably don't see much
In 2021, William & Mary led the Coastal Athletic Association with 205 rushing yards per game (No. 12 in the FCS) and had a league-best 5.0 yards per carry. In 2022, Taylor incorporated more plays utilizing two quarterbacks on the field at the same time to go with increased triple-option concepts. Those numbers jumped to an average of 266 yards on the ground (third-best in the FCS) and 6.0 yards per carry to go with an average of 7.1 yards per play overall (fourth-best).
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At Taylor's previous stop, the University of San Diego, his offense ranked No. 2 in passing and helped develop walk-on tight end Dalton Kincaid into an NFL prospect (Kincaid later transferred to Utah). Two of his quarterbacks at USD, Anthony Lawrence and Reid Sinnett, were finalists for the Walter Payton Award, given to the top player in the FCS. San Diego also became the first non-scholarship program to win an FCS playoff game. (The Toreros did it twice, beating Cal Poly and Northern Arizona.)
Two years ago, Miami head coach Mario Cristobal gave strong consideration to hiring Taylor for the Hurricanes' offensive coordinator vacancy before he hired Shannon Dawson.
Hokies head coach Brent Pry is looking to replace Tyler Bowen, who left Virginia Tech earlier this month to become the offensive line coach/run game coordinator at Ohio State. The Hokies ranked No. 71 in the FBS in yards per play (5.75) in 2024, finishing No. 10 in the ACC in scoring and No. 13 in third-down conversions. They went 6-7 in 2024 and are 16-21 in Pry's three seasons.
