Report: Virginia targeting NFL assistant with ACC experience for OC role

The University of Virginia and first-year head coach Tony Elliott are reportedly targeting an NFL assistant for one of its vacant positions, as ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg said that the UVA Cavaliers are honing in on Atlanta Falcons running backs coach Des Kitchings to become offensive coordinator.

According to Rittenberg’s report, Kitchings, Elliott and Virginia have not yet finalized a deal, as the Falcons are still finishing up the 2021 season. However, Atlanta has been eliminated from NFL Playoff contention, so a deal could be reached in the coming weeks.

Kitchings has only been with the Falcons for one year, having been hired in January of 2021. Prior to his arrival in the NFL, Kitchings spent one season as a running backs coach for South Carolina and eight seasons as a running backs coach for NC State. As Rittenberg notes, Kitchings’ ACC experience at NC State could be useful with the Virginia Cavaliers, as he also served a season as the Wolfpack’s co-offensive coordinator.

Kitchings, 43, attended Furman and played wide receiver for the Furmn Paladins in college. He was drafted in the seventh round of the 2000 NFL Draft, and he served as a practice squad player for four different teams over the course of four years before returning to Furman in 2004 as a tight ends and special teams coach. From there, Kitchings left Furman in 2008 to become the running backs coach and special teams coordinator at Vanderbilt; he was promoted to offensive coordinator at Vanderbilt in 2011, then he left to become Air Force’s running backs coach in 2011.

After his one-year stint at Air Force, Kitchings first arrived at NC State in 2012 and stayed with the Wolfpack for eight seasons. He coached the running backs and tight ends, before his promotion to assistant head coach in 2016, then co-offensive coordinator in 2019. While NC State, Kitchings coached three consecutive 1,000-yard rushers for just the second time in program history, something that had not been accomplished since the late 1970s. He also helped the NC State backfield develop some NFL talent in Nyheim Hines, who was named a first-team All-ACC running back in 2018, the first member of the NC State program to make the cut at running back since 2002.