ODU football coach Ricky Rahne hires new tight ends, wide receivers coaches

ODU football coach Ricky Rahne added tight ends coach David Weeks and wide receivers coach JJ Laster to his coaching staff, the ODU athletics program announced on Wednesday.

Weeks spent the 2023 season as an offensive analyst at Tennessee, helping the Volunteers to a 9-4 record and 35-0 win over Iowa in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl.

Laster comes to ODU from Western Carolina where he coached the Catamount wide receivers and had the top offense in the FCS in 2023, averaging 504.1 yards per game and were third in the country in pass offense at 320.1 yards per game.

“I’m excited to be able to add two talented coaches to our program,” Rahne said. “Both combine incredible schematic knowledge with a high level of ability to teach and connect with players.”

Before his stint at Tennessee, Weeks spent three seasons at Fordham, coaching the tight ends in 2021 and 2022. In 2022, Fordham led the FCS with 609 yards per game and was second in the country with 49.5 points per game.

Prior to his three seasons at WCU, Laster was at Gardner-Webb for the 2019 campaign coaching the running backs and tight ends, and three seasons at Tusculum, first working with the Pioneers’ running backs for two seasons and most recently the wide receivers for a year while also serving as the team’s recruiting coordinator.