This past December, Mike Riley returned to Oregon State under Jonathan Smith as an assistant head coach and tight ends coach. That lasted all of six months until Riley accepted a job as the head coach of a yet-to-be-named San Antonio team in the new Alliance of American Football league.
Oregon State football has figured out his replacement though it would seem. Former offensive quality control analyst and graduate assistant Brian Wozniack will move into the job as soon as all university hiring processes are met.
Wozniack spent his playing days at Wisconsin from 2010 through 2013 and accumulated 15 catches for 127 yards and four touchdowns in that time. The Badgers won three Big Ten titles when he was there. He briefly spent time with the Atlanta Falcons in 2014.
Wozniack then came to OSU in 2015 and stayed in an offensive graduate tight ends coach until 2017 when he was promoted to offensive quality control analyst.
Here’s what Jonathan Smith had to say about the hire in a university press release:
“Coach Wozniak is highly respected by our team and his experience at both playing tight end and coaching the position is a tremendous asset,” Smith said. “I’m also excited about what he brings to the program from a recruiting perspective with his enthusiasm and his ability to connect with coaches and athletes.”
.@Wozniak85 has been elevated to assistant coach, @Coach_Smith announced today.
— Oregon State Football (@BeaverFootball) July 24, 2018
Read more on our new tight ends coach: https://t.co/BGyXUbGuaB#GoBeavs pic.twitter.com/Wo9ctTFYj4
The move makes sense. OSU’s tight ends have played well in Wozniak’s time in Corvallis, Noah Togiai in particular. Plus, much of the sentiment on social media seems to be that Wozniak had this job earned prior to Riley being placed in the role. This is a step in the right direction with the season opener just over a month away.