The San Francisco 49ers search for an offensive coordinator rolls along, and does not appear to be all that close to resolution. Earlier in the afternoon, Jennifer Chan reported the 49ers contacted Lane Kiffin about the opening. Later in the afternoon, Ian Rapoport tweeted that a key OC candidate is Detroit Lions run game coordinator Curtis Modkins. There is no word yet on if an interview has taken place.
Modkins entered the coaching ranks following a solid career as a running back at Texas Christian University. He bounced between offense and defense between 1996 and 2002, before settling in as a running backs coach with Chan Gailey. It appears Gailey served as a mentor of sorts, as Modkins followed him to several jobs. After getting let go with the rest of Gailey's staff in Buffalo, Modkins moved on to Detroit. When Jim Schwartz was fired in early 2014, Reggie Bush spoke to the front office about keeping Modkins around.
Chip Kelly is expected to handle a sizable chunk of the offense, but we will also potentially learn more about that in his Wednesday press conference. We've heard rumblings that Tom Rathman is expected to stick around, so that would seem to indicate Modkins would be looked at solely for the OC job. But again, given that Kelly is an offensive-minded coach, it would seemingly not be the traditional OC role.
Here's a look at Modkins' career to date.
2013-present: Detroit Lions - Running Backs/Run game coordinator
2010-2012: Buffalo Bills - OC/Running Backs
2009: Arizona Cardinals Running Backs
2008: Kansas City Chiefs - Running Backs
2003-2007: Georgia Tech - Running Backs
2002: Georgia Tech - Defensive Backs
1998-2001: New Mexico - Cornerbacks
1997: TCU - Tight Ends
1996: TCU - Secondary
1995: TCU - Graduate Assistant