Former Pitt WR Named OC of the Year

A former Pitt Panthers wide receiver earned national coaching honors.

October 27, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers wide receiver Mike Shanahan (87) runs after a pass reception and stiff-arms Temple Owls defensive back Tavon Young (25) during the second quarter at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

PITTSBURGH -- Former Pitt Panthers wide receiver Mike Shanahan is now in the coaching ranks and has earned national recognition for his work.

Footballscoop named Shanahan their Offensive Coordinator of the Year, for his work in his first season at Indiana in 2024.

Shanahan, who holds the title of offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach, turned around an Indiana team, who went 3-9 last season, into an 11-2 team that made their first ever College Football Playoff.

He worked with former Pitt quarterback, Tino Sunseri, who also was co-offensive coordinator for Indiana this past season. Sunseri recently took the offensive coordinator job at UCLA.

Shanahan helped Hoosiers quarterback Kurtis Rourke have a great season. Rourke completed 222-of-320 passes, 69.4%, for 3,042 yards, with his 9.5 yards per completion and completion percentage ranking third and eighth in the FBS, respectively. He also threw for 29 touchdowns and just five interceptions, with no other FBS quarterback having that many touchdowns and that few of interceptions.

He also worked extensively with junior wide receiver Elijah Sarratt, who made 53 grabs for 957 yards and eight touchdowns, earning All-Big Ten Third Team honors.

Indiana improved grealty under Shanahan, averaging 41.3 points per game, second most in the FBS, plus 426.14 yards per game and 6.51 yards per play, 16th in the FBS.

The Hoosiers also excelled in difficult situations, with 55 touchdowns in 69 red zone opportunities, 79.7%, the best mark in the past three seasons in the FBS, plus converting 42.7% of their third downs, 14th best in the nation.

Shanahan played high school football for nearby Norwin High School in the WPIAL, earning first team honors on The Associated Press Pennsylvania Class AAAA All-State Team. He made 37 receptions for 731 yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior in 2007.

He would then spend the next five seasons with Pitt (2008-12), finishing with 159 catches for 2,276 yards, eighth and 10th most in program history. He also earned All-Big East Second Team honors in 2012 as a redshirt senior, with 62 receptions, 983 receiving yards, and six receiving touchdowns.

Shanahan spent one season looking for work in the NFL, before going back to Pitt and serving as a volunteer assistant in 2014 and a graduate assistant in 2015.

He then went to work for Curt Cignetti at IUP as wide receivers coach in 2016. He would continue following Cignetti to his new jobs, spending two seasons at Elon in 2017-18, and then five seasons at James Madison.

Shanahan worked as the wide receivers and recruiting coordinator in 2019 and 2020 and then added offensive coordinator duties his final three seasons.

He followed Cignetti again to Indiana this past season and will look to build off an already fantastic 2024 season in 2025.

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