The Tulane Green Wave officially announced who their next offensive coordinator will be under Will Hall, which will be intriguing to watch develop under an offensive-minded head coach.
The Tulane Green Wave will have an offensive minded head coach for the first time in a while as Will Hall takes the reins of the program. He’s expected to have influence on the offensive system the Green Wave will run, but an offensive coordinator can make or break that side of the ball, and it’s an important hire for Hall. It was reported a few weeks ago that Tulane was zeroing in on hiring their next OC, but it wasn’t officially announced until the school released the hires on X on Thursday afternoon. One of the announcements included the official news that Russ Callaway will be the team’s next offensive coordinator.
Callaway was with, ironically enough, the Florida Gators from 2022 to 2025 – the destination of former Green Wave coach Jon Sumrall. Callaway started as a defensive intern with the Gators before becoming the tight ends coach in 2023, rising to co-offensive coordinator in 2024, and finally becoming the OC in 2025. While Florida went 12-13 in those two seasons where Callaway was co- and offensive coordinator, the offense was one of the few glimmers of success, including a late surge in 2024 with upsets over No. 21 LSU and No. 9 Ole Miss. He also helped Florida beat Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl that December.
He has a decorated history at both the collegiate and NFL levels, as he came to Florida after a season with the New York Giants as an offensive assistant. He was also an assistant at Alabama and an assistant and analyst at LSU. His stints also include time at Murray State and Samford, where he crossed paths with the Green Wave’s next chief of staff, Chris Hatcher, who he followed to the Bulldogs. Callaway was the offensive coordinator for Samford from 2016 to 2019, where he helped the team lead the FCS in passing yards.
Just like Hatcher, Callaway also quarterbacked at Valdosta State and led the team to the school’s second National Championship in 2007. He then went to Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama, where he assisted defensive coordinator Kirby Smart with the inside linebackers room. While at Samford, Callaway developed quarterback Devlin Hodges, who broke Steve McNair’s FCS-record 14,584 passing yards and earned the Walter Payton Award for the best offensive player at the FCS level.
He hasn’t had experience calling plays much recently, as former Gators coach Billy Napier was the playcaller. However, he has extensive experience doing so and is an intriguing hire for the Green Wave as they shape their next offense around a currently not-yet-known starting quarterback.