According to a report from Ethan Joyce at the Winston-Salem Journal, Appalachian State will name NC State offensive coordinator Eliah Drinkwitz its next head coach. Drinkwitz has been Dave Doeren’s offensive coordinator for the last three seasons — going back to 2016, when he arrived from Boise State. He was hired to replace Matt Canada.
Now, Drinkwitz will replace Scott Satterfield, who just left App State for the head job at Louisville.
According to a source, App State is set to make Eliah Drinkwitz its next head football coach. Drinkwitz has been the offensive coordinator at N.C. State for the last three seasons: https://t.co/QKlfsTu1pb
— Ethan Joyce (@ByEthanJoyce) December 13, 2018
Drinkwitz, 35, has also been the quarterbacks coach during his time in Raleigh, too; this meant a lot of time spent with Ryan Finley, another former Boise State Bronco. During his two-year stint in Boise, Drinkwitz coached the tight ends (2014) and ran the offense as its coordinator in 2015.
Prior to that, worked as an assistant at Auburn (2010-11) and Arkansas State (2012-13).
Along with Finley, a quality offensive line and a host of gifted skill position players, NC State offense soared under the guidance of Drinkwitz. NC State ranked 22nd nationally this season in scoring offense: 35.6 points per game. That was an improvement from 2017 when the Pack scored 32.2 points per game, good for 40th in the FBS.
It’s impossible to separate Drinkwitz’s time in Raleigh from Finley. The veteran grad transfer became a star at NC State — an efficient and accurate passer with an NFL future. In 2018, Finley led the ACC with 315.8 passing yards per game; he was also tops in the league with a 67.9 percent completion rate.
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