Lay Leaves Orange Glen to Be SDSU Offensive Coordinator

Dave Lay, whose undefeated Orange Glen High School football team will play for the San Diego Section 3-A championship Saturday night, was named offensive coordinator at San Diego State Sunday.

The appointment of Lay was one of five hirings announced by Coach Al Luginbill in completing his staff.

It will be a return to SDSU after an 8-year absence for Lay, who was a lineman for the Aztecs in the early 1960s and was an assistant coach for 3 seasons under Claude Gilbert.

“The chance to return to San Diego State and work with someone the quality of Al Luginbill is what brought me back to college coaching,” said Lay, who took over at Orange Glen last season after 6 years as an assistant at Colorado State, the last 2 as offensive coordinator.

He previously served 11 seasons as coach of Sweetwater High School.

Lay, who also will coach quarterbacks at SDSU, said he is not concerned that the announcement might affect his team as it prepares to play Morse in the championship game Saturday at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium. He said he broke the news to the team after its 21-14 semifinal victory Saturday over Point Loma.

“I told them this next game will be my last,” Lay said. “I told them I’m going to be just like one of the seniors.”

Lay, 49, said he also will resign from his teaching position at Orange Glen so that he can begin his new job as soon as possible.

Also returning to SDSU will be Al Tanara, 46. Tanara was appointed by former Coach Denny Stolz to be his offensive line coach, but he resigned in a dispute in the spring of 1986 without having coached a game.

Tanara will coach tight ends under Luginbill. He has worked the past 2 years in Las Vegas as a sales representative for a beer company. He previously served with Luginbill as an assistant at Pasadena City College and Arizona State. He also has coached at Texas Tech, Utah and Nevada Las Vegas.

The remaining three appointees are from Idaho, including defensive coordinator Barry Lamb, who will assume the same duties at SDSU. Lamb, 34, was a graduate assistant at Arizona State when Luginbill was a defensive coach. Lamb will be joined from Idaho by running backs coach Bret Ingalls, 28, and wide receivers coach Curtis Johnson, 27.

All three will join the staff after Idaho completes play in the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs. The Vandals play in the semifinals Saturday against Furman in Greenville, S.C.

Luginbill also announced the position assignments for the four holdover coaches from Stolz’s staff.

Ed Schmidt will relinquish his title as defensive coordinator but will continue to coach the defensive line. Ron Mims, who coached wide receivers this past season after 2 seasons as defensive back coach, will return to his old position.

Steve Devine will remain as offensive line coach and Dan Underwood will continue to coach outside linebackers and serve as the assistant head coach.