Nevada football fires three offensive staff members

The offensive staff for Nevada football will look very different in 2026 after the program announced the firings of three coaches.

Offensive coordinator David Gilbertson, wide receivers coach James Price and senior offensive analyst Matt Wade will not return to Nevada, per a press release by the program on Monday.

“I want to thank David, James and Matt for their hard work and dedication to our program and wish them the best moving forward,” Nevada football coach Jeff Choate said in a news release Monday. “Unfortunately, our offensive production this season was not up to our standard and I made the decision that change is necessary.”

The decision is unfortunate but necessary after the Wolf Pack’s offensive performance in 2025. Nevada averaged only 17.6 points per game this season and only scored 20 or more points three times (although the 20-17 win over Sac State included a defensive touchdown).

Nevada’s 17.6 points per game also ranked 128/136 FBS schools and was second to last in the Mountain West, only trailing Wyoming with 16. Nevada also gave up 27 turnovers, which was the second most in the nation.

A big point of concern was the passing game, and because it was so weak, the rush attack was unable to really get going. Nevada played a QB carousel this season, despite Choate saying at the beginning of the year that it wouldn’t come to that.

Chubba Purdy, AJ Bianco and Carter Jones were all used at quarterback, completing 59.2 percent of their passes and throwing a combined 17 interceptions to only 10 touchdowns. Jones is a true freshman who was given the reins of the offense midway through the season, showing flashes of potential but wasn’t able to elevate a struggling Nevada offense.

Purdy was eventually used as a wildcat-type player, coming into plays to use his legs. He rushed for 527 yards on 101 carries and three touchdowns.

For Gilbertson, it was his first year as the OC and play-caller for Nevada after Matt Lubick left for a job with Kansas last offseason, whom Gilbertson assisted last year. It was the first year for Wade at the program, who joined the staff after a stint with Fresno State. Price was in his second season with the Wolf Pack as the WR coach.