Today’s guest on the USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast is Joe Moorhead, head coach at Mississippi State University. Moorhead is starting his first season at Mississippi State this year after spending two seasons as the offensive coordinator at Penn State. At Penn State, Moorhead was named National Offensive Coordinator of the Year by 247Sports in 2016 and helped lead Penn State’s offense to being one of the best in country. The Nittany Lions ranked in the top 25 nationally last season in points per game, yards per play and red zone conversion percentage. Moorhead developed quarterback Trace McSorley and running back Saquon Barkley while at Penn State, helping them to become finalists in several national awards.

Moorhead has worked as a coach in college football for close to 20 years. Prior to Penn State, Moorhead was the head coach at FCS school Fordham, Moorhead’s alma mater. Before Fordham, Moorhead worked at several FBS and FCS schools as an assistant coach on the offensive side of the ball. These include Connecticut, Akron, Georgetown and Pittsburgh. At every stop since Georgetown, Moorhead rose to the rank of offensive coordinator during his stay. Moorhead graduated from Fordham in 1996 with a bachelor’s degree in English.

On today’s podcast, Moorhead and host Keith Grabowski talk about offensive schemes, Moorhead’s experience at the college level, and what it takes to build a strong culture at a program.

Show Notes

1:28 Getting the start in coaching with unconventional methods

2:36 First lessons as a coach at Pittsburgh

3:50 Learning and teaching new phases of the game

5:05 Setting the foundation of his offense at Akron

6:38 Using the 11-personnel offense to play fast

8:12 Combining an RPO run game with West Coast passing

9:23 Developing a clear and concise system at Fordham

10:33 Coaching talent and creating a culture at Penn State

12:40 Using the RPO to replace Bubble offense

14:00 Starting the first year at Mississippi State right

15:04 Bringing in new faces to fill out his staff at MSU

16:45 Building relationships and trust with student-athletes

18:17 Instilling confidence in your program

20:08 Creating a strong culture in spring practices

21:02 Motto for the upcoming season

22:08 What makes a good recruiter at all levels

23:33 The Winning Edge

24:40 Expectations of good coaching from his staff