Former Appalachian State offensive coordinator Frank Ponce is set to become current Appalachian State offensive coordinator Frank Ponce.
The Athletic and ESPN reported Monday that the 51-year-old Ponce is returning to Boone after a season as Miami's quarterbacks coach.
This will actually be Ponce's third tour of duty in Boone. He was the co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 2013-18 under Scott Satterfield, then joined Satterfield at Louisville as quarterbacks coach in 2019-20.
Ponce returned in 2021 to run the offense, a season that saw the Mountaineers win the Sun Belt East championship and average a hair under 35 points per game, 23rd nationally.
Departing to join Mario Cristobal's re-boot on South Beach, head coach Shawn Clark hired Central Michigan offensive coordinator Kevin Barbay to run the Mountaineers' offense. Barbay has since left to run the offense at Mississippi State.
App State went 6-6 in 2022, which constituted the program's worst showing since joining the FBS in 2014, so Clark and Ponce will look to quickly rekindle the magic that took them to the top of their division just two seasons ago.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.
BREAKING: Miami QB coach Frank Ponce is heading back to Appalachian State to be offensive coordinator. Ponce, a South Florida native, did an excellent job calling plays for App State in 2021 (34.5 ppg, 22nd among FBS teams). Hope to see him back home in the near future.
— Manny Navarro (@Manny_Navarro) January 16, 2023
Source: #AppalachianState is rehiring #Miami QBs coach Frank Ponce as offensive coordinator, replacing Kevin Barbay, who left for Mississippi State. Ponce served as Appalachian State's OC in 2021 and co-OC/QBs coach from 2013 to 2018. @Manny_Navarro was on it first.
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) January 16, 2023