Back in late January, Central Michigan offensive coordinator Charlie Frye left to become the quarterbacks coach for the Miami Dolphins, leaving Jim McElwain with a coordinator position to fill.
Former Austin Peay (FCS - TN) wide receivers coach Chad Bumphis is joining Jim McElwain's staff and will coach the wide receivers, sources have shared with FootballScoop.
Central Michigan Life, the on-campus newspaper, was among the first to report the hire. Multiple outlets have reported the same.
Bumphis spent last season as the receivers coach for the Governors, and previously served as a graduate assistant at Buffalo and Utah State. He's also previously coached receivers at Iowa Wesleyan and played his college ball at Mississippi State, going undrafted in 2013 before playing for three NFL teams (Dolphins, Broncos, Jaguars) before starting his coaching career.
Over the last week or so, we've been hearing the addition of Bumphis for the receivers job means assistant head coach / wide receivers coach Kevin Barbay will move to quarterbacks, and is also expected to be elevated to offensive coordinator as well.
Barbay previously served as the offensive play caller and quarterbacks coach at Stephen F. Austin (FCS - TX) in 2018 prior to joining McElwain's staff. He's worked with McElwain at Colorado State (director of player personnel) and Florida (director of player development) as well.
His prior coaching stops include various roles at Florida, Colorado State, Lamar (FCS - TX), North Texas, Texas A&M Commerce (D-II), and Baylor.
McElwain himself also has an impressive track record working with quarterbacks from his time at Alabama, Fresno State, and with the Raiders and he was the offensive play caller at both of those college stops (as well as Montana State earlier in his career), so Barbay would have an excellent built-in mentor in his head coach.
The promotion for Barbay will fill one of the last remaining offensive coordinator jobs at the FBS level, as there have been over 30 changes this offseason.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.