A proven developer of quarterbacks, Chad Salisbury enters his sixth year as the offensive coordinator at California (PA) in 2022 after serving as quarterbacks coach for eight seasons.
Salisbury has mentored some of the most prolific quarterbacks in program history, while working with one of the top offenses in the conference each year. The Vulcans led the PSAC West in passing yards per game from 2010-12 and have ranked among the top three in the division in 10 of the last 12 seasons. Additionally, Cal has twice led the entire conference in passing efficiency and also finished second in the category three additional times.
A former professional quarterback, Salisbury has mentored eight All-PSAC West selections, including six first-team honorees with James Harris (2015) and Noah Mitchell (2021) both being named the PSAC West Offensive Player of the Year. Additionally, former Florida and Maryland quarterback Josh Portis was named a D2Football.com All-American as a senior before being one of only two non-FBS quarterbacks invited to the 2011 NFL Combine.
Salisbury helped Portis set a then single-season school record with 36 passing touchdowns in 2009 – the first year Salisbury was on staff – while leading the Vulcans to an appearance in the NCAA Semifinals for a third-consecutive season. Portis also led the PSAC with 3,421 passing yards and threw just nine interceptions on 407 attempts in his first year as a starter. The following season, Portis paced the PSAC and finished among the top 15 in the country in passing efficiency. The Vulcans ranked first among PSAC West programs in scoring offense, total offense and passing offense while making a fourth-straight appearance in the NCAA Playoffs.
In 2011, Salisbury then mentored former Virginia quarterback Peter Lalich and Cal ranked among the top four in the league in scoring offense, total offense, passing offense and passing efficiency. Lalich shattered the single-season school record with 3,725 passing yards and finished second in the PSAC with a 63.3 completion percentage on nearly 450 pass attempts, as Cal made an appearance in the NCAA Playoffs. As a senior, Lalich was on pace for another 3,000-yard season before an injury forced him to miss over a third of the season. The Vulcans still managed to lead the PSAC West in both passing offense and total offense.
Salisbury started working with Harris, a former NCAA Division I baseball player, in 2013 before Harris became the full-time starter in 2014. Harris finished No. 11 in the country with 305.5 passing yards per game while helping the Vulcans rank second in the PSAC in passing efficiency. As a senior, Harris became the first quarterback in school history to record multiple 3,000-yard seasons and led the league in passing efficiency. The PSAC West Offensive Player of the Year also led the country in passing yards per completion and finished second in passing yards per attempt.
In 2016, the Vulcans led NCAA Division II in scoring offense at 49.6 points per game and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Playoffs. Salisbury mentored a first-year starter in Michael Keir, who ranked second in the country with a school-record 41 passing touchdowns. Keir also passed for over 3,300 yards and finished fifth in the nation with a 169.5 passing efficiency. The Philadelphia native finished his career with another 3,000-yard campaign as a senior in 2017 and ranks among the top five in school history in passing yards and touchdowns.
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Salisbury worked with the program’s first freshman starting quarterback in 15 years during the 2018 campaign. Mitchell was selected the PSAC West Freshman of the Year after finishing second in the league with 2,759 passing yards, which was the third-most by a freshman in the country. In 2021, Mitchell was voted the PSAC West Offensive Athlete of the Year after ranking second in the league in passing yards, passing touchdowns, completion percentage and total offense.
Prior to his coaching career, Salisbury played eight years in the Arena Football League with five different teams. He passed for over a combined 5,000 yards and 100 touchdowns in his final two seasons and finished his playing career in 2007 with the Grand Rapids Rampage.
Salisbury was a two-year starter at Buffalo after transferring from New Mexico State. As a junior at Buffalo, he set then single-season school records for passing yards and completion percentage. Salisbury still ranks among the all-time leaders in Bulls history in nearly every passing category, including passing yards and touchdowns.
A native of the area, Salisbury has been inducted into both the WPIAL Hall of Fame and Fayette County Sports Hall of Fame in recent years. He earned his degree in communication from Buffalo and completed his master’s degree in sport management from Cal.
Salisbury and his wife Julie reside in Perryopolis, Pennsylvania, with his daughters, Braylin and Madelyn.
