The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team are on the hunt for a new offensive coordinator. Tommy Rees left the school on February 3 to become the offensive coordinator at Alabama.
Rees heads to the Crimson Tide to replace Bill O'Brien. O'Brien went back to the NFL, joining the New England Patriots to help former Alabama quarterback Mac Jones develop at the next level.
Notre Dame needs a new offensive playcaller, but what do their options look like? Do they look to the NFL for their man? Do they poach a head coach at a smaller school? Perhaps their search doesn't need to be wide-ranging at all.
Regardless, here are three of the best candidates for Notre Dame to replace Tommy Rees as offensive coordinator.
3. Gerard Parker, Notre Dame football tight ends coach
How about an in-house candidate? Parker joined Notre Dame football in 2022 but has experience calling plays elsewhere. And he could be back in the saddle for the Fighting Irish soon.
Parker has a connection with head coach Marcus Freeman. The two worked together at Purdue and Cincinnati, with Parker even receiving the interim head coach title for a spell with the Boilermakers.
Parker spent one season as passing game coordinator with Penn State in 2019. Then, he moved to West Virginia as the offensive coordinator for the Mountaineers in 2020.
While West Virginia's offenses weren't the best, many believe the hang-ups had more to do with the head coach than Parker. Freeman could go with familiarity here, and give his tight ends coach a second chance as offensive play caller.
2. Slade Nagle, Tulane offensive coordinator
Nagle was the tight ends coach for Tulane last season, only receiving a promotion this offseason. However, he was the play-caller for the Green Wave offense, and they found a lot of success under his watch.
Tulane finished the 2022 season 12-2, winning the American Athletic Conference. The Green Wave capped off their impressive season with a huge Cotton Bowl victory over Caleb Williams and USC.\
The Green Wave threw the fewest interceptions in the AAC in 2022. Furthermore, they had the conference's third highest scoring offense.
Nagle has limited experience as an offensive coordinator. In fact, he has limited experience at big schools. However, he impressed enough to interview with Alabama for their opening before Rees was hired.
The Fighting Irish could replace Rees with Nagle, and give him a shot at a bigger school. He has shown he can get the best out of the talent he works with. It may be beneficial to snag Nagle before another school does.
1. Andy Ludwig, Utah offensive coordinator
Ludwig has overseen some very successful Utah teams over the last few years. The last two seasons have produced Pac-12 conference championships, with the Utes also beating Williams and USC in this year's title game.
Over the last four seasons, Ludwig's offenses have averaged 35.1 points per game. In the school's two conference championship seasons, the Utes have averaged 37.4 points per game.
Ludwig's offensive style would seamlessly transition to South Bend. The Utes offensive coordinator runs a very pro style offense. He is very capable at getting his tight end involved in the passing game as well.
Ludwig also brings experience to the Notre Dame offense. He has offensive coordinator experience dating back to 1993. The 58-year-old has had stops at Fresno State, Oregon, Wisconsin, and Vanderbilt.
Ludwig has a strong case to become offensive coordinator for the Notre Dame football team. Whether the Fighting Irish go in this direction remains to be seen.
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