Vance Vice is in his first season as Purdue offensive line coach. A 35-year coaching veteran, Vice joined Barry Odom after the duo spent the past two seasons coaching UNLV to its winningest two-year stretch in program history.
Vice's line paved the way for UNLV to rank fifth in the country with 68 rushing touchdowns and seventh with 5,838 rushing yards over the past two seasons combined.
Vice's anchor to the offensive line, Tiger Shanks, earned back-to-back First Team All-Mountain West honors. His selection in 2023 was the first for a Rebels' offensive lineman since 2002. The unit added another All-MW selection with Jalen St. John's second team recognition in 2024.
The 2024 UNLV rushing attack ranked eighth in the country with 243.5 rushing yards per game, as the offensive line helped the Rebels win 11 games throughout the season. The o-line allowed UNLV to successfully put points on the board, finishing 19th in the country with 35.4 points per game in 2024 after finishing 22nd in 2023 (34.4). Both point totals rank in the Top 3 in program history, second and third, respectively.
Vice's first season in Las Vegas saw his position group block for a record-setting scoring offense en route to a regular season conference co-championship and first bowl trip in a decade. The Rebels, whose 34.4 points-per-game total was the best mark since 1980, finished sixth in the nation in third-down conversions at 49.3 percent after posting more third-down conversions than any team in the country with 101. Leading the way up front was Shanks, who was named First Team All-Mountain West to become the first UNLV O-lineman since 2002 to earn that honor.
Prior to joining the Rebels, Vance spent six seasons at Virginia Tech (2016-21) as the Hokies produced three of their top four seasons for total offense over the past 25 years during his tenure. In fact, under Vice in 2020, Virginia Tech set a school record with 5.58 rushing yards per carry. The Hokies led the ACC that season by averaging 240.1 rushing YPG, the program's best mark since 2000, highlighted by Khalil Herbert's 1,182 rushing yards. Vice also tutored future NFL First Round Draft Pick Christian Darrisaw, who was selected 23rd overall by the Minnesota Vikings in 2021.
Before moving to Blacksburg, Vice also coached under Justin Fuente at Memphis for four seasons (2012-15). In 2014, the Tigers scored a school-record 471 points and led the American Athletic Conference with a 36.2 scoring average. He was part of a staff that led Memphis to what tied for the ninth-best turnaround all-time, as the AAC champion Tigers posted their first 10-win season since 1938. The 10-3 Tigers won their final six league games to win the AAC championship and went on to down BYU in the inaugural Miami Beach Bowl.
Before moving to Memphis, Vice spent three seasons as the offensive line coach at ULM (2009-11), four years in the same role at Utah State (2005-08) and five seasons at Illinois State (2000-04) where he was promoted to assistant head coach his final two seasons with the Redbirds.
Vice started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Georgia (1990-91) before working at Hart County (Georgia) High School from 1992-95. He returned to the collegiate level, coaching tight ends at Clemson (1996-98) before spending one year (1999) at Murray State as the offensive line coach.
Vice was a defensive lineman and tight end at Oklahoma State and made three bowl trips with the Cowboys. The three-time All-Big Eight academic selection graduated from Oklahoma State in 1990 with a degree in secondary education.
Vice earned a master's degree in education administration from Georgia in 1993 and an education specialist degree from Clemson in 1999.
He and his wife, Kerry, have two daughters, Savannah and Sydni, and a son, Brock, who is a basketball center at North Texas.
