Rick Christophel

Rick Christophel
	Christophel in 2014
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Position:	Senior offensive assistant
Personal information
Born:	October 27, 1952 (age 72); Reading, Ohio, U.S.
Career information
High school:	Reading
College:	Austin Peay
Career history
As a coach:
	Austin Peay (1975) ; Graduate assistant; Highlands HS (Fort Thomas, KY) (1976–1978) ; Assistant; Austin Peay (1979–1981) ; Running backs; Southern Arkansas (1982) ; Offensive coordinator; Cincinnati (1983) ; Quarterbacks/tight ends; Rice (1984–1985) ; Quarterbacks/running backs; Vanderbilt (1986–1988) ; Offensive line; Vanderbilt (1989) ; Defensive coordinator/middle linebackers; Vanderbilt (1990) ; Offensive line/Assistant head coach; Mississippi State (1991–1994) ; Wide receivers; UAB (1995–1996) ; Offensive coordinator/running backs; UAB (1997–1998) ; Wide receivers; UAB (1999) ; Offensive line/tight ends; UAB (2000) ; Wide receivers; UAB (2001) ; Defensive coordinator; UAB (2004) ; Offensive line/defensive line; UAB (2005) ; Defensive line/assistant head coach; UAB (2006) ; Defensive coordinator; Austin Peay (2007–2012) ; Head coach; Arizona Cardinals (2013–2017); Tight ends; Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2019–2021); Tight ends; Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2022–present); Senior offensive assistant;
Career highlights and awards
	Super Bowl champion (LV);
Head coaching record
Regular season:	20–46 (.303)
Career:	20–46 (.303)

Rick Scott Christophel (born October 27, 1952) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the senior offensive assistant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). In college, he was a quarterback for Austin Peay State University from 1971 to 1974. He also previously served as head football coach at Austin Peay from 2007 to 2012, compiling a record of 20–46.

College career

Christophel was the starting quarterback at Austin Peay from 1971 to 1974. After a year as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, he spent three seasons coaching at Highlands High School in Fort Thomas, Kentucky from 1976 to 1978. He returned to Austin Peay as an assistant coach for three seasons (1979 to 1981), before making coaching stops at Southern Arkansas State (1982), Cincinnati (1983), Rice (1984 to 1985), and Vanderbilt (1986 to 1990). He then was an assistant coach at Mississippi State from 1991 to 1994, where he worked under Bruce Arians, who became the offensive coordinator there in 1993.. He then moved to the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he spent 12 seasons, from 1995 to 2006, before returning to Austin Peay as head coach in 2007.^[1]^[2]

Head coaching record


Year	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing
Austin Peay Governors (Ohio Valley Conference) (2007–2012)
2007	Austin Peay	7–4	5–3	T–3rd
2008	Austin Peay	2–9	2–6	8th
2009	Austin Peay	4–7	3–5	6th
2010	Austin Peay	2–9	1–7	8th
2011	Austin Peay	3–8	2–6	T–7th
2012	Austin Peay	2–9	1–7	T–8th
Austin Peay:		20–46	14–34
Total:		20–46

National Football League coaching career

Arizona Cardinals

Christophel worked with the Arizona Cardinals^[3] from 2013 to 2017, serving as the team's tight ends coach under Arians' again. In 2017, he helped develop rookie free agent Ricky Seals-Jones a college wide receiver who he helped convert into a tight end. He briefly retired after that year.^[4]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

In 2019 Christophel again became a tight ends coach under Bruce Arians, this time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.^[5]^[4] He was a member of the coaching staff when the Buccaneers won Super Bowl LV in February 2021, and as of 2022, he is the team's senior offensive assistant coach.^[6]^[1]