Ole Miss targeting SEC strength and conditioning coach for same position

Ole Miss is in search of a new head of strength and conditioning coach, and they are reportedly looking inside of the SEC for a replacement after current coach Wilson Love is reportedly expected to head to Oregon.

According to Matt Zenitz of On3, Nick Savage is emerging as a candidate to take over the assistant position in Oxford under head coach Lane Kiffin. Savage served as the head of strength and conditioning at Florida under former head coach Dan Mullen. He was at Florida since December 2017, coming in with Mullen when he arrived in Gainesville.

Prior to Florida, Savage was with Mullen at Mississippi State in the same position. He also had a stint at Toledo as an assistant, and he interned in a strength capacity at both Ohio State and Bowling Green.

The Ohio native went to Youngstown State and received a graduate degree from Toledo.

Savage was best known for developing promising offensive and defensive linemen. Several players at Florida wanted him kept around, but when new Florida head coach Billy Napier took over, he hired Mark Hocke in the position.

Love likely headed to Oregon

On Wednesday, On3’s Matt Zenitz reported Love is headed to Oregon.

Love was at Florida Atlantic with current Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin before Kiffin moved to Ole Miss. He previously was an assistant strength coach at Alabama where he also worked with Kiffin and Lanning. Love played defensive end for the Crimson Tide, graduated in 2013, and is from the Birmingham, Ala. area.

Ole Miss is shooting for their first 11-win season after hitting double-digit wins in the regular season for the first time in school history. Clearly, Kiffin and Love have had some success. They face Baylor in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1 to close out their 2021 campaign.

Weis Jr. headed to Oxford

Charlie Weis Jr. is expected to be the new offensive coordinator for the Rebels. The 28 year old has been in his current position as offensive coordinator at USF since 2020 and previously worked with Kiffin in the same capacity at FAU. Additionally, Weis spent two years as an offensive analyst at Alabama while Kiffin was the offensive coordinator in Tuscaloosa. Alabama won a national title in the 2015 season.

The Bulls averaged 23.1 points and 350.6 yards per game this season. They finished 2-10. While at FAU, the Owls led C-USA in total offense in both 2018 and 2019, averaging nearly 500 yards per game. 

Weis Jr. has been coaching since he was 18 years old, but he has spent most of his life on the sidelines of football games. The elder Charlie Weis served as the Notre Dame head coach from 2005-2009 and the Kansas head coach from 2012-2014. He was also the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots from 2000-2004.