TEMPE, Ariz. – Arizona State University Head Football Coach Todd Graham has hired Chip Lindsey as the program’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Coach Graham announced Friday.
“Chip was our top priority when we put together our initial list of candidates, so I couldn’t be happier that Chip is joining our family,” Coach Graham said. “Chip recently turned down an offer to be the head coach at Eastern Kentucky, and he’s made it very clear how excited he is to be coming to Tempe. Chip is an outstanding developer of quarterbacks and we have similar offensive philosophies as he worked for Gus Malzahn at Auburn in 2013. Chip has quickly established him as one of the top offensive minds in the nation, and I have no doubt he is going to do great things with our student-athletes.”
Lindsey spent the past two seasons at Southern Mississippi as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The Golden Eagles broke five major offensive single-season school records in 2015, including completions (312), passing yards (4,263), total offensive yards (6,758) and touchdowns (67), and points (528), as they recorded nine wins, a Conference USA West Division title, and a berth in the Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl against the University of Washington.
“I’m extremely excited to get to Arizona State and get started,” Lindsey said. “It’s a honor to be on Coach Graham’s staff and to be a part of the Arizona State family. I have a tremendous respect for the tradition at ASU, and I’m looking forward to building on the foundation Coach Graham has built over the past four seasons in Tempe. My familiarity with Coach Graham’s views on offense will allow me to hit the ground running starting today. It has been a great two years at Southern Miss and I want to thank Todd Monken for the opportunity he gave me. I wish those guys the best of luck in their bowl game on Dec. 26, and in the future.”
Under Lindsey’s guidance, Southern Mississippi ranked among the best in the nation in 2015 in a number of offensive categories, including fifth in total touchdowns, seventh in total points, eighth in total passing yards and completions, and 12th in points per game and passing yards per game. The Golden Eagles offense increased its scoring average by more than 21 points per game as they went from 19 points per game in 2014 to 40.6 points per game in 2015, and scored 50 points or more a school-record five times.
The Golden Eagles tallied nearly 6,800 yards of total offense in 2015, including more than 4,200 passing yards and just under 2,500 rushing yards, and were the only school in the nation with a 4,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard receiver and two 1,000-yard rushers. USM also had a knack for explosive plays in 2015 as they collected 102 plays of 20-plus yards, the only team in the nation with more than 100, and they ranked second in the country with 52 plays of 30-plus yards, and fourth with 26 plays of 40-plus yards and 14 plays of 50-plus yards.
Lindsey spent the past two seasons mentoring Southern Miss quarterback Nick Mullens, who became the first USM player to be named Offensive Player of the Year in the school's 20-year history in Conference USA in 2015. Mullens ranked second in the league in passing yards (4,145) and touchdown passes (36), and ranked in the top eight in the nation in both marks this year.
Prior to joining Southern Miss in February 2014, Lindsey was an offensive analyst focused on the wide receivers and passing game for the 2013 national champion runner-up Auburn Tigers under head coach Gus Malzahn.
Lindsey put together a successful two-year stint from 2011-12 as the head coach at Spain Park High School in Hoover, Ala., including leading the school to its first Class 6A regional championship.
He served as quarterbacks coach at Troy University in 2010, following a long and distinguished career as a prep coach in football and baseball from 1997-09, including stops at Lassiter (Ga.), Hoover (Ala.), Colbert Heights (Ala.), Florence (Ala.), Deshler (Ala.), Sparkman (Ala.) and Springville (Ala.) High Schools.
Lindsey was a two-time Coach of the Year honoree at Lassiter High School from 2008-09, where he guided the development of Parade All-American and Georgia quarterback signee Hutson Mason, who broke every single-season state passing record in 2009, including passing yards (4,560) and touchdowns (54). He went 12-1 and led the school to a regional championship in 2009 en route to state Coach of the Year honors from the Atlanta Falcons and the Cobb County Touchdown Club. The Associated Press, Marietta Daily Journal and Cobb County Touchdown Club named him the 2008 Coach of the Year in Georgia after he guided Lassiter to the school’s first-ever playoff victory.
He served as the offensive coordinator for Alabama powerhouse program Hoover High School in 2007 as the team finished 10-2 and advanced to the third round of the state playoffs.
Lindsey’s first experience as a high school head coach came from 2005-06 at Colbert Heights High School in Tuscumbia, Ala., where he earned Coach of the Year honors from the Florence Times-Daily in 2006. He matched the program’s combined win total over the previous three seasons in his first year at the helm in 2005 before he led the school to a 9-3 record and a trip to the second round of the state playoffs in 2006.
Lindsey spent the 1997-2004 seasons in various assistant coach roles around the state of Alabama, including Florence, Deshler, Sparkman, and Springville High Schools.
Lindsey played football at the University of North Alabama before transferring as a student to Alabama, where he received his bachelor's degree in history and English in 1997. He earned a master's in educational leadership from the University of Phoenix in 2005.
A native of Madison, Ala., Lindsey graduated from Bob Jones High, where he was a three-sport letterman. Lindsey and his wife Cecily have four children: Claire, Caroline, Cooper and Conner.
“Chip was our top priority when we put together our initial list of candidates, so I couldn’t be happier that Chip is joining our family,” Coach Graham said. “Chip recently turned down an offer to be the head coach at Eastern Kentucky, and he’s made it very clear how excited he is to be coming to Tempe. Chip is an outstanding developer of quarterbacks and we have similar offensive philosophies as he worked for Gus Malzahn at Auburn in 2013. Chip has quickly established him as one of the top offensive minds in the nation, and I have no doubt he is going to do great things with our student-athletes.”
Lindsey spent the past two seasons at Southern Mississippi as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The Golden Eagles broke five major offensive single-season school records in 2015, including completions (312), passing yards (4,263), total offensive yards (6,758) and touchdowns (67), and points (528), as they recorded nine wins, a Conference USA West Division title, and a berth in the Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl against the University of Washington.
“I’m extremely excited to get to Arizona State and get started,” Lindsey said. “It’s a honor to be on Coach Graham’s staff and to be a part of the Arizona State family. I have a tremendous respect for the tradition at ASU, and I’m looking forward to building on the foundation Coach Graham has built over the past four seasons in Tempe. My familiarity with Coach Graham’s views on offense will allow me to hit the ground running starting today. It has been a great two years at Southern Miss and I want to thank Todd Monken for the opportunity he gave me. I wish those guys the best of luck in their bowl game on Dec. 26, and in the future.”
Under Lindsey’s guidance, Southern Mississippi ranked among the best in the nation in 2015 in a number of offensive categories, including fifth in total touchdowns, seventh in total points, eighth in total passing yards and completions, and 12th in points per game and passing yards per game. The Golden Eagles offense increased its scoring average by more than 21 points per game as they went from 19 points per game in 2014 to 40.6 points per game in 2015, and scored 50 points or more a school-record five times.
The Golden Eagles tallied nearly 6,800 yards of total offense in 2015, including more than 4,200 passing yards and just under 2,500 rushing yards, and were the only school in the nation with a 4,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard receiver and two 1,000-yard rushers. USM also had a knack for explosive plays in 2015 as they collected 102 plays of 20-plus yards, the only team in the nation with more than 100, and they ranked second in the country with 52 plays of 30-plus yards, and fourth with 26 plays of 40-plus yards and 14 plays of 50-plus yards.
Lindsey spent the past two seasons mentoring Southern Miss quarterback Nick Mullens, who became the first USM player to be named Offensive Player of the Year in the school's 20-year history in Conference USA in 2015. Mullens ranked second in the league in passing yards (4,145) and touchdown passes (36), and ranked in the top eight in the nation in both marks this year.
Prior to joining Southern Miss in February 2014, Lindsey was an offensive analyst focused on the wide receivers and passing game for the 2013 national champion runner-up Auburn Tigers under head coach Gus Malzahn.
Lindsey put together a successful two-year stint from 2011-12 as the head coach at Spain Park High School in Hoover, Ala., including leading the school to its first Class 6A regional championship.
He served as quarterbacks coach at Troy University in 2010, following a long and distinguished career as a prep coach in football and baseball from 1997-09, including stops at Lassiter (Ga.), Hoover (Ala.), Colbert Heights (Ala.), Florence (Ala.), Deshler (Ala.), Sparkman (Ala.) and Springville (Ala.) High Schools.
Lindsey was a two-time Coach of the Year honoree at Lassiter High School from 2008-09, where he guided the development of Parade All-American and Georgia quarterback signee Hutson Mason, who broke every single-season state passing record in 2009, including passing yards (4,560) and touchdowns (54). He went 12-1 and led the school to a regional championship in 2009 en route to state Coach of the Year honors from the Atlanta Falcons and the Cobb County Touchdown Club. The Associated Press, Marietta Daily Journal and Cobb County Touchdown Club named him the 2008 Coach of the Year in Georgia after he guided Lassiter to the school’s first-ever playoff victory.
He served as the offensive coordinator for Alabama powerhouse program Hoover High School in 2007 as the team finished 10-2 and advanced to the third round of the state playoffs.
Lindsey’s first experience as a high school head coach came from 2005-06 at Colbert Heights High School in Tuscumbia, Ala., where he earned Coach of the Year honors from the Florence Times-Daily in 2006. He matched the program’s combined win total over the previous three seasons in his first year at the helm in 2005 before he led the school to a 9-3 record and a trip to the second round of the state playoffs in 2006.
Lindsey spent the 1997-2004 seasons in various assistant coach roles around the state of Alabama, including Florence, Deshler, Sparkman, and Springville High Schools.
Lindsey played football at the University of North Alabama before transferring as a student to Alabama, where he received his bachelor's degree in history and English in 1997. He earned a master's in educational leadership from the University of Phoenix in 2005.
A native of Madison, Ala., Lindsey graduated from Bob Jones High, where he was a three-sport letterman. Lindsey and his wife Cecily have four children: Claire, Caroline, Cooper and Conner.
