Tech Football Adds Mogridge, Salem to Staff

THE FLATS – College football coaching veterans Allen Mogridge and Tim Salem have officially joined Georgia Tech football’s staff as senior football advisors, head coach Brent Key announced on Friday.

“We’re very fortunate to add Allen and Tim to our staff,” Key said. “The experience and knowledge that they bring will make a huge impact on every area of our program, including teaching, game-planning and recruiting. I couldn’t be more excited to have them aboard and for our players and coaches to benefit from their presence.”

Mogridge, a 23-year collegiate coaching veteran, joins Tech’s staff and reunites with Key after most recently spending the 2023 season as the offensive line coach at East Carolina. Before his lone season at ECU, Mogridge spent six seasons as assistant head coach and offensive line coach at USF (2020-22) and FIU (2017-19).

His extensive resume also includes a season as offensive line coach at Georgia Southern (2016), three total seasons at UCF (2012 – special teams/tight ends coach, 2014 – tight ends/H-backs coach, 2015 – offensive line coach), a season as offensive line coach at Temple (2013), three seasons as special teams/tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator at North Carolina (2009-11), five seasons as running backs/offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator at Buffalo (2004-08) and a season as defensive ends coach and recruiting coordinator at Western Carolina (2003). He began his coaching career with two seasons as a defensive graduate assistant at Buffalo (2001-02).

Mogridge and Key worked alongside each other during Mogridge’s three seasons at UCF (2012, 2014-15), which included Mogridge serving as tight ends/H-backs coach, then offensive line coach, while Key was the Knights’ offensive coordinator in 2014 and 2015.

Mogridge has helped lead his teams to 13 bowl appearances as a player and coach, including two in his three seasons with Key at UCF, three-straight in his three seasons as assistant head coach at FIU and three-straight in his three seasons as an assistant coach at UNC. He also helped UCF to the 2014 American Athletic Conference championship and the 2012 Conference USA East Division title.

A four-year letterwinner at North Carolina (1996-99), Mogridge played four different positions – tight end, fullback, offensive tackle and defensive end – and won three bowl games in his four seasons with the Tar Heels. He graduated from UNC in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in history.

Mogridge and his wife, Jennifer, have three daughters – Liv (a junior volleyball student-athlete at Georgia Tech), Izzy and Lola.

Salem, who is also reuniting with Key, brings 37 years of collegiate coaching experience to The Flats, including the last nine as tight ends coach at Atlantic Coast Conference rival Pitt (2015-23). In addition to his nine seasons in the ACC, Salem also spent 13 seasons in the Big Ten with stints at Purdue (1991-96 – quarterbacks/offensive coordinator), Ohio State (1997-2000 – quarterbacks/wide receivers) and Illinois (2012-14 – special teams/running backs).

His vast coaching experience also includes working alongside Key for eight seasons at UCF (2004-11) – 2004-08 as offensive coordinator and 2009-11 as special teams coordinator. In addition to serving as a coordinator during his eight seasons at UCF, Salem also coached nearly every offensive position group for the Knights – quarterbacks (2004), tight ends (2005 and 2009-11), wide receivers (2007-08) and running backs (2009-11).

Additionally, Salem has coached at Eastern Michigan (2003 – offensive coordinator/quarterbacks), Colorado State (1989-90 – running backs/special teams), Phoenix College (1987-88 – offensive coordinator/quarterbacks). He began his coaching career with two seasons as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Arizona State, where he helped coach wide receivers (1985-86).

He’s helped lead his teams to five conference championships – Pac-10 (Arizona State – 1986), Big Ten (Ohio State – 1998), Conference USA (UCF – 2007 and 2010) and ACC (Pitt – 2021) – nine top-25 finishes and 17 bowl appearances as a coach. Highlights include a Rose Bowl victory and No. 4 final national ranking in 1986 at Arizona State, earning two Sugar Bowl berths in four seasons at Ohio State – including a 24-14 win over Texas A&M that capped an 11-1 season and No. 2 final national ranking in 1998 – and winning Pitt’s first ACC title in 2021.

Salem played quarterback collegiately at Minnesota, where he broke the Big Ten record for consecutive pass completions in 1980, and Arizona State, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in athletic administration/physical education.

He comes from a long lineage of coaches, including his father, Joe, who was head coach at South Dakota (1966-74), Northern Arizona (1975-78) and Minnesota (1979-83), his brother, Brad, a long-time college coach who is currently the tight ends coach at Memphis, and his grandfather, Nusier, who is a member of the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame as a high school coach.

Salem and his wife, Wendy, have two sons (Taylor and Landan), a daughter (Kylan) and two granddaughters (Julia and Callie).

Georgia Tech finished 7-6 overall and 5-3 in ACC play in 2023 (good for a tie for fourth place in the 14-team ACC) and won the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl championship with a 30-17 victory over UCF. The Yellow Jackets return 17 starters, including all-ACC honorees DL Zeek Biggers, OL Joe Fusile, RB Jamal Haynes, QB Haynes King, WR Eric Singleton, Jr. and OL Jordan Williams.

The Jackets open the 2024 season on Saturday, Aug. 24 against defending ACC champion Florida State at the Aer Lingus College Football Classic in Dublin, Ireland. Official Georgia Tech travel packages are available at gt2ireland.com.

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