Offensive Coordinator Liam Coen reportedly returns to LA Rams after one season at Kentucky

For the second time in 14 months, Mark Stoops is looking for a new offensive coordinator. After transforming the Kentucky offense in one season, Liam Coen will return to Los Angeles to serve as the offensive coordinator for the Rams, the defending Super Bowl Champs.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated was first to report the news.

Source: The Rams are hiring Kentucky OC Liam Coen as their new offensive coordinator, bringing Greg Olson back to the staff, and giving assistant head coach Thomas Brown more responsibility within the offense and team.

Sean McVay moving quick to put together his '22 staff.

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) February 21, 2022

A Rhode Island native, the former UMass quarterback was an assistant for Sean McVay from 2018-20, helping the Rams reach Super Bowl LIII. Coen had plenty of opportunities elsewhere this offseason. He was pursued by multiple schools in the collegiate ranks, and even reportedly turned down an opportunity to call plays for the New Orleans Saints. Despite all of the attention, Coen was locked in with the Wildcats… until Sean McVay needed an offensive coordinator.

A west coast king-maker, four of McVay’s former coordinators are currently NFL head coaches — Zac Taylor (Bengals), Matt LaFleur (Packers), Brandon Staley (Chargers) and Kevin O’Connell (Vikings). Despite rumors and reports of an early retirement, McVay still has important pieces on the roster to return to a Super Bowl. Getting the chance to call plays with Matt Stafford and Cooper Kupp is an opportunity Coen could not resist.

Kentucky immediately begins the search for a new offensive coordinator. The Wildcats could keep it in-house by promoting Coen’s righthand man, wide receivers coach Scott Woodward. In addition to other collegiate options, Stoops could also return to the professional ranks to find an assistant with a similar resume to Coen’s, like Rams’ assistant QBs coach Zac Robinson. The Wildcats will have plenty of suitors lined up to coach Will Levis, Chris Rodriguez and Co. this fall.

Kentucky’s Offensive Transformation Under Liam Coen

Liam Coen inherited an offense that ranked dead last in the Power Five in passing. The Wildcats threw for 103 more yards per game in 2021 than in 2020. The efficiency of the passing game is best reflected not in yards per game, but on third down and in the red zone.

Third and long used to be a death sentence. The Wildcats converted just 36.6% of the time, ranking 95th nationally in 2020. This year Kentucky moved the chains on 50% of its third downs, the fifth-best mark in the country. The improvement was even more drastic in the red zone. Kentucky jumped from No. 106 in red zone touchdown percentage (51.5%) to No. 8 overall (72.2%) under Coen’s watchful eye.

Coen is returning to the NFL ranks after only one season at Kentucky because his time in Lexington was incredibly successful. Kentucky’s Joe Brady experiment worked. If one job in particular did not become vacant, Coen probably would stick around for another year. Fate had different plans. Thanks for an incredibly entertaining season, and best of luck.