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Utah defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley is set to take over as head coach when Kyle Whittingham retires.
But who will he select for the two most important jobs on his staff — offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator?
The assumption has been that current offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig, 60, will retire when Whittingham does.
“I’m a Utah Man. I came back in 2019 to finish my career with coach Whitt,” Ludwig said in 2023.
Of course, the defensive coordinator position will also become vacant as Scalley ascends to head coach.
When the time comes, there will certainly be a nationwide search for both positions — with plenty of outside options — but here’s a look at some of the possibilities if Scalley wants to promote from the current staff.
Offensive coordinator
Jim Harding, offensive line coach/assistant head coach
Harding enters his 11th season with Whittingham and the Utes in 2024.
He arrived at Utah in 2014 after spending five years at Wyoming coaching the offensive line, additionally taking on the role of co-offensive coordinator for the Cowboys in 2013, as Wyoming averaged 472.8 yards per game, which ranked 22nd in the country.
After a year as the offensive line coach at Utah, Harding added the title of co-offensive coordinator in 2015 and 2016 alongside Aaron Roderick, who’s now the OC at BYU.
Play-calling in both of those seasons, though, was handled by Roderick.
Under Roderick and Harding in 2015, the Utes ranked No. 11 in the Pac-12 — 363.1 yards per game — and scored 30.6 points per game (No. 10 in the conference).
Utah went 10-3 that season, highlighted by a 62-point explosion against Oregon in Eugene, and just missed out on the program’s first Pac-12 championship game appearance due to an October loss at USC.
The Utes needed to improve their offensive output in 2016, and did — at least in terms of yards per game (430.7, No. 7 in the Pac-12), but the points per game stayed about the same (29.8 points per game, No. 8 in the Pac-12).
Bolstered in part by Harding’s offensive line and run game design, the Utes enjoyed success in the ground game both years, ranking in the top-four in the conference both seasons, but Roderick was let go following the 2016 season. Harding did not retain offensive coordinator duties as Whittingham brought in Troy Taylor, continuing to coach the offensive line and adding the role of assistant head coach.
With the most experience among staff on the offensive side of the ball and previous offensive coordinator experience at two schools, including Utah, Harding is the most obvious pick to take over as offensive coordinator if Scalley keeps it in-house.
Not only would Harding likely have complete control of the offense — no co-OC situation this time around — but he’s also learned from Ludwig, who has been successful in his second stint.
Here’s a look at the rest of Utah’s current offensive staff, and how long they’ve been in Salt Lake City:
- Freddie Whittingham, tight ends coach — nine years on staff.
- Alvis Whitted, wide receivers coach — two years on staff.
- Quinton Ganther, running backs coach — three years on staff.
Defensive coordinator
Sharrieff Shah, cornerbacks coach/special teams coordinator
The longest-tenured member of Whittingham’s staff, aside from Scalley, Shah will certainly be considered for the open defensive coordinator role.
Shah, a former Utah safety, has been coaching the cornerbacks since 2012, expanding his role to include special teams in 2016.
As cornerbacks coach, Shah has seen five of his players — Eric Rowe, Jaylon Johnson, Clark Phillips III, Keith McGill, Brian Allen — be drafted to the NFL, and more often than not, the Utes usually have a strong cornerback room.
The former lawyer is one of the most fiery personalities on staff while on the practice field, demanding excellence from his players, but is also committed to understanding each player and working with them individually, often after everyone else has already left. Time after time, Shah often is the last coach to walk off the field.
It’s hard to argue with the results he has produced for Utah’s defense while being the cornerbacks coach, and he would bring not just his extensive football knowledge, but high energy to the defensive coordinator position.
Colton Swan, linebackers coach
Swan has prior experience as a co-defensive coordinator, coaching Weber State’s defense from 2009-11 alongside Jake Cookus, while former Ute head coach Ron McBride was at the helm in Ogden.
Swan’s and Cookus’ defense allowed 21.7 points per game (best in the nine-team Big Sky) and 375.8 yards per game (third in the Big Sky in 2009, 31.1 points (sixth in Big Sky) and 442.5 yards per game (eighth in Big Sky) in 2010 and 32.2 points (seventh in Big Sky) and 439.4 yards per game (eighth in Big Sky) in 2011, though the total numbers are skewed a little bit from the overmatched Wildcats playing FBS teams in 2010 and 2011.
All told, Swan was on staff for 15 years at Weber State, starting the year after graduating from the school — where he was a star linebacker — in 2004. Even through three head coaching changes, Swan was retained at Weber State and won five Big Sky titles with the program.
In 2019, Swan was hired to replace Justin Ena, the linebackers coach that left to be Utah State’s defensive coordinator, and has been a fast riser in the coaching world since.
Thanks to Swan’s coaching and recruiting, linebackers have been one of Utah’s most solid rooms since 2019, with players like Devin Lloyd (No. 27 selection in 2022 NFL draft), Francis Bernard, Mohamoud Diabate and Nephi Sewell — and recently, Lander Barton and Karene Reid.
Like Harding, Swan has coordinator experience and this time, would get to run the show on his own. He’s an experienced and knowledgeable coach and will be on the shortlist of in-house options to rise to defensive coordinator under Scalley.
Here’s a look at the rest of Utah’s current defensive staff, and how long they’ve been in Salt Lake City:
- Lewis Powell, defensive ends coach — 10 years on staff.
- Luther Elliss, defensive tackles — three years on staff.
In case you missed it
Morgan Scalley has spent his entire football life in Salt Lake City. Now, he’s on the brink of his dream job. Here’s why Utah feels Scalley is the right man to continue what Kyle Whittingham has built.
From the archives
Extra points
- Two Utah pitchers have been selected in the MLB draft (Deseret News)
- Utah’s Kai Roberts drafted by San Diego Padres (Deseret News)
- Watch: What the stadium entrances for BYU, Utah and Utah State look like on College Football 25 (Deseret News)