In reference to a question about the process of hiring assistant coaches during his introductory press conference, Head Coach Frank Wilson said, “we will take it step by step and do it right, not fast.”
“Before Signing Day, we may have some guys on the staff, but not necessarily all of them. We’re going to take our time, identify, assess where we are right now and put ourselves in position to get the best fit for what we need to have success.”
Roadrunner football fans are now hoping that those qualities are not mutually exclusive, because Wilson and the UTSA football brain trust wasted no time in filling the vacancies left after the exodus of coaching staff this winter.
The first positions filled were those closest to the line of scrimmage: offensive line, defensive line and wide receivers coaches.
Eric Henderson, the new defensive line coach, has worked as both a graduate assistant and quality control coach at Oklahoma State University for the past three seasons.
Ryan Pugh, offensive line coach, worked alongside Wilson at Louisiana State University (LSU) last year.
According to Wilson in a press release from UTSA Athletics, Pugh, “set all the blocking schemes for Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton.” Pugh was a center for the 2010 Auburn team that went undefeated and won the BCS National Championship.
In addition to his experience at Auburn and LSU, Pugh also spent time at Virginia Tech and Cincinnati.
Wide Receievers Coach Jeff Kastl also spent the 2015 season working with Wilson at LSU. Kastl, a former Michigan quarterback, has coached at Central Michigan, Ashland, Auburn and Michigan University.
The next hire announced was new Defensive Coordinator Pete Golding.
Golding spent the past two years as an assistant coach and safeties coach at Southern Miss, a Conference USA rival.
Special Teams Coordinator Ricky Brumfield impressed Wilson when he interviewed for a position at LSU during Wilson’s tenure. His most recent experience was at Western Kentucky, where he was a special teams coordinator and cornerback coach for three years.
Associate Head Coach and Defensive Backs Coach Jason Rollins previously worked at Tulane University for nine years, mostly as a secondary coach. He also worked as a co-defensive coordinator last season and as a special teams coordinator the year prior. Rollins’ previous experience includes stints at Northwestern State and McNeese State.
Frank Scelfo, UTSA’s new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, spent last year as the senior offensive assistant for the Jacksonville Jaguars and was the Jaguars’ quarterbacks coach for two years prior.
Before working in Jacksonville, Scelfo served stints at the University of Arizona (where he worked with Philadelphia Eagles draft pick Nick Foles), Louisiana Tech and Tulane. Prior to that, he coached at various high schools across Louisiana, Texas and North Carolina.
On Monday, Jan. 25, Wilson hired Ryan Filo as the head football strength and conditioning coach and Spencer Ross as the assistant football strength and conditioning coach.
Filo worked for LSU from 2009 until being hired at UTSA. At LSU, he worked with the women’s soccer, football, baseball, and men’s basketball programs. He also served as internship coordinator and academic liaison for the football strength and conditioning staff.
Ross was an intern with LSU’s strength and conditioning program last year. Before working at LSU, he coached and taught at the high school and preparatory school levels for more than 20 years.