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The Dallas Cowboys have completed the majority of their coaching hires, but the vacant offensive line coach position has remained a mystery. That is until now as a leading candidate has now been hired.
Conor Riley has been the offensive line coach at Kansas State University for the past six seasons and is regarded as one of the best assets in the country. ESPN’s Bruce Feldman was first to identify Riley is who Brian Schottenheimer identified to be in charge of the big uglies, and now the deal has been made.
The Cowboys have made it a point to improve their running game and Riley, along with new offensive coordinator Klayton Adams, certainly fit the criteria.
Under Riley, the Wildcats recorded three consecutive seasons in which they averaged 200 rushing yards per game.
Before his time in Manhattan, Riley coached for six seasons at North Dakota State, where he helped the Bison to five straight National Championships. The team averaged an astounding 235 rush yards per game during his tenure including the 2018 season where the team averaged 286.2 yards a contest.
Riley will get to coach his former K-State pupil Cooper Beebe, who the Cowboys drafted last season in the third round. He also gets to reunite with running back Deuce Vaughn, who played three seasons with the Wildcats, all under Riley leading the big boys up front.
This will be a big jump for the 22-year college veteran as Riley has never coached in the NFL before. Those concerns may be put to rest as Riley has spent the majority of his coaching career leading the offensive line which began as a graduate assistant in 2003.
He also played on the offensive line for Omaha from 1999 through the 2002 season.
Dallas still has a few open positions to round out their staff, including receivers coach, but the expected arrival of Riley will go a long way to curing what ailed Dallas in 2024.