PROVO -- BYU head football coach Bronco Mendenhall today announced the hiring of Mark Weber (pronounced WEB-er) as the Cougars' new offensive line coach. A veteran offensive line coach with over 27 years of coaching experience, Weber comes to BYU after spending the 2006 season at North Carolina as the offensive line coach.
"I am extremely pleased to have the opportunity to work with Coach Weber," Mendenhall said. "He has a proven history of coaching success and is one of the best in this business. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him and look forward to having him join our staff.
"In addition to being a skilled coach, he is a fantastic and energetic recruiter, and brings his experience at drawing some of the best talent in the country. Overall, however, Coach Weber is a tremendous individual. He is a fantastic fit for our program and for our community."
Mendenhall and Weber crossed paths at Oregon State in 1987 and again in 1989. Mendenhall was a senior captain at Oregon State when Weber began his first season on the Beavers' staff in 1987. Mendenhall and Weber also served on the same coaching staff under head coach Dave Kragthorpe at Oregon State during the 1989 season. Mendenhall was a graduate assistant coach, while Weber was responsible for coaching the offensive line.
"As a player, Bronco had a great work ethic," Weber said. "He was a hard worker who stood out from the other players because of his commitment and dedication. He was a great leader and was highly respected by his teammates. As a graduate assistant coach, he was no different. He was always willing to work hard. He was very bright. I'm excited to see what he has been able to do at BYU, and to have the opportunity to work with him again."
Mendenhall began the search for an offensive line coach after Jeff Grimes left BYU to become the assistant head coach and offensive line coach at Colorado.
"When rumors started circulating about an opening at BYU, I was immediately interested," Weber said. "We weren't going to take just any job. We were looking for a good program, a great community and an opportunity to work with great people. This is a great job--a great opportunity. I've known some of these coaches for several years. They are all classy guys and are very well respected in the coaching ranks. BYU also has quality athletes, quality young men. The players at BYU are just different. They're a cut above. There's a difference between the kids at BYU and some of the other places I have been. I'm really looking forward to this opportunity."
During his coaching career, including stops at Fresno State, UCLA, UNLV, Nevada and Oregon State, Weber has mentored several All-America, all-conference and NFL-caliber players. At Fresno State, Weber coached offensive tackle Logan Mankins, who earned All-America honors and was a first-round draft pick for the New England Patriots. Mankins went on to start all 16 games as a rookie for the Patriots. In 2002, all five offensive line starters earned post-season honors for UCLA. Offensive tackle Mike Saffer earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors, as well as second- and third-team All-America honors. In his second year with the Bruins, Weber coached Outland Trophy winner and first-team All-American Kris Farris. In 1997, Chad Overhauser, earned first-team All-America honors for the Bruins.
Weber has helped lead teams to seven different bowl games, including the Liberty Bowl, the MPC Computer Bowl, the Silicon Valley bowl, the Sun Bowl, the Las Vegas Bowl and the Rose Bowl. During his seven seasons at UCLA, the Bruins earned four post-season bowl appearances. In 2000, the Bruins totaled 3,186 yards passing, marking the third highest passing total in UCLA history. In 1998, the UCLA offense racked up 5,847 yards of total offense to set a single-season school record. During that same season, the Bruins won the Pac-10 with a 10-2 record and earned a trip to the Rose Bowl. While at Oregon State, the Beavers lead the Pac-10 in passing offense for three straight seasons. In his second of two years at Fresno State, Weber's unit helped block for a 1,000-yard rusher and a 3,000-yard passer during the 2005 season. In that same year, Weber's group helped the Bulldogs score an average 38 points per game
Weber got his coaching start as an assistant at Los Angeles Valley College in 1979 before spending the next two seasons as a graduate assistant at Idaho State from 1980-81. Under head coach Dave Kragthorpe, the Bengals won the NCAA Division I-AA National Championship in 1981. Weber coached at Snow College in 1982, Eastern New Mexico in 1983-84 and West Texas State in 1985-86 before moving to the Division I-A level. Weber was hired as the offensive line coach at Oregon State in 1987 where he coached for four years. In 1991, Weber coached the defensive line at Missouri Wester State College before coaching the offensive line at Nevada in 1992. In 1993, Weber was named the assistant head coach for the WolfPack where he continued to coach the offensive line. Weber served as the assistant head coach and offensive line coach at UNLV from 1994 through the 1996 season. After a two-year stint with the Rebels, Weber served as the offensive line coach for seven seasons at UCLA. In 2004, Weber was hired as the offensive line coach at Fresno State, where he worked for two seasons before moving to North Carolina in 2006.
A 1980 graduate of Cal Lutheran College, Weber also holds a master's degree in physical education from Idaho State University. Weber was a two-year starter at Cal Lutheran where he earned honorable mention Small College All-America honors as an offensive lineman.
Weber is married to Kathryn Miller of Pocatello, Idaho. The couple has two daughters (Allie and KaCee).
Blackner Named Football Video Coordinator
Mendenhall also announced the hiring of Matt Blackner as the football video coordinator. Blackner, a native of Tacoma, Wash., received his undergraduate degree in international studies from BYU in 2002 and will graduate in April from BYU's Marriott School with a master's degree in public administration. Blackner served an LDS Church mission in Argentina and was the BYU Student Body President from 2001-2002. Last season, Blackner served as an operations assistant with the BYU football program. He is married to Mikelle Harman and has one daughter, Baylee.