The rumblings about Rocky Long searching for a defensive coordinator job for next season appear to be true, as the San Diego State head coach has decided to step down.
Long is expected to resign as the head coach at San Diego State and pave the way for Brady Hoke to take over, Bruce Feldman of The Athletic reports.
BREAKING: Rocky Long is expected to step down at San Diego State. The plan is for DL coach Brady Hoke to take over the program, per sources.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 8, 2020
A report from earlier in the week claimed Long has interest in the defensive coordinator job at Syracuse, which was bizarre considering he has been the head coach at San Diego State since 2011, going 81-38 and winning double-digit games four times. It’s unclear why he would essentially volunteer for a demotion, but Feldman was told the administration wants him to make changes to his staff that he is not in favor of.
The San Diego State drama with Rocky Long stems in part from the administration wanting him to look at some staff changes and him not wanting them to tell him what to do with his program, per sources. He definitely has been calling around to some Power 5 programs about DC jobs.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 8, 2020
Hoke was SDSU’s head coach in 2009-2010 prior to Long taking over, and the 70-year-old may feel he was eventually going to be pushed out by Hoke anyway. Long also could simply be content to take on less responsibility given his age.
Long just led the Aztecs to a 10-3 season that was capped off with a win in the New Mexico Bowl. This will be Hoke’s fourth stint as a head coach, with his last being in Michigan from 2011-2014.
