REPORT: Notre Dame To Hire John McNulty As Tight Ends Coach
While the University of Notre Dame has not officially announced John McNulty as the new Fighting Irish tight ends coach to round out the Fighting Irish staff on offense, a weekend report from The Athletic's Bruce Feldman indicated the three-decade veteran college and NFL coach is expected to be named in that role.
A source told Blueandgold.com the official announcement is expected to be confirmed officially by the school in the coming week after going through the extensive human resources process.
Irish Illustrated reported on Jan. 29 that McNulty was the top candidate for the vacated position. The next day, Blueandgold confirmed via a source that McNulty had "a great interview" and possesses "an infectious personality" that, combined with his coaching experience, made him an appealing target.
McNulty would join first-year offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees, who has mentored the signal-callers the past three seasons, second-year running backs coach and first-year run-game coordinator Lance Taylor, fourth-year receivers coach Del Alexander and third-year offensive line coach Jeff Quinn.
The 1990 Penn State graduate with 29 years of coaching experience — 15 in the NFL — McNulty would replace 2017-19 offensive coordinator/tight ends coach Chip Long, who was deposed from his position in early December.
Although he will specifically instruct the tight ends, McNulty has an extensive experience working with quarterbacks and receivers that is expected to bolster the overall offense.
He has experience running both Pro-Style and Spread offenses while learning from a couple of Super Bowl champion head coaches in the NFL, as well as working individually with future Pro Football Hall of Fame talent..
His background as a tight ends coach in the NFL is vital both because of the talent lost in potential first- or second-round pick Cole Kmet opting to bypass his senior year in 2020 but especially the promise the position holds with Tommy Tremble, Brock Wright and George Takacs, plus highly sought after incoming freshmen Michael Mayer and Kevin Bauman.
Tremble is the top returning player there after nabbing 16 passes for 183 yards and four touchdowns in 2019 as a sophomore.
A native of Scranton, Pa., and a walk-on safety from 1988-90 with the Nittany Lions, McNulty’s coaching career began right after his graduation.
1991-94 — Graduate assistant at University of Michigan
During this stretch he worked for head coach Gary Moeller, when the Wolverines were 2-1-1 versus the Irish. An outside linebacker on those 1993-94 teams included current Notre Dame associate head coach/defensive line coach Mike Elston, now in his 11th year with the operation.
1995-97 — Wide receivers and special teams coach at the University of Connecticut.
The Huskies were 20-13 during his time under Notre Dame graduate and head coach Skip Holtz, who now holds the same job title at Louisiana Tech.
1998-2002 — NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars quality control on offense/wide receivers
Worked under future two-time Super Bowl winner Tom Coughlin, with the 1999 Jaguars finishing the regular season 14-2 and advancing to the AFC Championship game.
2003 — NFL's Dallas Cowboys wide receivers
Under first-year head coach Bill Parcells, the Cowboys followed three straight 5-11 finishes with a 10-6 mark and made the playoffs.
2004-08 — Rutgers, quarterbacks/receivers, and offensive coordinator in 2007-08
Under head coach Greg Schiano, who he was introduced to at Penn State, Rutgers rose to prominence, highlighted by an 11-2 record and No. 12 finish in 2006.
With McNulty as the offensive coordinator, the 2007 Scarlet Knights that finished 8-5 became the first program in FBS history to have a 3,000-yard passer in Mike Teel, a 2,000-yard rusher in Ray Rice, and two 1,000-yard wide receivers in Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood.
That team averaged 32.8 points per game.
2009-12 — NFL’s Arizona Cardinals quarterbacks/receivers
Worked under Ken Whisenhut, who led Arizona to the Super Bowl the year prior to McNulty’s hiring, and is the current offensive coordinator for the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers. During his stint there, McNulty worked with future Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Larry Fitzgerald.
2013 — NFL’s Tampa Bay Bucs quarterbacks
Reunited with former Rutgers head coach Schiano for one season, and Bucs quarterback Mike Glennon made the NFL All-Rookie Team.
2014-15 — NFL’s Tennessee Titans quarterbacks
Worked in 2015 with 2014 Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota, the No. 2 pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. Mariota, like Glennon, earned All-Rookie honors.
2016-17 — NFL’s San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers tight ends
Coached future Hall-of-Famer Antonio Gates (116 career touchdowns are the most by a tight end) and Hunter Henry, who is becoming one of the rising young tight ends in the game.
Not to be overlooked is the fact that the Chargers in 2016 also had a fledgling young man with the "offensive assistant" title named Tommy Rees.
2018-19 — Rutgers offensive coordinator/quarterbacks
This stint did not match the first while undergoing a massive rebuild in the Big Ten.
After a 1-11 mark in 2018 and a 1-4 start in 2019, head coach Chris Ash and McNulty were both fired, leading McNulty to move on to his alma mater for the balance of the 2019 season.
2019 — Penn State, analyst
The Nittany Lions finished 11-2 and No. 9 in the Associated Press poll.
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