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The Arizona State Sun Devils have hired Middle Tennessee wide receivers coach Kodi Burns as their running backs coach, per Sports Illustrated's Thayer Evans.
Additionally, Arizona State will move current running backs coach Josh Martin as tight ends coach.
Middle Tennessee St. WRs coach Kodi Burns expected to be Arizona State's RBs coach per sources.
— Thayer Evans (@ThayerEvansSI) January 4, 2016
Arizona St. RBs coach Josh Martin moving to TEs coach per sources.
— Thayer Evans (@ThayerEvansSI) January 4, 2016
The moves were in response to tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator Chip Long's departure to Memphis, which Evans also reported on Sunday. Long will serve as offensive coordinator under Tigers coach Mike Norvell, ASU's offensive coordinator the past four seasons.
Burns' hire likely comes largely due to his time under Auburn Tigers coach Gus Malzahn, a former offensive coordinator under Todd Graham, as a graduate assistant for the Tigers' 2014 BCS National Championship runner-up team and as a quarterback/receiver from 2007-10. He won the BCS National Championship as a player in 2011.
Burns also worked with new ASU offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey, who was an offensive analyst under Malzahn in 2013.
Burns spent just one season at Middle Tennessee as a receivers coach in 2015, and was a receivers coach at Samford in 2014.
Martin was promoted last season to running backs coach from being a graduate assistant after Bo Graham abruptly left the program two weeks before the season opener.
At the foreseeable moment, ASU only has one assistant position to fill at safeties/defensive backs, which was vacated by now-Memphis defensive coordinator Chris Ball.