RALEIGH — Lumberton native Ruffin McNeill is returning to an in-state football program as North Carolina State announced Tuesday it had hired the former East Carolina head coach and Oklahoma assistant on its football staff as a special assistant to the head coach.

The school said the job would serve as an advisor head coach Dave Doeren. Duties include assisting player development analysis, leading special projects and outreach to alumni, campus and community groups.

“I’ve known Ruffin since the beginning of my coaching career,” Doeren said in a statement. “Not only is he one of my closest friends in the profession, but he’s been a mentor to me since I was 24 years old. … Having a former head coach on our staff who I can trust and have known for almost my entire career is a huge benefit for me personally, as well as for our entire program.

“As a North Carolina native and a former coach at Appalachian State and ECU, Ruffin has great relationships and ties across our state. I am looking forward to working with him and want to welcome him and his wife Erlene to the Wolfpack family.”

McNeill, 61, was the Pirates’ head coach from 2010-15 and guided his alma mater to four bowl appearances during a college coaching career spanning more than three decades. He later joined Oklahoma’s staff under Lincoln Riley – who had worked under him at ECU – for three seasons as assistant head coach.

McNeill stepped down in January to help care for his father in Lumberton.

“I just felt like it was time for me to be a son and for Erlene and I to come back home,” McNeill said. “Dave has been in touch with me for all these years. He called and wished me well and stayed in touch the entire time. Then we began talking about this opportunity.

“We both decided what a great opportunity it would be for both of us.”

McNeill will serve as an advisor for the coaching staff, and is not allowed to go on the road and recruit players or have a coaching role with players.

“I look forward to being a resource for the entire staff, but especially for Dave,” McNeill said. “I’ve been in that chair and know the pressures that come along with it, so I hope to be a sounding board for him.”

On top of being a sounding board, McNeill said he will be able to step back and see the bigger picture of the program and the university in his new position.

“I’ll miss the X’s and O’s part on the field, but this new experience is really exciting too,” He said. “I will be observing how the kids react, how they play and how they practice. Sharing any knowledge with the coaches that I may see. Not football-wise but young people wise.”

Before his start in the college ranks, McNeill was an assistant coach at Lumberton High School from 1980 to 1984. McNeill graduated from Lumberton in 1976 before lettering for four years at East Carolina.

He graduated from ECU in 1980 after majoring in education with a focus in special education. He later earned his master’s degree in secondary counseling from Clemson.

McNeill was named head coach at East Carolina on Jan. 21, 2010, and served in that capacity for six seasons (2010-15). He posted a 42-34 record at ECU and his Pirates’ teams played in four bowl games and beat Ohio 37-20 in the 2013 Beef O’Brady’s Bowl.

In 2014, East Carolina began the season with a 6-1 record and was ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll for six weeks. ECU used an explosive offensive unit that rated among the nation’s top five in passing (third), first downs (fourth) and total yards (fifth). Defensively, only 10 FBS teams were better against the run, as the Pirates allowed just 111.8 yards per game.

The Pirates recorded 10 victories in 2013, which ranks as the second-highest single-season win total in school history. That squad also broke or matched 52 individual and team single-game, single-season and all-time standards, while both sides of the ball combined to rank among the top 15 nationally in 12 statistical categories. The Pirates finished 7-1 in Conference USA that year.

At his latest coaching stop at Oklahoma, he led the defensive tackles and outside linebackers during his three seasons with the program. He also served as defensive coordinator for much of the 2018 campaign.