After helping produce a Heisman Trophy finalist and a Southeastern Conference championship game hero in his first season as Alabama's quarterbacks coach, Dan Enos appears in line for a promotion.
Enos is expected to be named Nick Saban's offensive coordinator for the 2019 season, when he would replace current Crimson Tide offensive coordinator and new Maryland head coach Mike Locksley. Maryland announced Locksley as its coach last week.
Alabama heads into its Orange Bowl national semifinal against Oklahoma on Dec. 29 having already set single-season program records for points (623), total yards (6,859) and passing yards (4,231).
Sophomore quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has thrown for 3,353 yards with 37 touchdowns and four interceptions, finishing runner-up in this year's Heisman balloting to Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray. Tagovailoa led the Heisman race for most of the season but was forced out of the SEC title game Dec. 1 with Alabama trailing Georgia 28-21 early in the fourth quarter.
Jalen Hurts entered the field inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium and completed seven on nine passes for 82 yards and a touchdown, with four of his completions resulting in third-down conversions. Hurts also had a 15-yard touchdown run with 1:04 remaining that proved to be the winning score.
Tagovailoa has an eye-popping efficiency rating of 202.3, but Hurts possesses an even higher clip at 202.7.
"I think Dan has done a really good job with our guys," Saban said on an SEC teleconference in October. "The biggest thing is the preparation and whatever the play is, whatever the call is, the quarterbacks have a very clearly defined read of what their expectation is on that play. They don't pre-determine things before the snap, and they develop confidence in going through that read progression.
"So you're getting the ball in the right place at the right time. Our guys have done a pretty good job of that, but I think Dan has really helped them understand exactly what the expectation is on every play, and that comes through really good teaching and preparation through the course of the week."
Enos would become the eighth offensive coordinator under Saban, following Major Applewhite (2007), Jim McElwain (2008-11), Doug Nussmeier (2012-13), Lane Kiffin (2014-16), Steve Sarkisian (final game of the 2016 season), Brian Daboll (2017) and Locksley. Before arriving in Tuscaloosa, Enos was offensive coordinator at Arkansas from 2015 to 2017 and head coach at Central Michigan from 2010 to 2014.
During the 2015-16 seasons, the Razorbacks had a 3,000-yard passer and a 1,300-yard rusher.
"Having to play against him when he was at Arkansas, we were always very challenged by the system and the scheme and the things that they did," Saban said. "I thought their offense was always really well-coached. I've always had a high opinion of him, but having to play against someone, you develop even a greater respect for how they're doing what they do."
Locksley has been working to assemble a staff and a signing class for the Terrapins, but he is expected to return to Alabama either today or Thursday to join the Crimson Tide for Friday's expected start of their on-campus bowl workouts.
"I'll work on Oklahoma during the day and when we practice," Locksley said last week during his introductory news conference, "and at night I'll go in my office and put my Terp hat on and start recruiting for the Terps and get the Terps ready for our season."
Multiple media outlets reported Tuesday that Locksley is hiring former Tennessee head coach Butch Jones to oversee his tight ends. Jones has spent this season as a Crimson Tide offensive analyst.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.