Phillip Ely begins his first season at Valdosta State as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Ely came to Titletown from Western Carolina University since March, 2019. While in Cullowhee, he coached the quarterbacks where he helped groom Walter Payton Nominee Tyrie Adams, who finished fifth in Southern Conference history in total yards (11,525). Prior to WCU, Ely coached with current VSU head coach Gary Goff at Tiffin University as the quarterback coach and co-offensive coordinator for two years.
In his first season at Tiffin, Ely coordinated a passing attack that featured a freshman QB in Nick Watson who went on to complete nearly 61-percent of his passes for 2,124 yards and 12 touchdowns. Last season, Tiffin averaged 30.4 points and 271.2 yards passing per game, throwing for just shy of 3,000 yards collectively as a team. Watson improved to 65-percent passing with 23 TD strikes against just eight interceptions, collecting All-Great Midwest Conference honors.
In 2018, Tiffin opened the year with nine consecutive wins and its highest national ranking at No. 15, but just missed the postseason following a pair of consecutive losses in the final two weeks of the season.
Ely earned his coaching start as a graduate assistant at Iowa State in Ames, Iowa, first on the defensive side of the ball with the secondary before moving back to offense where he mentored with the Cyclones’ quarterbacks and wide receivers. From there, Ely landed the quarterbacks coach and co-coordinator role at Tiffin University that also included play-calling duties.
A two-time graduate of the University of Toledo, Ely was a two-year starter on a pair of bowl championship teams in the Rockets’ fast-tempo, spread offense. Twice elected team captain, Ely threw for over 3,000 yards and 23 touchdowns against only 10 interceptions in 2015, collecting All-Mid-American Conference honors.
Ely guided the Rockets to an 11-2 record including wins over No. 12 Arkansas and No. 21 Temple, the latter victory coming in the Boca Raton Bowl in which he collected MVP honors. He parlayed that season into an invite to NFL preseason camps with both the Tennessee Titans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the spring of 2016.
He began his collegiate career at the University of Alabama as a highly touted recruit from Plant High in Tampa, Fla., where he played in three state championships, winning a pair of Florida state titles. He was additionally dubbed a U.S. Army All-American as a prep. Ely played in seven games in 2012 for the Crimson Tide while serving as the back-up to A.J. McCarron for two seasons.
Ely and his wife, the former Ms. Kallie Case of Suwanee, Ga., who played collegiate softball at Alabama, were married in June 2018. The couple has one child, daughter, Raelynn Estelle.
