Report: Ryan Nehlen Set to Rejoin WVU Football Staff as Analyst

A coach with a legendary name will be returning to the WVU football program. West Virginia is set to hire McNeese State tight ends coach Ryan Nehlen as an analyst, according to Matt Zeintz of 247 Sports.

This move will bring Nehlen back to Morgantown two years after he left the program to further his career. While Nehlen’s exact role is not yet known, he now comes rejoins the Mountaineers with more coaching experience under his belt.

West Virginia is expected to hire McNeese State tight ends coach Ryan Nehlen as an analyst, a source tells @247Sports.

West Virginia offensive line graduate assistant Ty Hinson is expected to be hired as his replacement as tight ends coach at McNeese.https://t.co/dJORJ80Uo5 pic.twitter.com/yF2vPo0hHe

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) February 26, 2024

Prior to his time at McNeese State, Nehlen served as an offensive analyst for the Mountaineers from 2018 to 2022, working under both Dana Holgorsen and Neal Brown. His main role as a coach at WVU during that tenure was to break down film. He started his coaching career at Michigan and Marshall as a graduate assistant.

Nehlen played receiver at West Virginia from 2011-12, totaling 12 receptions for 101 yards and scoring two touchdowns.

Ryan Nehlen, the grandson of College Football Hall of Famer Don Nehlen, will now be able to see his grandfather’s name immortalized on a wall of Milan Puskar Stadium, something unveiled during a game in November.

Below includes a description of Don Nehlen’s legacy at WVU.

Nehlen coached 15 first team All-Americans, 28 total All-Americans, 82 All-Big East Conference honorees and 80 NFL players from 1980 to 2000. In 1988, Nehlen was recognized with three national coaching awards, the Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award, the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award and the AFCA Coach of the Year. In 1993, he was named the Big East Coach of Year and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2005.

Nehlen guided his WVU teams to 13 bowl game appearances, 17 winning seasons and the 1993 Big East Conference title, and his 1988 and 1993 squads finished the regular season with undefeated records. The 1997 president of the prestigious American Football Coaches Association, Nehlen received the 2002 Distinguished West Virginian Award from the West Virginia Broadcasters Association, and in 2017, he received the AFCA’s Amos Alonzo Stagg Award for advancing the best interests of college football.

His final numbers included 202 victories, two Lambert Trophies for eastern football supremacy, the 1993 Big East championship and at the time of his retirement, he was just one of 17 coaches to win 200 or more career games on the collegiate level.