Fans 2012 Governor's Cup Football Louisville vs. Kentucky Photo by Connor Galle

Brian Brohm Returns To Louisville As Offensive Coordinator/QB Coach

Mark BlankenbakerJanuary 13, 2023

Brian Brohm, one of the top quarterbacks in school history, comes home to his alma mater as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Louisville, head coach Jeff Brohm announced Friday.

Brohm returns to his hometown after six seasons as the offensive coordinator and quarterback coach at Purdue, where he helped elevate the quarterback play during his tenure with the Boilermakers.

“Brian is well-versed in the intricacies of our offensive system and has a great understanding of the style that we want to play,” Jeff Brohm said. “He played the quarterback position at the highest level, which has helped him develop outstanding quarterbacks who were also strong leaders. Brian does a great job teaching our players and has a track record of success at maximizing their potential.”

In 2022, Brohm’s impact was noticed in the development of quarterback Aidan O’Connell, who earned second team All-Big Ten accolades and was one the school’s most proficient offensive weapons. The Boilermakers’ success in 2022 was powered by one of the Big Ten’s most potent aerial attacks, as Purdue ranked second in the league in passing yards per game (278.8), and 22nd nationally.

Under Brohm’s tutelage, the offense tallied six games of scoring more than 30 points and threw for 3,903 yards and 26 touchdowns in finishing with an 8-6 mark, which included the school’s first Big Ten West title.

O’Connell finished his last season leading the Big Ten in passing yards per game, averaging 290.8y yards per game to also rank 12th nationally. The sixth-year senior completed 26.67 passes per game, fifth most in the country.

With the Brohm overseeing the offense, Purdue’s passing game broke several school records during a remarkable 2021 campaign that featured a 9-4 record, two Top 5 victories and a win in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl.

With Brohm serving as co-offensive coordinator and coaching the Boilermaker quarterbacks, Purdue threw for 4,620 yards to eclipse the old school record of 4,208 set during the 1998 season. That amounted to 355.4 passing yards per game, another program best that surpassed the 1985 mark of 341.6 yards per game. Nationally, Purdue’s passing offense ranked fifth in the country.

During the 2021 campaign, the offense also set school records for completions (407), completion percentage (.708) and passing first downs (221). Emerging from a stiff competition that lasted four games into the season, Aidan O’Connell took the starting reigns and turned into a record-setting quarterback. He completed 71.8 percent of his own passes to set a new individual school record, while throwing for 3,712 yards and 28 touchdowns. The Second Team All-Big Ten QB produced six 300-yards games through the air, including a pair of 500-yard games to become the first Purdue quarterback to throw for 500 yards multiple times in the same season. O’Connell racked up a career-high 536 passing yards in the Boilermakers’ win over No. 3 Michigan State before ending his season with 534 yards in the Music City Bowl victory over Tennessee.

In 2020, O’Connell and Jack Plummer teamed up to complete 176 of 260 passing attempts (67.7 percent) for 1,854 yards and 15 touchdowns against only four interceptions in six games. The Boilermakers averaged a Big Ten-best 309.0 yards passing per game.

In 2018, Brohm mentored David Blough to his finest season as the Purdue signal-caller. Blough completed 305 of 462 passing attempts for 3,705 yards with 25 touchdowns. His .660 completion percentage was the best in a season in school history at the time, while his passing yards and touchdown totals ranked fifth. Brohm helped guide the Boilermakers to an average of 443.9 total yards per game, the sixth-highest in school history.

Brohm, part of a two-quarterback system himself in college, coached Blough and Sindelar to a combined 3,202 passing yards and 27 touchdowns in his first season at Purdue. The Boilermaker signal-callers completed nearly 60 percent of their passes while cutting their interceptions from 25 in 2016 to merely 11 in 2017.

Brohm came to Purdue from Western Kentucky, where he served as co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the 2016 season. He helped guide a Hilltopper offense that averaged 45.5 points, 336.8 passing yards and 523.1 total yards per game. Western Kentucky won its final eight games, including a 58-44 victory over Louisiana Tech in the Conference USA Championship Game and a 51-31 win over Memphis in the Boca Raton Bowl, to finish 11-3 overall.

Prior to joining the Western Kentucky staff, Brohm played professionally for eight seasons with the Green Bay Packers (2008-09) and Buffalo Bills (2009-10) in the National Football League, the Las Vegas Locomotives (2011-12) in the United Football League, as well as the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (2013) and Winnipeg Blue Bombers (2014-15) in the Canadian Football League. He was a second-round pick (No. 56 overall) by the Packers in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Known as one of the top quarterbacks in school history, Brohm returns to his alma mater where he starred from 2004 to 2007, and he still ranks among the Cardinals’ career leaders in passing attempts (second, 1,185), passing yards (second, 10,775), passing efficiency (second, 157.92), completions (third, 780), completion percentage (third, .658), total offense (fourth, 10,819) and touchdown passes (fourth, 71).

Brohm guided the 2006 Cardinals to a school best 12-1 record, including a 24-13 victory over Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl, and a No. 6 national ranking in the Associated Press final poll. He was named the Orange Bowl Most Valuable Player after completing 24 of 34 passes for 311 yards against the Demon Deacons. His 30 touchdown passes in 2007 are tied for second in school history with 2016 Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson. Brohm set school records with 45 completions and 65 passing attempts against Syracuse on Sept. 22, 2007, while his 555 passing yards against the Orange rank second all-time.

Brohm led Louisville Trinity High School to three Kentucky Class 4A state championships (2001, 2002 and 2003) and was named MVP of all three title games, including a 555-yard, seven-touchdown performance in the 2002 contest. In 2003, he was named Kentucky’s Mr. Football, USA Today’s Offensive Player of the Year and Gatorade Player of the Year.

Brohm (born Sept. 23, 1985) graduated from Louisville in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He and his wife, Ashley, have a son, Weston, and a daughter, Stella.