Ole Miss Hires Sam Houston State’s Phil Longo as New Offensive Coordinator

Phil Longo – Photo Courtesy of Sam Houston State

According to Fox Sports’ Bruce Feldman, Ole Miss has hired Sam Houston State’s Phil Longo as the Rebels new Offensive Coordinator. Longo led SHSU to FCS’ most prolific offense last season, averaging 547 YPG.

One area that the Rebels may be looking to address is red zone efficiency, a category in which the Ole Miss ranked 104th in the country in 2016. Sam Houston State led the FCS with an 80% efficiency in the red zone this past season. Another area of concern for the Rebels was the lack of a consistent running game; SHSU ranked 9th in the FCS in rushing offense. The Bearkats scored 38 points or more in each victory this past season, but in the playoffs, Longo’s offense managed just 7 points in a blowout loss to James Madison.

Longo has been a part of many coaching staffs through the years, helping guide each program into the top ten in total offense. Before arriving at SHS in 2014, Longo was an assistant at Slippery Rock, Youngstown State, Southern Illinois, Minnesota-Duluth, LaSalle and William Paterson University.

So where does this leave the Rebel offense? Longo’s offense ran 1,275 plays in 2016, so it’s clear that Hugh Freeze doesn’t want to make any drastic changes as they’ll stick with an up-tempo style of play. Success at the FCS doesn’t guarantee much in the SEC, but it’s not as unlikely as some may believe. Coaches who’ve found success at the FCS and Division I levels include Mike Yurcich, OC at OK State, Joe Moorhead, OC at Penn State and the mastermind of the Oregon Ducks offense explosion, Chip Kelly.

While there are success stories, there also risks of bringing in someone like Longo.

With recruits like 5-star RB Cam Akers considering Ole Miss, this kind of hire doesn’t quite show an emphasis on running that ball that may bring a talent like Akers to Oxford over places like Ohio State or Alabama. The Rebels were highly inconsistent under Dan Werner, which led to him being let go last week. Hiring someone who runs the same type of offense doesn’t exactly show the “fresh start” that Freeze talked about after Werner was fired. 

The Rebels needed to make a splash with this hire as the recruiting trail becomes more crowded leading up to national signing day, but bringing in Longo is a risky move in that regard. The Rebels’ class for 2017 currently ranks #50 according to 247sports.com, so Freeze and his staff have some work to do before February 1st. 

Stats from SHSU are according to Longo’s bio which can be read in full, here. 

Steven Gagliano is a writer for HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at steven.gagliano@hottytoddy.com. 

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