Loeffler spent six seasons at Bowling Green, leading the Falcons to three-straight bowl games.
Typically the college football head coaching cycle is wrapped up by the end of December, and in rarer cases like last year when Nick Saban retired, January.
But an unexpected vacancy opened Friday morning in the Mid-American Conference. Bowling Green head coach Scot Loeffler stepped down from his position to accept a job as the Philadelphia Eagles quarterbacks coach.
Loeffler replaces Doug Nussmeier, who was hired by former Eagles’ offensive coordinator and current New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore as the offensive coordinator on New Orleans’ staff on Feb. 20. Before joining the recent Super Bowl champions, Loeffler previously served as a quarterbacks coach at Central Michigan, Michigan, Florida, Temple, Auburn, Virginia Tech, and Boston College at the collegiate level and for the Detroit Lions at the professional level.
Loeffler voluntarily leaves his first-ever head coaching job. He was hired as Bowling Green’s frontman on Nov. 28, 2018 and spent the 2019 through 2024 seasons as the program’s head coach. Loeffler inherited a program that posted a 9-27 record from 2016-18 and dug the Falcons out of the cellar.
It took time, as Loeffler fared 7-22 through his first three seasons including an 0-5 mark during the shortened 2020 pandemic-afflicted campaign. However, Bowling Green ended its six-year streak of bowl ineligibility in 2022 and continued to reach that goal for the remainder of Loeffler’s tenure. The Falcons posted identical 7-6 records in 2023 and 2024 — spending the latter year in the MAC title race until the regular season finale.
In 2024, when Loeffler’s Falcons went 6-2 in conference play, the team also produced its first-ever consensus All-American in Harold Fannin Jr. The tight end led the entire FBS in receiving yards and set the single season tight end receptions and receiving yards records. Outside of Fannin, who is certain to be selected this spring, Loeffler produced one NFL Draft pick — defensive end Karl Brooks in 2023.
Loeffler brought Bowling Green to three-straight bowls but never recorded a postseason win. Still, his tenure featured several notable moments including an upset over a 9-4 Minnesota team in 2021 as 30.5-point underdogs. The Falcons also had an iconic crunch-time win over rival Toledo in 2022 during Midweek MACtion and fended off Georgia Tech by double-digits in 2023. He leaves with an overall record of 27-41, three bowl appearances, and two winning seasons.
The former Bowling Green head coach is the fourth to leave the MAC since the start of the 2024 season. Ball State fired head coach Mike Neu, Central Michigan head coach Jim McElwain retired, and Ohio head coach Tim Albin left the MAC champions for the same position at Charlotte.
While it’s not exactly a common move, college head coaches departing for NFL assistant jobs isn’t completely unfamiliar territory. Former Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley stepped down last year to become the Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator.
After the sudden departure, Bowling Green launches a late February head coaching search. The program has not named an interim head coach at this time.