Rx for Mark Richt: Try Smart first, then Ellis Johnson
Needed: A defensive coordinator who understands how defense must be played in the SEC.
First choice (and a no-brainer): Kirby Smart, the Georgia alum who coaches Alabama’s defense.
Problem: It’s not even a lateral move for Smart, Alabama being a demonstrably better program than Georgia. And Alabama can, as we know, outspend the Yankees to keep the guys it wants.
Possible bit of leverage: Nick Saban is a notoriously tough boss — the anti-Richt — and is still widely seen as the man behind Alabama’s D. Smart might want to strike out on his own.
Plan B: Ellis Johnson of South Carolina.
Loading ...Why him: He has done great work with lesser talent than Georgia’s, and he has coordinated defenses at Alabama and Mississippi State. And he did what a lot of folks can only dream of doing: He bailed out on Bobby Petrino after a month at Arkansas.
Why he might leave: No one knows how much longer Steve Spurrier will coach South Carolina, and even if Spurrier stays another five years it’s clear the Gamecocks will always hit a ceiling in the SEC East.
Possible roadblock: His contract runs through 2011.
Other names: Tommy Tuberville isn’t going to take an assistant’s job. Will Muschamp, another UGA grad, isn’t coming; being coach-in-waiting at Texas trumps being defensive coordinator at Georgia. Brian VanGorder seems happy in Flowery Branch, and it takes a lot to make BVG happy. Charlie Strong, formerly of South Carolina and now of Florida, is apt to become head coach at Louisville. And there seems no cause to promote Rodney Garner: Why bump up the lone holdover from a defensive staff Mark Richt just admitted was substandard?
The best guess: Smart stays in Tuscaloosa and Ellis Johnson moves to Athens.
Would that be an upgrade over Willie Martinez? No more than a suite at the Ritz-Carlton would be an upgrade over a room with two double beds at Motel 6.
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707 comments Add your comment
Otto
December 3rd, 2009
11:12 am
Billy Ray, IMO Smart is the only one oneyour list UGA can really land unless Evans really opens up.
Dangerous, I wanted Bobo and Fabris gone more than CWM. The defense could vastly be improved with an assistant that puts time into tackling, and an offense and special teams than does not continuously give the defense a short field
Just the Facts.....
December 3rd, 2009
11:12 am
Jacket Fan, I was wrong and I apoligize. Keep that as a valued apology, because it will never happen with a nother Tech Fan
Billy Ray Valentine
December 3rd, 2009
11:12 am
Maddog,
Intresting with Spangler. Is he ready to move from La Tech to the SEC?
JacketFan
December 3rd, 2009
11:13 am
Why Myer WON’T be going to ND.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/stewart_mandel/11/30/notre.dame/index.html
oconee dawg
December 3rd, 2009
11:13 am
First things firsr (((30-24))) HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Bama1 get off this blog and stay off!! OK, One of the main reasons that Adams and Dooley hired Richt was becasue he had a track record of beating Fl when he was at FSU. If he could beat Fl, then he could beat the rest of the schedule. Hadn’t quite worked out that way (the Fl part) but the other has tured out well except for this year. Those of us watching the Ga vs WVU bowl game knew that Martinez would get canned eventually. Richt should go back to the premise that got him hired, find a DC that can stop Fl. That’s not an easy task, but it’s not impossible. All you Fl fans, gloat while you can cause it ain’t gonna last much longer, and KMA.
Bill C
December 3rd, 2009
11:13 am
Have to agree..It is not even a lateral move for Kirby to go from one of the best programs in the country to a program that is full of flux. Remember, Kirby followed CNS from Miami to Bama so I doubt he doesn’t enjoy working and learning from him. Working for CMR, while it might be fun, would be a career buster.. Roll Tide and roast those gator humpers!
Maddog
December 3rd, 2009
11:13 am
Dangerous – I was also a little surprised that no moves were made on offense. Like you, I’m also concerned about the QBs coach. We’ll start next spring with two redshirt freshman QBs. If we cannot coach them up, then we could be in trouble.
One last thing – what always troubled me about Martinez and Bobo is that virtually NO colleges ever approached UGA about interviewing them for a job. Granted, Martinez had his name thrown around Miami, but I think a large part of it was the fact that he was a former Miami player.
BamaBob724
December 3rd, 2009
11:14 am
Surprisingly enough, Tuberville and Richt talked for about 30-45 minutes this morning about the position…this according to my buddy who is good friends with Tommy.
tw3a
December 3rd, 2009
11:14 am
Bing Pollack back a linebacker coach
OriginalDawgs
December 3rd, 2009
11:14 am
((((((((((((((((((((30-24))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
I hope it hurts you tech fans that we spoiled your “big year”…sure you might be the WEAK ACC champs, but who cares…you’re still only SECOND best in the state of Georgia
Tell it like it is
December 3rd, 2009
11:14 am
Ga is on a downward spiral and will continue to fall in the SEC.The damage has been done.Recruiting and coaching has took its toll.The win over Tech means very little to the rest of the SEC.UGA will take a beat down for the next six years if a coaching change is not made soon.
JacketFan
December 3rd, 2009
11:15 am
Just the Facts – okay. Truce. You’ll find I’m not the average Tech fan on these boards.
My god you Georgia rednecks are really that Dumb
December 3rd, 2009
11:16 am
Why would Kirby Smart leave an elite Bama football program, go coach at a University that has never been a threat to win a nc in thirty years! YES GEORGIA YALL SUCK !
Maddog
December 3rd, 2009
11:19 am
Billy Ray Valentine – that’s the big question with Spangler, and we’ll never know unless he becomes the new DC. He does offer ties to UGA, the state, and should be able to recruit the area well.
I haven’t bothered to research his history, but when Richt named VanGorder, a lot of Bulldog fans were going “who?”. Now everyone seems to miss him. I don’t think he was the DC at a major program when he came to UGA so who knows what would happen with Spangler.
Also, what’s the fascination with Muschamp? Granted, he performed well for Saban, but in my opinion, the Texas defense is porous and I haven’t seen much improvement in the last 2 or 3 years.
Charles
December 3rd, 2009
11:20 am
As much as the Bama fans want it to be true, UGA’s not a step down for Kirby. It’s his and Mary Beth’s alma mater, and just a few short years ago UGA was well above Bama in the national landscape’s pecking order.
We’re also going to open the checkbook, so Saban is going to have a fight on his hands if Richt zeroes in on him. Count on it.
I think I’d still rather have VG, who’s romored to not as happy in Flowery Branch as this story indicates. Smith’s a tough man to work for, evidently, and the days are long for the NFL coaches. VG still tells people Athens is ‘home’, so you never know. Think his daughter is there currently, and his son played ball there in recent years.
wild bill
December 3rd, 2009
11:20 am
No DC at a winning big time college program will come to GA as the move would be a lateral. Best bet is a good pro DC coach with a losing team or DC with a small wining college team. DC has to be at least 10 years younger than Richt, who aspires to be a head coach.
altvol55
December 3rd, 2009
11:20 am
If Rodney Garner gets passed over again for DC, I wonder if he may give ole Kiffin a call…I don’t think he will like getting passed over again.
Billy Ray Valentine
December 3rd, 2009
11:21 am
Otto, who do you think UGA could get even if Evans does open the checkbook up?
who are 5 people you feel that are realistic. leave out muschamp and charlie strong. we both know they’re not going anywhere unless it’s a head coaching job.
JacketFan
December 3rd, 2009
11:21 am
OriginalDawgs … yeah, yeah, yeah, UGA is the best. Blah, Blah, Blah. Thanks.
Urban Meyer to Notre Dame?
December 3rd, 2009
11:22 am
This Florida journalist thinks so. He says Notre Dame seems like the perfrect fit for Meyer.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20081120/COLUMNISTS0306/811200343/Notre-Dame–Meyer-seem-like-perfect-fit
fla dawg
December 3rd, 2009
11:24 am
to all gator fans: 1st meeting 8/6/1915;; uga 37 uf 0. all time series; 46-39-2 UGA. LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY;;; UGA 75 uf 0. please if you are going to go back please go ALL THE WAY BACK. thank you
cantondawg
December 3rd, 2009
11:24 am
Delusional Mutts,
CMR has a $3 million dollar buyout and now coaches at one of the top programs in the nation. That’s why his name never comes up.
Bill C
December 3rd, 2009
11:25 am
Also want to add to those who think that good recruits are going to turn around the Dawgs, you are sadly mistaken..without really good coaches, you’ll never be better than 8-4 or 9-3 at best..maybe you should try to entice Paul Johnson!
Maddog
December 3rd, 2009
11:26 am
Urban Meyer to Notre Dame? – Personally I don’t see him leaving for ND. What I always find interesting is some journalist saying a particular job is a perfect fit for a particular coach. Only they don’t seem to ask the coach what he thinks. I also don’t see Paul Johnson leaving tech anytime soon, and again, why would he? If he runs the board in the next two games you can bet your bottom dollar that he’ll get a hefty raise. Probably in the $3+ million range.
Notre Dame is toxic right now.
Nick
December 3rd, 2009
11:26 am
Definitely not promote in-house with Garner. That kind of thinking is what got us here in the first place.
Tell it like it is
December 3rd, 2009
11:27 am
Bill C–and you can’t run wothout the horses.
Maddog
December 3rd, 2009
11:28 am
Nick – agreed.
Billy Ray Valentine
December 3rd, 2009
11:28 am
Otto,
what do you think about Joe Kines at Texas A&M?
blazerdawg
December 3rd, 2009
11:29 am
Don’t want E. Johnson in Athens any other time than coaching at SC, but the suggestion was worth it just to remind me how delusional SC fans are.
JacketFan
December 3rd, 2009
11:29 am
Maddog – Stories like that come out on slow news days. Bradley, Shultz and Co. pull the same stuff here all the time. Myer would be a fool to leave UF.
Just the Facts.....
December 3rd, 2009
11:32 am
Dangerous, Your not looking at the Whole picture, How many OC you know going to get canned when you have over 3 years averaged 28 ppg? You just had 3 players from your Offense go in the “top” 50 of the NFL Draft (Stafford #1, Moreno #12, and Massaqoui#50, you got possibly the best receiver in the Country, and your young guns(i.e. Ealey, Charles, Wooten, and Brown are playing in there first year, and producing! CWM didn’t get the ax because of this year, he got it because of the last three. Bobo’s offense has really been the reason Willie kept his job as long as he did, let’s not jump to judgement over one year and a subpar showing in some games. They scored in OSU’ s house, and if not for a terrible call take that game, they scored when it counted against LSU, did Bobo have anything to do with poor special teams play? Stop think and get the facts before you blog. Mike Bobo isn’t the problem!
Maddog
December 3rd, 2009
11:32 am
Billy Ray Valentine – I know you addressed your question to Otto, but I don’t want Joe Kines again. Just sayin’.
fla dawg
December 3rd, 2009
11:33 am
sorry 1st meeting was11/6/1915 but the rest is correct. thank you
JW
December 3rd, 2009
11:34 am
Forget that…no way Johnson would leave SC. He came back there to re-join the state retirement system. Also, Spurrier just extented his contract through 2013..what ceiling?…you will see that burst next year?
Mr. Thomas Anthony "The Taxman Cometh" Jones, SR (Waf-SS, ret.)
December 3rd, 2009
11:34 am
Mr. Bradley, why are you denying Mr. Rodney Garner the opportunity to coach. It seems that the SEC is still as racist and bigoted as when Bear Bryant, Shug Jordan, and General Neyland prowled the sidelines. This is ridiculous. Last year Mr. Sylvester Croom was fired at Mississippi State after he a great season the year before. This garbage needs to cease. The SEC should have at least five Black head coaches by now: UGA, USC, Alabama, and Auburn and possibly at Ole Miss just to make the Ku Klu Klan and the cops unhappy.
sec
December 3rd, 2009
11:35 am
Meyer will not go to Notre Dame. The buyout for good ole Charlie was huge. They will go after someone cheaper like the coach at cincy
Maddog
December 3rd, 2009
11:36 am
sec – I’m kind of surprised Butch Davis was not mentioned more prominently about the Notre Dame job. I don’t think he will ever be able to show what he is capable of at North Carolina.
drunk dawg
December 3rd, 2009
11:36 am
why are alabama fans on here! they finally start winning again and they think their dung dont stink all of a sudden..get off the blog you alabama lard asses…tuscaloosa Sucks AZZ!
sec
December 3rd, 2009
11:37 am
ever! he needs to get a move on and quick. I think it should be consisdered for sure.
sec
December 3rd, 2009
11:38 am
Put Pollack on the defensive coaching staff!!!
matt
December 3rd, 2009
11:41 am
If Saban is indeed the real mastermind behind that D then why the $Y^#&*@ would we want Smart????? Get Johnson from S.C. That D is the only reason they are an 8-4 team every year. Without that stout D they are more like 4-8.
dawgrific
December 3rd, 2009
11:43 am
Kirby Smart WILL come home!! He can make a name for himself, and he would be coaching top-5 recruiting talent. Much has been made of how often Saban’s assistants leave him because he is SO difficult to work for. I also understand that Saban is really calling the shots on d for the tide, and I can’t imagine that would sit well with a competitive and talented young coach like Kirby.
mark
December 3rd, 2009
11:46 am
By the way UGA has been much closer than people remember to playing for a NC. Both years they won the SEC they lost a heartbreaker that kept them out of the big one. In the last 3 years a 1 loss SEC champ has played.
dawgrific
December 3rd, 2009
11:48 am
I DO agree that Smart’s credentials may be a bit “iffy” if saban is the real d-coordinator, but being groomed by him can’t be all that bad, and plus, I don’t think old sabo would have a scrub at such a high position on his staff.
Billy Ray Valentine
December 3rd, 2009
11:52 am
If Saban is so tought o work for, why did Smart come with him from the Dolphins back to the college game? Must enjoy something about the guy.
Dangerous
December 3rd, 2009
11:53 am
OK Just The Facts…… Bobo sucks….that is just a fact! 28ppg, that’s the average of pounding homers and getting pounded by the better teams. Are you missing the fact that turnovers have killed our D this year! Eli manning the other day said just a couple of misques by an offense can be very hard to overcome, especially in close games. GA’s O has been a disaster this year, as well as last. You must wear blinders so that you don’t see what actually happens when the sun is out or the lights are on and a pair of rose colored glasses for GA’s big O.
Just the Facts.....
December 3rd, 2009
11:54 am
All you Bama fans, let’s look at the facts before Saban, since you all have… well Alabama Redneck Brains! ‘01Independence Bowl, ‘02 no bowl, ‘03 no bowl, ‘04 Music city, ‘05 Cotton Bowl(decent), ‘06 Independence(again) ‘07Independence(again) with a 6-6 record. In that same span, UGA ‘01 Outback, ‘02 Sugar, ‘03 Capital One, ‘04Outback, ‘05 Sugar, ‘06 Chick Fil-A, ‘07 Sugar. Now really the only thing you have is “Da Bear” memories, and Like Elvis, the Bear is Dead! The only “real” coach you’ve had before Saban was Gene Stallings. Did you forget M.Shula, M. DuBose, M. Price( the strip joint maniac)? So before you get on here talking about how good you are, let’s not forget recent history, because truth be told ya’ll aint did Squat this decade! Unless you’re from FLA, or LSU you can’t even measure up to the dogs. NOW THAT IS THE FACTS!!!
JAS
December 3rd, 2009
11:55 am
How about David Pollack to replace Fabris? Fabris coached him, so I’m not sure what that says. David seems to enjoy himself on the radio, but I bet he’d be happier back in Athens. Thoughts?
Bama 12 National Titles.......SWEET
December 3rd, 2009
11:58 am
3O YEARS OF FAILURES FOR THE GEORGIA MUTTS AND STILL COUNTING !
Dawgdad
December 3rd, 2009
11:58 am
Couple of way off the wall suggestions. 1. Garry Gibbs, did a great job rescuing Georgia after the Ramsey disaster. Thought Richt should have kept him on, don’t know where he is now. 2. After Kirby Smart and Will Muschamp turned out so well, track down Scott Woerner and see if he is interested in getting into some serious football. He was better than the other two as a player, maybe as a coach.