Will Friend

Title:
Offensive Line

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A Southeastern Conference veteran, Will Friend enters his third season as Tennessee’s offensive line coach.

In 2019, the Vol offensive line anchored a unit that improved in nearly every category, including in scoring offense, total offense, passing yards, rushing yards and third down conversion percentage.

Friend’s offensive line was arguably UT’s most improved and most effective unit throughout the season. Junior left guard Trey Smith rebounded from a career-threatening injury to capture All-SEC First Team honors. Additionally, true freshman left tackle Wanya Morris was named a Freshman All-American and an SEC All-Freshman Team selection. True freshman offensive lineman Darnell Wright joined his teammate on the SEC All-Freshman Team.

Friend came to Rocky Top following a three-year stint as the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Colorado State, where he led an offense that ranked 11th in the nation and first in the Mountain West in total offense (492.5 ypg) in 2017.

Prior to his time at CSU, Friend served four years as the offensive line coach at Georgia, where he coached four NFL Draft picks on the Bulldogs’ line. Friend has also made coaching stops at UAB and Gardner-Webb, and was a graduate assistant at Georgia. He was a four-year starter and two-time All-SEC guard at Alabama from 1993-97.

Friend has coached nine offensive linemen who have been selected in the NFL Draft and 12 players overall, including guard Isaiah Wynn, a 2018 first-round selection by the New England Patriots.

THE FRIEND FILE

PERSONAL INFORMATION

Born: July 20, 1976
Hometown: Philadelphia, Mississippi
Education: Bachelor’s in Human Performance (Alabama, 1998)
Playing Experience: Alabama - OG (1993-96)
Wife: Carrie
Children: Katie, Brooks, Charlie

COACHING HISTORY

2001: West Alabama, Offensive Line
2002: Tuscaloosa Central HS, Offensive Assistant
2003-04: Georgia, Graduate Assistant
2005-06: Gardner-Webb, Offensive Line
2007-10: UAB, Offensive Line
2011-13: Georgia, Offensive Line
2014: Georgia, Running Game Coord./OL
2015-17: Colorado State, Offensive Coord./OL
2018-present: Tennessee, Offensive Line

Tennessee (2018-Present)
In 2019, Friend’s unit feature an All-SEC First Team award winner (Smith) and two SEC All-Freshman honorees (Morris and Wright). Additionally, Morris was named to the 247Sports True Freshman All-America team, and Smith collected a pair of SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors. Smith did not allow a sack all season.

Senior center Brandon Kennedy started every game and also earned an SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week honor.

Tennessee’s offensive line was instrumental in controlling the line of scrimmage during the Vols’ season-ending six-game win streak. Friend’s line paved the way for top offensive production against some of the nation’s best defenses, including a season-best 526 yards against Missouri’s Top-10-ranked defense and its neutralizing of preseason All-American Javon Kinlaw of South Carolina in a 41-21 win over the Gamecocks.

Additionally, the Tennessee offensive line opened holes for Eric Gray’s 246-yard rushing performance against Vanderbilt, which set a Vol true freshman record and was the fifth-best performance in school history.
In Friend’s first season on Rocky Top as offensive line coach, the Vols’ offense saw improvements across the board, seeing an uptick in rushing offense, passing offense, total offense and scoring offense from 2017-18.

The offensive line paved the way for leading rusher Ty Chandler who averaged 5.5 yards per carry, which is the highest mark by the Vols’ top runner since 2006.

Colorado State (2015-17)
Friend served as the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Colorado State University from 2015-17.

Friend’s 2017 Colorado State offense ranked 10th in the nation and first in the Mountain West in total offense, averaging 492.5 yards per game. Colorado State’s 33.4 points per game led the conference and ranked 31st in the nation. The Rams led the Mountain West and ranked 20th nationally in passing at 292.2 yards per game. CSU’s rushing attack ranked 31st in the country at 200.2 yards per game.

Five Rams earned 2017 All-Mountain West honors, including four first-team selections in quarterback Nick Stevens, wide receiver Michael Gallup and offensive linemen Jake Bennett and Zach Golditch. Stevens enjoyed a banner redshirt senior season in 2017, leading the Mountain West and ranking 13th in the nation with 3,799 passing yards while completing 61.9 percent of his passes and throwing for 29 touchdowns. Gallup finished third in the nation with 100 receptions and his 1,413 receiving yards ranked fifth among all FBS receivers. Gallup earned consensus All-America honors in 2017 for his efforts.

In 2016, Friend guided one of the most productive offenses in Colorado State history, and the most potent in the red zone, en route to a second-straight bowl appearance. The Rams scored on 53 of 56 trips inside the 20 (94.6 percent) to rank fourth in the FBS. CSU also ranked 12th in passing efficiency (157.04), 28th in scoring offense (35.3), 30th in total offense (462.5) and 31st in rushing offense (217.8).

Six players from Friend’s offensive unit earned All-Mountain West recognition: Gallup (first team), guards Fred Zerblis (first team) and Paul Thurston (honorable mention), Bennett (second team), Stevens (honorable mention) and tackle Nick Callender (honorable mention).

The Rams were especially productive in the second half of the 2016 season, averaging 47.8 points and 533.8 yards per game over the last six contests. Friend’s offensive line was a strength of the team, which allowed just one sack per game, eighth-best in the nation. CSU allowed just one sack in the final six games of the season.

Quarterback Nick Stevens ranked fifth in FBS (first in MW) with a 171.3 passer efficiency rating, and the Rams ranked 12th in FBS with just seven interceptions thrown.

In his first season with the Rams in 2015, Friend helped lead Colorado State to a 7-6 record with an offense that ranked 47th nationally and third in the Mountain West. The unit featured five All-Mountain West honorees, including first team all-conference wide receiver Rashard Higgins and second team honoree Stevens. Following his junior season, Higgins was selected in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns.

Colorado State’s offensive line allowed just 1.31 sacks per game and 4.62 tackles for a loss per game, figures which ranked 22nd and 10th, respectively, in the nation. Stevens set passing records for a CSU sophomore with 2,679 yards through the air and 21 touchdowns (fifth-most in school history), and the Rams were one of only two FBS schools to have three running backs each record at least one game with 140 or more rushing yards (Dalyn Dawkins, Izzy Matthews and Jasen Oden, Jr.).

Georgia (2011-14)
Friend spent four seasons at Georgia, beginning in 2011 as offensive line coach and adding the title of running game coordinator in 2013. During his final season in Athens in 2014, Friend helped guide a Bulldogs’ offense that averaged 41.3 points per game, which ranked eighth nationally, and racked up 457.8 yards of total offense per game.

Against teams ranked in the Top 25, UGA compiled a 3-2 record while scoring 34.4 points per game. Additionally, the 2014 Bulldogs’ offense ranked in the top 15 nationally in rushing offense (257.0; 11th), team passing efficiency (156.06; ninth), completion percentage (67.4 percent; seventh), fewest interceptions (6; ninth), third-down conversion percentage (49.7 percent; eighth) and fourth-down conversion percentage (80.0 percent; third). He helped develop Wynn that season, laying the foundation for the future first-round pick.

Friend and the offensive staff at Georgia posted record-setting numbers in 2012 and 2013, including single-season total offense (6,547 in 2012 and 6,294 in 2013); average yards per game (484.2 in ‘13 and 467.64 in ‘12) and touchdowns in a season (72 in 2012 and 58 in ‘13).

He coached three 2012 NFL draft choices – offensive tackle Cordy Glenn (second round, Buffalo Bills), center Ben Jones (fourth round, Houston Texans) and offensive tackle Justin Anderson (seventh round, Indianapolis Colts). Friend also coached offensive tackle John Theus, who was selected in the fifth round of the 2016 draft by San Francisco.

UAB (2007-10)
Prior to his tenure at Georgia, Friend spent four seasons as offensive line coach at UAB (2007-10) where the Blazers’ average offensive output per game in 2009 and 2010 represented two of the top three season marks in program history.

The UAB offense registered 5,074 yards in 2010, the school’s second-highest single-season total. The Blazers finished the 2010 campaign ranked 24th nationally in total offense (422.8 yards per game) and were 24th in passing offense (267.0). In 2009, UAB’s rushing average of 229.9 yards per game was the highest mark for the Blazers in school history and ranked No. 7 in the nation.

Gardner-Webb (2005-06)
Friend spent the previous two years at Gardner-Webb (2005-06) as offensive line coach. In his first season at Gardner-Webb, the Bulldog offense ranked No. 10 nationally in total offense as Friend saw three of his linemen earn All-Big South Conference honors.

Georgia (2003-04)
Friend served two years as a graduate assistant coach at Georgia from 2003-04. The Bulldogs went a combined 21-5 in his two years and finished No. 7 in the AP Top 25 both seasons.

Pre-DI College Coaching Career
Friend spent one year at Tuscaloosa Central High School (2002) and was the offensive line coach at West Alabama in 2001.

Background
A two-time All-SEC and four-year starting guard at Alabama, Friend helped the Crimson Tide to the SEC Western Division title and berths in the SEC Championship Game in 1993, 1994 and 1996, with appearances in the Gator Bowl, Citrus Bowl and Outback Bowl. Friend was named to Alabama’s Team of the Decade for the 1990s.

Friend was a Parade Magazine All-America selection as a senior at Neshoba Central High in Philadelphia, Miss. He earned his bachelor’s degree in human performance from Alabama in 1998. He and his wife, the former Carrie Moon, have three children: Katie, Brooks and Charlie.

BOWL GAMES COACHED IN (10)
2020 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl – Tennessee
2017 Arizona Bowl – Colorado State
2016 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl – Colorado State
2015 Arizona Bowl – Colorado State
2014 Belk Bowl – Georgia
2014 Gator Bowl – Georgia
2013 Capital One Bowl – Georgia
2012 Outback Bowl – Georgia
2005 Outback Bowl – Georgia
2004 Capital One Bowl – Georgia

BOWL GAMES PLAYED IN (3)
1997 Outback Bowl – Alabama
1995 Citrus Bowl – Alabama
1993 Gator Bowl – Alabama

ALL-AMERICANS COACHED (5)
OL Wanya Morris - Tennessee '19 - 247 Freshman
WR Michael Gallup – Colorado State ‘17 – Consensus
C Ben Jones – Georgia ‘11 – Sporting News, ESPN.com, Rivals
OL Kris King – Gardner-Webb ‘06 – Don Hansen Honorable Mention
OG Max Jean-Gilles – Georgia ‘05 – AP, AFCA, Walter Camp, Sporting News

NFL DRAFT PICKS COACHED (12 draft picks, 1 first rounder)
WR Olabisi Johnson (RD 7) – Colorado State ’19 – Minnesota Vikings
OT Isaiah Wynn (RD 1) – Georgia ’18 – New England Patriots
WR Michael Gallup (RD 3) – Colorado State ’18 – Dallas Cowboys
WR Rashard Higgins (RD 5) – Colorado State ’16 – Cleveland Browns
OT John Theus (RD 5) – Georgia ‘16 – San Francisco 49ers
OT Cordy Glenn (RD 2) – Georgia ‘12 – Buffalo Bills
C Ben Jones (RD 4) – Georgia ‘12 – Houston Texas
G Justin Anderson (RD 7) – Georgia ’12 – Indianapolis Colts
OT Matt McCants (RD 6) – UAB ‘12– New York Giants
OG Chester Adams (RD 7) – Georgia ‘08 – Chicago Bears
OT Ken Shackleford (RD 6) – Georgia ‘07 – St. Louis Rams
OG Max Jean-Gilles (RD 4) – Georgia ‘06 – Philadelphia Eagles