NORFOLK (WAVY) – Ron Whitcomb has spent more than a decade coaching every quarterback to put on an Old Dominion jersey. His passion has always been to mentor the men under, or — these days— behind center.
“I’m definitely someone who’s given the last 20 years of my life to the quarterback position,” said Whitcomb, who was part of ODU’s first coaching staff when Bobby Wilder revived the program in 2009.
“I’ve been playing division one and coaching division one quarterback the last 18-19 years and I just really enjoy it.”
For the first time since he entered the profession, Whitcomb will not be working for Wilder, or alongside Brian Scott, ODU’s former offensive coordinator. This season–whenever it’s played– Whitcomb will be an offensive analyst at the University of Buffalo.
Whitcomb is itching for the challenge. For one, Buffalo is only an hour and 10 minutes from his hometown of Rochester. Second, he’s ready for a “different perspective.
“Different terminology, how do they see defenses, just little nuances like that are going to be great for me,” said Whitcomb.
While he won’t take all the credit for their success, Whitcomb was under the headset and on the practice field when Thomas DeMarco, Taylor Heinicke, and David Washington were lighting up stat sheets and leading Monarchs football to unparalleled heights.
DeMarco went on to play in the Canadian Football League, and Heinicke, the 2012 Walter Payton Award winner as the best player in FCS, has played for several NFL teams.
“You’re happy to see them have success when they’re playing, but the fact that Thomas DeMarco is working for the Old Dominion Athletic Foundation, and the fact that David Washington is living in Texas, is a father and has a great job, those are the things as a coach you like to see,” said Whitcomb.
He’s also liked life in Hampton Roads. Whitcomb has always stayed busy hosting quarterback camps, and has even opened up his own indoor turf facility in Norfolk.
“I really created the business out of necessity, and it’s really for small groups and small trainers like myself who are just looking for field turf that’s indoors where they can get a good training session in, where it’s not breaking the bank for the trainer or the coach,” he said.
His next opportunity, his new start will be up north, but Whitcomb says he’ll always be a part of Monarch Nation.
“I’m going to be Old Dominion’s biggest fan,” he said.