Cowboys’ Grantham next target in DC search?
Athens – Hello from Butts-Mehre, where Kirby Smart won’t be coming to work.
All’s quiet here, by the way. No press conference or anything like that is in the works, if you’re wondering.
But on the day after Smart turned down Georgia’s defensive-coordinator job, Mark Richt presumably is about the business of pursuing the next candidate.
And let’s say — in the absence of any new credible rumors at the moment — that’s Todd Grantham, the Dallas Cowboys’ defensive-line coach who is known to have been on Richt’s radar for weeks.
In a search that has been full of complications, Grantham presents another. The Cowboys are in the NFL playoffs, preparing for a game Sunday against Minnesota, and will play a couple more games after that if they keep winning. Would the Cowboys let Grantham talk about and even accept (although obviously not begin) another job during the playoffs, risking potential distraction? How would a further delay affect UGA’s recruiting, especially with the final sprint to national signing day about to commence? And would the recent success of the Cowboys’ defense put Grantham in bigger demand among NFL teams?
Questions, questions.
But all indications today are that Grantham is the next target in Georgia’s six-week-old search.
Grantham coached at Virginia Tech (under Frank Beamer and Bud Foster) and Michigan State (under Nick Saban) before a series of four NFL coaching gigs. His only experience as a coordinator was with the Cleveland Browns.
It is a crucial hire for Georgia’s football program, and Richt has reiterated his recognition of that by aiming high in his targets. Foster, John Chavis and certainly Smart were already in good, winning situations at schools that, not surprisingly, proved willing and able to compete aggressively with anything Georgia could offer financially.
Foster had 15 years invested at Virginia Tech, and Chavis, although in only his first year at LSU, does not have a history of job-hopping. And while Smart was tempted by the prospect of returning to his alma mater, the fact is he is on track to be a head coach somewhere in a year or two anyway.
So while we wait for the next chapter — let’s call it Chapter 5 after the Foster, Vic Koenning, Chavis and Smart chapters -=- to unfold in this saga, how do you see the story ending? With Todd Grantham? Or who?
And please follow me on Twitter for the latest UGA news and notes.
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492 comments Add your comment
Sam
January 12th, 2010
8:42 pm
The truth for UGA is anyone is better than Martinez, but UGA isn’t going to beat Florida no matter who they get hahaha. Go gators!
CaliDogg
January 12th, 2010
8:47 pm
Kirby Smart to Tennessee?
Let’s start that one just for fun.
Bob
January 12th, 2010
8:48 pm
Wow…Tennessee left hanging by Lane kiffin. At least he kept one promise. He was not going to lose to Georgia ever. LOL
Ree Roe
January 12th, 2010
8:51 pm
Kiffin to USC! Vols take another L!
-REEcently Roe!!!
Milburn Drysdale
January 12th, 2010
8:54 pm
Don’t laugh at Kirby to TN. Could happen.
Brian Van Gorder Fan
January 12th, 2010
8:59 pm
It’s gonna be BVG, he’s coming home folks, get out the train, time for a ride on the BVG Bus.
Georgia Haters Coming Out
January 12th, 2010
9:01 pm
Ok, so funny, they started talkin’s about how bad Kirby was, then flop flopped after he stayed and he’s all the sudden great now.
They all said Grantham was better than Kirby 3 dayd ago, now Grantham stinks.
haaaa haaa haaa ahaaa–what clowns you Florida fans are.
toofless in alabamer
January 12th, 2010
9:03 pm
HaHAHa, looks like ol’ tennerssee got left holdin tha bag!! BBBWWWAAAAAHHHHAAA!!!
Kennesaw Dad
January 12th, 2010
9:18 pm
I am a big time college football fan but have to say that the 2009-2010 college football coaching carousel (climaxed by Lane Kiffen) has provided a horrific example to the 17-22 year old players. I used to think the BCS was a mess!
Gem Dawg
January 12th, 2010
9:20 pm
Bleepity bleep bleep Kiffin, promises never to lose to GA as long as he is there. He beats us once and bolts. Dang, I wanted to see next years payback. Maybe we’ll meet in a bowl one year.
West Coast Bias
January 12th, 2010
9:25 pm
I know this is a big word for a bunch of hillbillies but this is hardcore schadenfreude. Freakin’ Awesome!
Lane Kiffin
January 12th, 2010
9:27 pm
See you loser hillbillies later- I’m heading to LA baby!! I always hated sucking up to a bunch of inbred, hillbilly boosters.
Who is John Galt?
January 12th, 2010
9:28 pm
DeRuyter is the man! Please get him Coach Richt!
Kirby is Smart
January 12th, 2010
9:28 pm
If NCAA sanctions are in order for the vols due to Lame Kitten’s big mouth, the sanctions should transfer with him to USC.
Kirby to UT? Dawgnation has already disowned him and we all know about the love fest between Bama and UT, dating back to Phat Phil Phulmer. Poor Kirby might not have any friends left.
Who is John Galt?
January 12th, 2010
9:30 pm
BTW, who cares what Kiffin does? Hopefully the next coaches at UT will refrain from pimping their female hostesses.
Too Funny
January 12th, 2010
9:30 pm
Thank you Lane!!!! Now that he is leaving Tennessee, watch the UGA DC search take a back seat in the AJC as Bradley, Schultz, King all jump on that bandwagon. Now UGA can move forward and hire a DC without the AJC second guessing every move that is made. Also, all the other fans of other SEC teams that are trying to pile on UGA will start piling on UT. Too Funny!!!!!!!
Who is John Galt?
January 12th, 2010
9:32 pm
If CMR will hurry up and get DeRuyter, we can scoop up some of UT’s recruits before signing day!
Kid me not
January 12th, 2010
9:33 pm
It’s all TALK, but the choice will be whoever Coach Richt decides and if that DC accepts. I for one am willing to to be patient and trust the coach to secure the services of a good coach. The Dawgs will go on and on and on…What a great football tradition we have here in Georgia.
Who is John Galt?
January 12th, 2010
9:34 pm
Brian Van Gorder Fan,I wish you were right. Hell, maybe we can get him to coach us on Saturdays and the Falcons on Sundays. LOL! He seems to be twice as good as anyone else out there anyway.
Kid me not
January 12th, 2010
9:34 pm
Surely it’s just a rumor, but is the Lame Kitten really going to USC after all the stuff he stirred up in the SEC?
CHARLOTTE DAWG
January 12th, 2010
9:35 pm
Agreed Kennesaw Dad.
This year has been a dark one for college football coaches. One incident after another.
Lane Kiffin is a slimy jerk. And I’m pi$$ed we couldn’t see him in Athens this year.
Mark Richt is trying to be an honest man in a den of theives! The SEC might be the premier conference, but it has the dirtiest scum bag coaches in the land.
Meyer will probably $crew his program next. I was feelin’ pretty down about Georgia’s D coaching problem but this pales in comparison!
Lane Kiffin is a prick and is also probably going to leave UT on probation.
Kid me not
January 12th, 2010
9:35 pm
You gotta be kidding!
St. Bernard
January 12th, 2010
9:36 pm
I don’t think Kirby to Tennessee is outrageous. Will be interesting to see what happens with UT’s recruits. If there was ever a year not to have an unexperienced freshman qb under center, this coming year was probably it. The East will be down for the first time in a long time. UT has to be hurting.
randyarnold
January 12th, 2010
9:37 pm
I wanted to be the first to say Kiffin lived up to his word that he would never lose to Georgia. You wouldn’t believe the folks in Ob-knoxville. They are already calling for people like David Cutcliff and Mike Leach. Guess that’s why UT isn’t know for its intellect.
CHARLOTTE DAWG
January 12th, 2010
9:38 pm
WE DON’T WANT ANY OF KIFFIN’S THUG RAPIST RECRUITS! Anyone that would buy in to that douchebag’s BS should not set foot in Athens! They made that bed; now those idiot kids can lie in it.
Aren’t you glad you didn’t go to UT Marlon Brown? HAHDHAHAAHAHAHAHAH.
Man, they are mad in the trailer parks tonight!
Kirby is Smart
January 12th, 2010
9:40 pm
I don’t think it’s outrageous, I just think he would have made a lot more people mad.
Kirby is Smart
January 12th, 2010
9:42 pm
Charlotte Dawg–I’m confused:
Are you talking about the dawgs or the vols? You have to combine uga and ut to spell thug
Big L
January 12th, 2010
9:47 pm
Holy freakin crap, the off season is just gonna be so much fun. Tennesee, you have to look at it this way. This man was embarressing a great program. You are better off for it. Hopefully you can get back to good respectful , tough , hard nosed football. Lame is gone and maybe he did not leave any NCAA sanctions behind him.
A SIDE NOTE
January 12th, 2010
9:47 pm
Need to go get LANCE THOMPSON as LB’s coach!!! He is great a recruiter and from Riverdale, Ga. and he is a heck of a coach!!!!!
UGAKev
January 12th, 2010
9:48 pm
Dick Bumpas is back to being my number one candidate for the UGA D-coordinator job…he is older and will not leave in two years plus his numbers are out standing at TCU.
Who is John Galt?
January 12th, 2010
9:49 pm
Kirby, whatever dude. UGA’s guys get in trouble for belly rubbing and drinking. Not armed robbery and rape. There’s no comparison. UF is just as bad as UT. Alabama’s police let their guys off because the football program is more important than life itself to them.
Dap01
January 12th, 2010
9:51 pm
Kiffin (a probation waiting to happen) going to USC is a marriage made in heaven. Why would any parent want their son to play for that slim?
Who is John Galt?
January 12th, 2010
9:53 pm
A SIDE NOTE, please explain that because I graduated from Riverdale back in 91′ and I’m not familiar with him. I haven’t kept up with high school football though. Is he the coach there now? Kennedy was there when I was in HS.
Big L
January 12th, 2010
9:54 pm
Hey Lane Kiffin blogger. Just make sure you don’t schedule any real SEC teams. You just keep playin OSU and Arkansas.
Who is John Galt?
January 12th, 2010
9:55 pm
Nevermind the “is he the coach there now?” since you said he was a great recruiter.
Big L
January 12th, 2010
10:01 pm
You know what, I am gonna say it as loud as possible. Richt hasn’t got that MNC yet. But he has kept our program respectable and consistent. No Slime or nothing. Thank god for Mark Richt because alot of current coaches like Lame Kiffin and Nick “I’m gone in a coupla years” Saban , make things look real good for us in Athens. We should all thank god for Mark Richt and his professionalism.
A SIDE NOTE
January 12th, 2010
10:02 pm
WHO IS JOHN GALT? – Thompson played at Riverdale years ago…so he knows the Atlanta area (recruiting)… he is a coach for Lane Kiffin, but was on the staff at Alabama w/ Saban and has be a DC at a few places….been in college game along time!
Kirby is Smart
January 12th, 2010
10:05 pm
Who—
I think you omitted assault
Big L
January 12th, 2010
10:14 pm
Man, this is better than South Park. I ain’t laughed like this in years. Hey UT, thanks for bringin the spirits of all Dawg fans up a little. You know if you had kept Fulmer, you woulda at least been respected. Now you let that jackass make you a joke.
North Georgia Dawg
January 12th, 2010
10:32 pm
TRAVIS JONES or BRIAN VAN GORDER! no subs please!
Attention Tech fans...
January 12th, 2010
10:37 pm
Since you termites will not stick to your own blogs and believe me you have plenty to blog about…here’s to you!
30-24!!!
30-24!!!
30-24!!!
30-24!!!
8 out of 9!!!
8 out of 9!!!
8 out of 9!!!
8 out of 9!!!
The Dawgs proved that they are the best team in the state of Georgia by whipping your Jackettes on your very own Grant Field inside your very oen tiny Bobby Dodd Stadium on your very own Georgia Tech campus!!! The Dawgs are the college football champs of Georgia and the Governor’s Cup resides in Athens!
In fact Mark Richt is undefeated in Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium!
And for the icing on the cake…
73-66!
73-66!
Dawghater
January 12th, 2010
11:00 pm
Hey puppy dawg fans! First, your inability to get a top notch D Coordinator is your issue, your program’s issue and your standing in the SEC and National Standings issue. Trash GT, Trash TN now that Kiffen’s FINALLY gone, blog BS. The fact is you’ve gone for 3 (yes 3) top D Coordinators and all three turned you down! Good news, is you got all three a raise. So stop diverting the conversation about other programs and focus on your sorry pathetic program. I hear Shreveport does not even want you back!
Big L
January 12th, 2010
11:05 pm
Hey Dawghater, you sound like a sour Techie. Yeah, we all git problems , but Miami called, they wanna know where you want Paul Johnson’s over the shoulder bolder holder UPS’d to?
U.G.A.
January 12th, 2010
11:13 pm
What about Brian Vangorder for DC?
fair and Balanced
January 12th, 2010
11:49 pm
Richt waited too long. Probably could have gotten Smart last year after Bama lost 2 straight games. GA had to go through a terrible season of a lot of complaining. TN also in the mix now looking for a HC and DC………….Lord help us now!
gdawgs77
January 13th, 2010
12:06 am
WHY DO PEOPLE WANT GRANTHAM??? HIS 3 YEARS WITH THE BROWNS AT DC THEY FINISHED 16TH, 30TH AND 27TH IN TOTAL DEFENSE. HE DID A TERRIBLE JOB THERE!! DO YOUR RESEARCH!!!!!
fair and Balanced
January 13th, 2010
12:10 am
Idea for TN: We’ll send you CWM as DC and Bobo as HC and pay for both. Love you guys! Want the best for your program!
fair and Balanced
January 13th, 2010
12:11 am
Why are we going after Grantham? Does he need a raise too?
gdawgs77
January 13th, 2010
12:13 am
HIRE TRAVIS JONES!!!!!!!
BuLLdawg
January 13th, 2010
3:04 am
Kippy Brown is the interim head coach for the Tennessee vols.
Mike Hamilton, vols’ AD, you are a joke, have been, and continue to be.
And, what is this that the students in Knoxville started a fire to keep Lame Kitten in Knoxville by leaving their trailers to burn their mattresses ? Hillbillies.
Please come back in here and put a spin on this vols’ fans.
I can’t wait.
Tell us all again of your moral victories ?
Lame Kitten 7-6 one season who beat no Final AP Poll or USA Today Coaches’ Poll Top 25 team, gone. When he was at USC, he was NEVER the Offensive Coordinator. That was 2 other guys, both now gone. Norm Chow UCLA now who was then replaced by Steve Sarkisian who left after last year to Washington. He was their assistant and he grinded on the players, other coaches, and media the whole entire time at Southern California and all the other places he stayed for a year thereafter, too. An impetuous impatient child smart-aleck know-it-all Spoiled Brat, and a huge big loose cannon who will step in at USC for all their NCAA Major Violations including Reggie Bush’s Court Trial which finally comes up with Sworn Statements finally now. And, the added issue of now not only Reggie Bush’s Mansion provided to his entire family under market value, but now too yet the rift between Pete Carroll and USC AD Mike Garrett over tailback Joe McKnight’s illegal use now of a vehicle not in his name. A Land Rover. At least at USC, it’s a Mansion and a Land Rover. Nice perks. Lame Kitten will fit right in there. These NCAA sanctions will happen this year. Why did Pete Carroll leave for a lousy Seattle team when he is failed as an NFL Coach at New England and the Jets 33-31 record ?
Lame Kitten Fresno State Quarterback who NO ONE LIKES, who NEVER was the Offensive Coordinator at USC. Never. Pete Carroll was the Defensive Coordinator, make no mistake of that, just like Nick Saban. At UGA, all we have is a damn CEO whose only job responsibility anymore is to hire a “coaching staff” which he has been totally miserable at doing for 10 years now this season.
Coach Richt Era 17-19 vs. Final AP Poll Top 25 teams in 9 years plus another 8 Losses to teams not even ranked in the Final AP Poll Top 25, including David Greene 8-9 vs. LSU, Florida, vols, and Auburn. David Greene was 9-8 vs Final AP Poll Top 25 teams but dropped 2 games Losses to teams not even ranked in the Final AP Poll Top 25.
It’s NOT like we are something great s c dawg.
And, the problem is and has been the “coaching staff” all hired by Coach Richt including his first hire of Rodney Garner December 20, 2000. Brian VanGorder’s Falcons defense sucks. No coach with any NFL experience not 1 coach 1 day. Losing record against Final AP Poll Top 25. The real teams we played each of 9 years now. Only 3 wins against teams in the Top 10 of the Final AP Poll Top 25 in 9 years, and only 1 of those is David Greene. His 1st win which he never duplicated. The offensive woes of this Coach Richt Era are Legendary for all 9 years. Even the 2 years we did play Knowshon Moreno and not redshirt him again that year, we handed him the ball 13 times only in loss after loss after loss. Then, we actually run the ball against GA tek and low and behold, we win a game – so we KEEP Mike Bobo. I’m sorry Willie Martinez and Jon Fabris are hardly all our issues on this “coaching staff.” Which 1 is in charge of the 121 suspensions/arrests in 9 years now of the Coach Richt Era ? Who teaches a position as position coach who actually played that position as a damn player ? No one. Who is in charge of kick-offs and returns ?
vols of course, should have kept Chief. I tried to tell them that. I tried to tell Coach Richt to snap him up then too.
s c dawg, though knows so damn much more about all this than all of us and than God Above.
DISNEYdawg.
By the way, like UGA’s DC, Lame Kitten was Choice Number 4 at USC who finally settled on Lame Kitten after 3 whiffs. It is no better for him than it is for whomever Coach Richt gets off his butt and hires as his 4th Choice.
Don’t let the trailer trash door hit you on the backside on the way out Lame Kitten, you failure at 12-22 as a head coach all-time. He will do better in the PAC-ZERO which is why he left.
Granddad Monte Kiffin, Defensive Coordinator, gone.
Ed Orgeron, Recruiting Coordinator, gone.
After all you said in here about how great Lame Kitten is, please put a spin on this for me vols’ fans. I eagerly await your B.S. now about Lame Kitten’s FAILURES, totally after all your attempted DEFENSE of him HERE.
Go ahead. Defend him again, or make an about-face and agree with me all along that the jerk Lame Kitten is a sorry NOTHING of a Coach and person. How is his entire only recruiting class, put in jail over armed robbery, drugs, alcohol, and weapons charges, doing ? Been by to see them at the jail, or are you waiting to leave your trailer only to burn your mattresses to keep Lame Kitten there. God Almighty. And, what now becomes of the NCAA Investigation of just 2 weeks ago of Lame Kitten’s orange Kittens leaving campus to pursue Ed Orgeron’s recruits ?
I don’t care that you obviously now will end up with a better coach; I just want you to admit The Spoiled Brat Little Monster is gone and that you burned your mattresses to keep him there you Hillbillies – along with the fact that I told you so, and you DEFENDED Lame Kitten : Choose : Defend him AGAIN, Admit I was right all along. Where is his win like our win over GA tek ?