Here are 5 potential candidates to serve as UCF football’s RB coach

Tuesday marked one week since it was reported that UCF running backs coach Tim Harris Jr. was departing for the same role at the University of Miami.

Harris became the third coach to leave the Orlando school for a job elsewhere since December, joining defensive coordinator Travis Williams (Arkansas) and offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey (UNC).

His replacement will be the fifth position coach Gus Malzahn has had to hire since his original UCF staff was created.

With UCF spring football practice set to begin in less than three weeks, Malzahn will likely move quickly to hire a new running backs coach.

There are multiple directions Malzahn could go to find his next running backs coach.

While there are plenty of names to choose from, there are two that stand out: Tim Horton and Kam Martin.

Horton just completed his second season as running backs coach and special teams coordinator at Air Force. While running the triple option offense boosts a team’s rushing numbers — Air Force had the No. 1 rushing offense last year — Horton’s running backs had success when he worked at Auburn.

Serving as Auburn’s running backs coach from 2013-18, Horton coached four running backs that led the SEC in rushing.

Kam Martin (9) ran for 1,564 rushing yards and scored 9 total touchdowns during his playing career (2016-19) at Auburn under Gus Malzahn. (Michael Woods/AP)

As for Martin, he not only played for Malzahn at Auburn but also worked for him previously at UCF. In 2021, he served as a recruiting and offensive assistant working with the running backs.

He followed former UCF coordinator GJ Kinne to Incarnate Ward to serve as running backs coach. Martin then joined Kinne at Texas State in December.

In one season at Incarnate Ward, Martin helped the team set the program’s single-season rushing yards record with 3,022.

If Malzahn were to consider either past coach, he has options.

Because Hinshaw is the new offensive play-caller, it’s possible Malzahn could turn to a former coach Hinshaw has worked alongside previously.

Although this seems less likely due to the nature of how Malzahn has traditionally hired, there’s one recent name in Hinshaw’s past that could be an option and that’s UAB running backs coach Hindley Brigham.

Brigham is entering his eighth year there but worked with Hinshaw last season when the UCF coach served as the Blazer’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

While he was retained by new UAB coach Trent Dilfer, Brigham had success working with Hinshaw for one season.

The Blazers finished eighth nationally, or one spot ahead of UCF, in rushing offense in 2022 with an average of 235.6 rushing yards per game. That average, along with 3,063 total rushing yards, set new school records.

Despite Hinshaw and Brigham not having a long history of working together, a reunion could be possible.

While Hinshaw technically worked with Malzahn for one year, his history at UCF — serving as the Knights’ starting quarterback from 1991-94 — made him an obvious option.

The same could be said for Kevin Smith, who still holds just about every UCF rushing record.

Kevin Smith, seen here at the UCF Athletic Hall of Fame induction in 2019, recently returned to Ole Miss after one season as Miami's running backs coach. (Stephen M. Dowell / Orlando Sentinel)

Smith is part of the reason Harris was hired by Miami. The Miami running backs coach, who worked there for one season, recently reunited with Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss, where he previously worked for two years.

He also served as running backs coach for Kiffin at FAU from 2017-19.

Although Malzahn has never worked with Smith, his return to UCF would likely be praised by Knights fans.

There’s another coach on the Ole Miss staff that could make sense for Malzahn to consider and that’s Cam Aiken.

Aiken is listed as an intern coach on offense and that’s likely because he was quickly looking for a landing spot after USF cleaned house following the firing of coach Jeff Scott.

Aiken was named USF’s running backs coach and run game coordinator in January of 2021 and helped coach the program’s sixth 1,000-yard rusher in program history Brian Battie, who recently transferred to Auburn.

Prior to USF, he worked on Dabo Swinney’s Clemson staff for nine seasons and was listed among 247Sports’ 30 under 30 college football rising starts in 2018.

Aiken wouldn’t be the first former USF coach to join the Knights this off-season. Malzahn has already hired former Bulls linebacker coach Ernie Sims in the same role.

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Email Jason Beede at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @therealBeede.