Rees took the Fighting Irish to a Sun Bowl victory over Miami as a freshman, upsetting No. 15 Utah and Southern California on the way to a promising first season under center. In his sophomore campaign, Rees threw 14 interceptions and Notre Dame finished with five losses. After losing his starting spot his junior year, Rees won back first-string duties as a senior – finishing with 27 touchdowns and leading Notre Dame to a 9-4 record.
“I think you build a certain callous towards some of that stuff,” Rees said of the twists and turns of his college career. “We talk about toughness and being mentally tough […] you need to have that to be convicted in what you’re doing. And, I think a lot of those experiences have shaped where I want to continue to grow and continue to go in this line of work.”
Rees took his first coaching job in 2015, working for one season as an offensive graduate assistant at Northwestern. After one year in San Diego, where he worked as a Chargers offensive assistant, Rees returned to Notre Dame working as the quarterbacks coach before being promoted to offensive coordinator – leading the Fighting Irish to a College Football Playoff semifinal appearance.
In 2023, Rees worked under Nick Saban as Alabama’s offensive coordinator, an experience Rees raved in the wake of the legendary coach’s retirement announcement.
“I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” Rees said. “I learned so much, I grew a lot being in that environment every day, learning from the greatest coach to do it.”
One of the most important lessons Saban taught Rees was the need to be a great teacher as a coach.
“You can be the smartest guy in the room, you can be a great X’s and O’s guy, but if you’re not a great teacher and it doesn’t translate to your players, then really what good is it?” Rees said.
Rees and Saban still keep in contact. After Alabama hired Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer to fill the shoes…
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