A report by FootballScoop.com confirms what had been the speculation for a few days on the Wolves’ Den premium message board: Appalachian State offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator Dwayne Ledford will be NC State’s new run game coordinator and offensive line coach.
Ledford is a graduate of McDowell High School in Marion, N.C., and played college football at East Carolina. Following his collegiate career he bounced around the NFL from 1999-2005, playing for the 49ers, Jaguars, Panthers and Browns at various times during that span.
The 39-year-old coached as a graduate assistant at UNC and ECU before landing a full-time gig as offensive line coach at Tennessee State in 2010. He spent a year there and at Gardner Webb before matriculating to Appalachian State to coach offensive line in 2012. He was promoted to co-offensive coordinator, in charge of the run game, in 2013.
In 2015, Appalachian State averaged 271.5 rushing yards per contest and 5.8 yards per rush. The Mountaineers also allowed just 11 sacks in 13 games. The 0.85 sacks per contest ranked fifth fewest in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Their rushing yards per game and per carry both ranked sixth in FBS. They gave up just one sack while attempting 28 passes and rushed for 202 yards on 45 carries (4.5 yards per attempt) against eventual national championship game participant and ACC champ Clemson.
In his first three years for the Mountaineers, Ledford coached a squad that allowed just 1.5 sacks per game, and in 2014 they were 18th in the FBS in rushing with 241.8 yards per game. That same year, they were tied for sixth in fewest sacks allowed per contest (0.92).
Ledford replaces Mike Uremovich, who left Raleigh to take the offensive coordinator job at Northern Illinois.
Here is the official press release from NC State:
NC State head coach Dave Doeren announced today that Dwayne Ledford has joined his staff and will serve as the offensive line coach and run game coordinator.
Ledford, a seven-year NFL veteran, just completed his fourth season coaching the offensive line at Appalachian State, and his third as co-offensive coordinator for the run game. The Mountaineers set a Sun Belt single-season record with 11 wins in 2015, the team’s first full year of FBS eligibility, and have averaged 257.2 rushing yards per game over the past two seasons.
“I’m very pleased to add Coach Ledford to our staff,” said Doeren. “His o-lines have not only been aggressive in the run game, but have also been among the best in the country at protecting the quarterback. He’s a tremendous teacher who gets the most out of his players and his seven years of NFL experience will help him provide great insight to our guys.
“Coach Ledford is a North Carolina native who lived in Raleigh for eight years while he was playing in the NFL. His knowledge of the state will be a great benefit in recruiting.”
Ledford’s offensive line ranked fourth in the FBS in sacks allowed in 2015 with just 0.85 per game, and paved the way for a 271.5 yard rushing average, the sixth-best mark in the FBS. App. State scored 44 points or more nine times in its last 20 games and three of his linemen were named to the All-Sun Belt first or second team in 2015.
“As a North Carolina native and former Raleigh resident, I have followed and admired NC State’s football program throughout my life,” said Ledford. “The opportunity to join the program, especially under the leadership of Coach Doeren, is an exciting opportunity that I feel fortunate to be given. My conversations with the coaching staff have been positive and left me excited about what lies ahead.
“My family and I are thrilled to return to Raleigh to join Wolfpack nation.”
Prior to joining the Appalachian State staff in 2012, Ledford spent one season as the offensive line coach and run game coordinator at Gardner-Webb. In his only season at GWU, the Bulldogs ranked second in the Big South in rushing (165.6 yards per game) and third in fewest sacks allowed (17), finishing among the top 50 teams nationally in both categories. Two of his players earned All-Big South recognition.
Ledford spent the 2010 campaign as the offensive line coach at Tennessee State, helping lead the Tigers to top-25 national rankings in both rushing (190.0 yards per game) and fewest sacks allowed (13) and coaching two All-Ohio Valley Conference selections.
During his NFL career, Ledford played for the San Francisco 49ers (1999-2000, 2003-04), Jacksonville Jaguars (2000), Carolina Panthers (2001), Cleveland Browns (2005) and New Orleans Saints (2006). He saw action in eight games, including one start, for the 49ers in 2003.
Ledford’s first coaching job came while he was still playing in the NFL, as he served as a football strength and conditioning coach at North Carolina in 2005 and as an offensive line intern with the Frankfurt Galaxy of NFL Europe in the spring of 2006.
Following his playing career, he was named the Galaxy’s tight ends and tackles coach in the spring of 2007 before returning to the U.S. to serve as the offensive line coach at Sanderson H.S. in Raleigh that fall. He spent two seasons as a graduate assistant coach at his alma mater, East Carolina (2008-09), working directly with the offensive line and helping lead the Pirates win back-to-back Conference USA titles.
Ledford played defensive line at ECU from 1995-97, starting all 11 games as a junior and finishing with 26 career tackles. He moved to offensive line prior to his senior campaign and made nine starts at left tackle in 1998 and was named a 1998-99 National Strength and Conditioning All-American.
A recipient of ECU football’s Jerry T. Brooks Award for outstanding academic achievement in 1998, Ledford graduated from East Carolina with a B.S. in exercise and sports science in 1999.
A native of Marion, N.C., Ledford and his wife, Meredith, have a son, Hudson.
