Florida Promoting Assistant Russ Callaway to Co-Offensive Coordinator

Florida is promoting tight ends coach Russ Callaway to co-offensive coordinator. It is currently unclear if he'll take over as the Gators' play-caller.

Photo: Florida assistant coach Russ Callaway; Credit: Zach Goodall

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida has awarded tight ends coach Russ Callaway the title of co-offensive coordinator in addition to his positional coaching duties, All Gators can confirm. 

Jacob Rudner of 247Sports first reported Callaway's promotion. Contract details have yet to be finalized officially. 

Callaway will take on a larger role in Florida's offensive operation, although it is not yet clear if he will take play-calling duties over from head coach Billy Napier. He'll be expected to work alongside offensive line coach Rob Sale, who has held the title of offensive coordinator for the past two seasons, in orchestrating UF's offense. 

"He's a guy that obviously is going to acquire more responsibility. How we define that, you know, I think we'll work our way through that," Napier said about Callaway on Feb. 7. 

"Ultimately, Russ is a heck of a young coach. And much like me, he's worked on defense in the past as a young coach, he's called plays at different levels, played quarterback, has the leadership components, has the respect of the players. So, Russ is a guy that we certainly are excited about." 

Callaway, 36, offers Florida four years of play-calling experience from his five-season stint with Samford, where he served as coordinator from 2016-19. 

The Bulldogs' offense reached great heights under his tutelage, ranking top-five among FCS programs in passing offense for three consecutive years, averaging between 333.4 to 392.7 yards through the air per game from 2016-18. 

Callaway's starting quarterback during that stretch, Devlin Hodges, went on to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFL. 

Samford's offense was held to under 20 points in a contest in only six of Callaway's 47 games as its play-caller. Two of those occasions were against ranked FBS squads: No. 13 Georgia in 2017 (14 points) and No. 15 Auburn in 2019 (zero). 

Before his first opportunity to call plays, Callaway began his coaching career at Alabama as a defensive analyst from 2011-12. It was in Tuscaloosa where he first professionally crossed paths with Napier, who was an offensive analyst for the Crimson Tide at the time.

Callaway went on to coach wide receivers and coordinate recruiting for Murray State from 2013-14, before accepting the same positional coaching gig at Samford, which led to his promotion to coordinator with the Bulldogs. 

Fast forward half a decade, Callaway spent the 2020 season as a senior offensive assistant and analyst at LSU and the 2021 campaign as an offensive assistant for the New York Giants. 

After one season in the pros, Callaway was named a defensive intern on Napier's inaugural Florida coaching staff in 2022. He was promoted to tight ends coach in 2023, replacing William Peagler in the role after Peagler's offseason move to the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL. 

Under Callaway's supervision, Florida's tight end group combined for 49 receptions, 517 yards and six touchdowns over 12 games in 2023, an improvement from the position's 30 catches for 321 yards and three scores over 13 matchups in 2022. 

Rising redshirt sophomores Arlis Boardingham and Hayden Hansen enjoyed breakouts in the Gators' offense with Callaway's assistance, as the duo accounted for each of the unit's six touchdowns in 2023. 

Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Tight End

Super senior quarterback Graham Mertz returns to lead Florida's offense in 2024. Mertz set single-season career highs last year, completing 72.9% of his passes for 2,903 yards, 20 touchdowns and three interceptions following his transfer from Wisconsin. 

Mertz should have plenty of weapons at their disposal, as Florida hopes to jump upward from its middle-of-the-pack offensive rankings within the SEC after finishing No. 6 in yards per game (409.1) and No. 9 in points per game (28.4) in the conference 2023. 

Fourth-year running back Montrell Johnson Jr. offers significant experience in the backfield, 2023 Freshman All-SEC receiver Eugene Wilson III provides ample athleticism out of the slot, transfer wideout Chimere Dike presents chemistry with Mertz from their time together at Wisconsin, pass catchers Kahleil Jackson, Andy Jean and Aidan Mizell look to expand their roles, and Boardingham and Hansen aim to build upon their recent blossomings, among other potential contributors. 

This is a breaking news story that will be updated. 

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