The announcement of the 2015 winner of the Broyles Award came with a couple of historical angles to it.
Tuesday afternoon, it was announced that Oklahoma offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley has been named as the recipient of this year’s honor, which is handed out annually to the nation’s top assistant coach. The 32-year-old Riley, who was a candidate for the South Carolina head-coaching job that went to Will Muschamp, is the youngest Broyles winner in the 20-year history of the award.
Additionally, Riley won in the closest voting in Broyles history. Riley was one of three finalists, along with North Carolina defensive coordinator Gene Chizik (2004 Broyles winner) and Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables.
Riley is the third Sooner assistant to win the award, joining Mark Mangino (2000) and Kevin Wilson (2008). Both Mangino and Wilson were offensive coordinators as well.