LAWRENCE, Kan. -
A former Mountaineers assistant has lured a current one away from West Virginia to Tennessee.
On Friday, first-year Tennessee Volunteers head coach Butch Jones announced on his Twitter page that WVU running backs coach Robert Gillespie would be joining his staff in the same capacity.
Gillespie was part of Mountaineers head coach Dana Holgorsen's first offensive staff when he was hired as offensive coordinator in the spring of 2011. A former Florida Gators running back, Gillespie went on to have a brief professional playing career before switching over to the coaching ranks. He followed Holgorsen to Morgantown from Stillwater, where the two coached together on the Oklahoma State staff.
A tweet from Gillespie's Twitter account Friday night read, "The Gillespie Family had a blast at #WVU and you guys will always hold a place in our hearts. We'll always root for The Mountaineers!"
This most recent void in the staff is the fifth that has opened at West Virginia since December, when cornerbacks coach Daron Roberts was let go prior to the Pinstripe Bowl. In the months since, associate head coach Steve Dunlap, quarterbacks coach Jake Spavital, offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh and now Gillespie have left the Mountaineers.
For replacements, Holgorsen has in large part sought the assistance of coaches with West Virginia connections.
New safeties coach Tony Gibson and wide receivers coach Lonnie Galloway both worked at WVU previously, while offensive line coach Ron Crook is a native West Virginian and has held jobs at smaller schools in the state.
West Virginia is scheduled to hold a spring football media luncheon on Tuesday, March 5.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and WVILL. All Rights Reserved.
