Ohio Vol
Inquisitor of Offense
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The case for Jason Candle, head coach at Toledo
Background: Candle played two years at Geneva College and two at Mount Union. As a Purple Raider, his teams were 28-0 with two national championships.
Candle began coaching shortly after graduating, beginning as Mount Union's receivers coach at age 23 (2003). He held that position for four years, and among other things developed a young transfer student named Pierre Garcon into an NFL player.
Candle was elevated to offensive coordinator in 2007, and was a key in converting backup quarterback Cecil Shorts into a future NFL receiver.
He moved to Toledo in 2009 to become receiver/tight ends coach, where he developed Eric Page into an All-American. Candle was elevated to offensive coordinator in 2012, a position he held for four years.
When Matt Campbell left Toledo to take over at Iowa State, Candle was (eventually) elevated to head coach. In two years as the Rockets' head coach, he's 19-6 with a 13-3 record in-conference.
Pedigree: Candle played for and coached under now-retired Larry Kehres at Mount Union. Kehres' program is run on absolute discipline, an extreme focus on technique, and stability. Kehres' proteges generally have the same personalities: dedicated, hard-working, positive, and emotionally stable. You won't find slackers or overgrown children coming from the coaching ranks at Mount Union.
Development: NFL players simply do not come out of Division III football, even the most successful program in history. Candle changed that, putting two different prominent receivers into the NFL ranks. In his first year at Toledo he produced an All-American, which simply does not happen with MAC receivers. And most recently, his offense focused around Kareem Hunt, who's been tremendous as an NFL rookie.
Offense: Toledo has generally run a balanced attack out of the shotgun, with varied backfield looks. The QB doesn't run to any real extent; the run game is based on the halfback and the passing game split between play action and dropback.
When Candle took over as OC in 2011, the Rockets' offense jumped over 6 yards/play and 440 yards/game for the season, levels which it did not drop below for the entirety of his tenure.
Since taking over as head coach, the Rockets have averaged over 7 yards per play and over 500 yards/game.
In 2016, quarterback Logan Woodside had 45 touchdown passes compared to just 9 interceptions. This year he's had 24 TDs to just 3 INTs, but is averaging over 10 yards per pass attempt. Woodside was a two-star recruit originally.
Fun fact: this year's Miami team, 10-1 and about to play in the ACC championship and possibly the playoffs, only allowed 30 points to one team this season. That would be Toledo.
Recruiting: Candle has long been nationally recognized as an excellent recruiter. In 2010, he was the only assistant coach from the MAC conference to be named a top recruiter by rivals.com, he was named the conference's top overall recruiter in 2011 and 2012 by scout.com, and he's regularly been the key part of assembling classes that have been at or near the top of the conference for the last eight seasons.
Age and Experience: Candle just celebrated his 38th birthday a couple weeks ago.
Background: Candle played two years at Geneva College and two at Mount Union. As a Purple Raider, his teams were 28-0 with two national championships.
Candle began coaching shortly after graduating, beginning as Mount Union's receivers coach at age 23 (2003). He held that position for four years, and among other things developed a young transfer student named Pierre Garcon into an NFL player.
Candle was elevated to offensive coordinator in 2007, and was a key in converting backup quarterback Cecil Shorts into a future NFL receiver.
He moved to Toledo in 2009 to become receiver/tight ends coach, where he developed Eric Page into an All-American. Candle was elevated to offensive coordinator in 2012, a position he held for four years.
When Matt Campbell left Toledo to take over at Iowa State, Candle was (eventually) elevated to head coach. In two years as the Rockets' head coach, he's 19-6 with a 13-3 record in-conference.
Pedigree: Candle played for and coached under now-retired Larry Kehres at Mount Union. Kehres' program is run on absolute discipline, an extreme focus on technique, and stability. Kehres' proteges generally have the same personalities: dedicated, hard-working, positive, and emotionally stable. You won't find slackers or overgrown children coming from the coaching ranks at Mount Union.
Development: NFL players simply do not come out of Division III football, even the most successful program in history. Candle changed that, putting two different prominent receivers into the NFL ranks. In his first year at Toledo he produced an All-American, which simply does not happen with MAC receivers. And most recently, his offense focused around Kareem Hunt, who's been tremendous as an NFL rookie.
Offense: Toledo has generally run a balanced attack out of the shotgun, with varied backfield looks. The QB doesn't run to any real extent; the run game is based on the halfback and the passing game split between play action and dropback.
When Candle took over as OC in 2011, the Rockets' offense jumped over 6 yards/play and 440 yards/game for the season, levels which it did not drop below for the entirety of his tenure.
Since taking over as head coach, the Rockets have averaged over 7 yards per play and over 500 yards/game.
In 2016, quarterback Logan Woodside had 45 touchdown passes compared to just 9 interceptions. This year he's had 24 TDs to just 3 INTs, but is averaging over 10 yards per pass attempt. Woodside was a two-star recruit originally.
Fun fact: this year's Miami team, 10-1 and about to play in the ACC championship and possibly the playoffs, only allowed 30 points to one team this season. That would be Toledo.
Recruiting: Candle has long been nationally recognized as an excellent recruiter. In 2010, he was the only assistant coach from the MAC conference to be named a top recruiter by rivals.com, he was named the conference's top overall recruiter in 2011 and 2012 by scout.com, and he's regularly been the key part of assembling classes that have been at or near the top of the conference for the last eight seasons.
Age and Experience: Candle just celebrated his 38th birthday a couple weeks ago.
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