BOULDER — Colorado’s new offensive line coach, Kyle DeVan, has a tough task in front of him.
“The guys in my room right have been through a lot,” DeVan told reporters in his introductory press conference. “I think trust was a big was a big deal. I was the new guy coming in. There’s a good foundation. I wanted to let those guys know I’m here to gain their trust, just like they’re currently here to gain my trust.”
Colorado’s last full-time offensive line coach Mitch Rodrigue was fired partway through the 2021 season because of the group’s poor play. He was replaced by interim coach William Vlachos, who had never held a role of that magnitude before. While the results were better under Vlachos, the group still leaft plenty to be desired.
That’s where DeVan comes in.
“It’s been awesome,” DeVAn said of his first few weeks on the job. “These kids, from the local ones to the ones that aren’t from the region, they are here because they love Colorado. They love CU. It’s been refreshing just to see these guys come in and work their butts off and all of them want to make Colorado the best it can be and they want to win games and I really appreciate that.”
DeVan, 37, was one of the last coaches to arrive in Boulder. He spent last season as an analyst with the Michigan Wolverines. Michigan competed into January as a College Football Playoff contender, and the offensive line won the Joe Moore Award, which goes to the nation’s best offensive line. While DeVan wasn’t leading the group, most of his efforts were spent helping Sherrone Moore, who also served as co-offensive coordinator, work with the group.
“We worked hand-in-hand in a lot of ways, but when when it was presentation time he was the one leading the room, which was awesome,” DeVan said. “I had an opportunity to kind of sit back and not evaluate him but evaluate myself and evaluate the things that he brought to me, because I brought a lot to him but I was able to see what he did and what made him a great offense line coach and allow that room to shine.”
DeVan has served as an offensive line coach before with Ball State and Arizona. He’s also served as assistant offensive line coach under Sean Payton with the New Orleans Saints. But his experience playing the game will help set him apart.
“Being a former player provides different insight into the game,” DeVan said. “One thing I tell all my guys is we’re going to create a foundation. We’re going to all be taught the same fundamentals and techniques and landmarks and things of those nature. But when you start getting to the expertise side of it, when you get into the fourth-, fifth-year players—All-Americans, all conference, right?—they need to be taken to the next level. And that’s something I experienced personally as a player.”
DeVan spent five years in the NFL after graduating from Oregon State. His career highlight, by a significant margin, is winning Super Bowl XLIV as the starting guard for the Indianapolis Colts. That meant lining up next to four-time All-Pro center Jeff Saturday.
“Being around some of the best offensive lineman to ever play the game I could bring different insight and I do think there’s a lot of value to that,” DeVan said. “I really do. I don’t think you have to be a former player in the NFL or a former player at all. However, it just does provide me with different insight than somebody else.”
Getting his linemen up to NFL standards would be a tall task. If he can manage an average Pac-12 group, CU fans will be singing his praises.
