When former Virginia Tech football coach Brent Pry fired defensive coordinator Chris Marve in December 2024 after the Hokies blasted Virginia in the annual Commonwealth Clash to become bowl-eligible, it didn't come as a surprise. Tech's defense that year was bad, and moving on from Marve was a move that needed to be made.
Offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen remained, but a month after a Duke's Mayo Bowl loss to Minnesota last January, he up and left the program, heading for Ohio State and joining Ryan Day's staff to be his offensive line coach. That left Pry scrambling for two new coordinators.
Pry settled on Philip Montgomery as his offensive coordinator, and then he went outside the box to hire his defensive coordinator, hiring Sam Siefkes, a linebackers coach with the Arizona Cardinals. Pry was fired after a Week 3 loss to Old Dominion, and Montgomery was elevated to interim coach, and Siefkes finished out the year as the Hokies' DC.
In mid-November, Virginia Tech hired James Franklin to take over for Pry as the head coach. One of the first staff moves Franklin made was to bring back Pry as his defensive coordinator, the position he held at Penn State before leaving for Blacksburg. That meant Siefkes was going to move on, and on Thursday, his new role was reported by Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports.
Former Virginia Tech DC reportedly returning to the NFL
Zenitz reported that Siefkes is potentially returning to the NFL and will be the linebackers coach of the Green Bay Packers under new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon. It will reunite the two from their days in Arizona. Gannon is taking over for former Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley, who took the head coaching job with the Miami Dolphins.
It's not surprising to see Siefkes return to the NFL after his one-year stint at Virginia Tech. When Gannon was hired by the Packers, it was a no-brainer move for Siefkes and Green Bay.