Bryan Stinespring Will Remain Virginia Tech's Offensive Coordinator, But Mike O'Cain Will Call Plays

The staff of HokieSports.com has updated the bios for Virginia Tech's coaching staff and it reveals the extent of the changes that have been made.

Bryan Stinespring is now listed as "Offensive Coordinator & Tight Ends/Offensive Tackles Coach":

Bryan Stinespring, an integral member of the Virginia Tech staff as both a coach and recruiter, is in his 10th season overseeing the Hokies' offense. Stinespring was promoted to offensive coordinator in December 2001 and began those duties during the Hokies' Gator Bowl game against Florida State on New Year's Day. He also coaches the tight ends and offensive tackles along the line.

Mike O'Cain is still simply "Quarterbacks Coach":

Mike O'Cain is in his sixth season as the quarterbacks coach at Virginia Tech. A veteran of the Atlantic Coast Conference, O'Cain was formerly the head coach at NC State and offensive coordinator at both North Carolina and Clemson. This season, he will take over the gameday playcalling duties for the Tech offense.

Curt Newsome is now "Offensive Guards & Center Coach":

Curt Newsome is entering his sixth season on the staff of the Hokies, coaching the center and offensive guard positions after handling the entire offensive line the previous five seasons. Prior to his arrival in Blacksburg, he was an assistant coach at James Madison University for seven seasons.

That puts to rest the notion that Stinespring has been "demoted." He's had his playcalling duties stripped, but he hasn't been demoted. So why would the offensive coordinator not call the plays?

Well, first and foremost I bet this is related to salary. The OC is going to make more money than the QB coach, so keeping the offensive coordinator title would likely keep Stinespring at his current pay rate. There are plenty of schools out there that have a "running game coordinator" and "passing game coordinator." Only one of them calls the plays. The title is completely related to how much they're going to make.

It's the same difference between being a "Sports Information Director" and an "Assistant (or Associate) Athletics Director in Charge of Sports Information." It's all about pay scale.

Another reason is that there's a lot more that goes into an offensive game play than just calling the plays. Stinespring keeping the offensive coordinator position reaffirms my belief that this move is purely cosmetic. There's not going to be any difference in the Hokies' offensive philosophy and any visible difference between the O'Cain-run offense and the Stinespring-run offense will be negligible.

Other changes include Shane Beamer getting the title of associate head coach, which was also held by previous running backs coach Billy Hite. Torrian Gray will now coach the entire secondary, as he takes on the rovers position. Giving Shane the "associate" tag is certainly an interesting move.