Kentucky offensive coordinator Neal Brown will be the next head coach at Troy, according to a report from FootballScoop.com. Ralph D. Russo of the Associated Press confirmed the report. An announcement is expected Monday.
Brown spent the past two years as the offensive coordinator in Mark Stoops’ ongoing rebuild at Kentucky. He’s helped the Wildcats leap 44 spots nationally in yards per play from the year prior to his arrival to now, and jump 47 spots in scoring offense. The Wildcats started this season 5-2 but sputtered to a 5-7 finish, culminating their 2014 season with a 44-40 loss to No. 22 Louisville on Saturday afternoon.
Born March 11, 1980, Brown will be the second-youngest head coach in FBS, trailing only Western Michigan’s P.J. Fleck.
After playing at Kentucky and Massachusetts, Brown broke into FBS coaching at Troy - working under Larry Blakeney, the man he’ll be replacing - as an inside receivers coach in 2006. Two years later, Brown became a 28-year-old offensive coordinator at Troy before being whisked away to join Tommy Tuberville‘s staff at Texas Tech in 2010. Brown spent two years in Lubbock before joining Stoops in his native Kentucky.
Troy finished 3-9 in 2014, ending the season with a 42-23 loss to Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday afternoon.