3-year deal in works for Georgia D-coordinator Todd Grantham
Georgia's defense has flourished under the guidance of second-year defensive coordinator Todd Grantham. (AJC photo by Brant Sanderlin)
ATHENS – Georgia Athletic Director Greg McGarity confirmed Friday he is in the midst of working on a contract extension for defensive coordinator Todd Grantham.
Grantham’s California-based attorney, Michael Harrison, told the AJC in November he was was seeking an extension for his client. Grantham signed a three-year contract that pays him $750,000 annually when he was hired by coach Mark Richt from the Dallas Cowboys in January of 2010. Grantham has 13 months remaining on that contract.
Georgia Athletic Director Greg McGarity never had an assistant coach under a multi-year agreement in 18 years while he was at Florida. But he is making an exception for Grantham.
“That’s what we’re working to right now,” McGarity said Friday. “We’re discussing it. Mark and I have discussed it and we’re trying to work through that right now. It’s just tough to get everybody together because of coaching conventions and recruiting and things like that. But we’re moving along in that direction.”
McGarity indicated that any new deal with Grantham would likely resemble the old deal. In other words, two years would be added to the existing agreement to get Grantham back to three years. But negotiations are ongoing.
That said, don’t expect a tremendous pay raise for Grantham, if any. He is currently the second highest-paid defensive coordinator in FBS. Alabama’s Kirby Smart is first at $850,000.
“The most important thing is the longevity piece,” McGarity said. “From a compensation standpoint it’s hard to argue that we’re not being fair to him. My whole thing is being fair to people and I think we’re being fair.”
As is his practice, McGarity is dealing with Grantham directly and not his attorney or other representation.
Georgia’s defense has definitely improved under Grantham’s leadership. The Bulldogs finished the 2011 season ranked in the Top 20 nationally in all seven primary statistical categories, including No. 3 in total defense (268.5 ypg), 4th in pass efficiency (98.27), 7th in passing yards allowed (165.9) and 11th in rushing (103.4). Nine starters are currently slated to return to that unit and recruiting prospects are starting to line up to play for Grantham.
The question now is whether McGarity will relax his stance on multi-year contracts for coordinators. Offensive coordinator Mike Bobo is working on a one-year contract, as are Georgia’s other assistants.
“We have not had those discussions,” McGarity said of a multi-year for Bobo. “I’m focused on Mark’s and we’ve talked a little bit about Todd’s. That’s what we’re working on right now.”
– Chip Towers
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349 comments Add your comment
Mike
January 6th, 2012
5:59 pm
Great move by McGarity! If Grantham wants to stay, let him have what he wants.
Sorry, Bobo, but you’ve got to earn it if you want it. Grantham’s D is the reason UGA went from 6 to 10 wins in one season and was even competitive in most of the losses.
Mike Bobo, if you want a contract like Grantham’s, step your game up. The offense needs to perform far better. Right now, it looks more like a bunch of talented players occasionally bailing out a bad gameplan.
daggone
January 6th, 2012
6:02 pm
Yes please–Give them all a big raise so Richt wont have to pay out of his money.
Only give up 30 plus points a game give him 3 year 750,000..Bobo 10 easy wins=800,000 a year the rest get 300,000 and Rich gets 3.5 million…love it. We just don’t know how luck we are to have them all. Thank God for the AD…
Delbert D.
January 6th, 2012
6:16 pm
The NFL is beckoning.
peachfuzz
January 6th, 2012
6:19 pm
I think we should call on all the poor people in Ga. to pony up and pay a GD football coach one mil to coach our defense. After all, what’s more important to us po’ folk than our dawgs.
John
January 6th, 2012
6:21 pm
PLEASE DUE NOT EXTEND BOBO!!! Ever UGA fan wants next year to be his last.
hirsutedawg
January 6th, 2012
6:24 pm
Would someone please get Ralph Friedgen on the phone? The man is an offensive genius sittin’ up on Lake Oconee with nothing to do.
Coon-Dawg
January 6th, 2012
6:24 pm
Facts … Basketball – Sundiatta Gaines, Trey Thompkins, Travis Leslie, and Jarvis Hayes !
Golf – Bubba Watson, Franklin Langam, Brendon Todd, Brian Harmon, Harris English,
Chip Beck, and oh yea … Ryuji Amada. Idiot !
Vance Duly
January 6th, 2012
6:26 pm
If Furman or UT-Chattooga or Western Carolina want to give Coach Bobo a multi-year deal, I am ALL for McGarity assisting them with that undertaking…………. Let’s run ONE more between the tackles, just to SEE if maybe it will work the 30th time it’s tried……….! GO DAWGS!
piermontdawgny
January 6th, 2012
6:29 pm
we are a top tier program with an offensive coordinator even local high schools wouldn’t want as their coach…but he’s Richt’s buddy…probably go to church together…
WHAT A JOKE!
Coon-Dawg
January 6th, 2012
6:31 pm
Everyone at once please …” No Bobo, Bobo Go” ! … “No Bobo, Bobo go” ! … Thankyou and Go Dawgs !!!
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
January 6th, 2012
6:40 pm
You UGA fans are so funny…you mention ethics and Rodney Garner ….I am sorry for laughing but that is just too much. The AD needs to update Mark’s contract with a couple of years but he needs to remove the buyout for both sides. Nick Saban doesn’t have a buyout so no way in hell should Mark Richt.
Brent Peace will meet with Nick Saban on Tuesday after the NC game and Brent will be the OC for Will and the Gators or Bama. I think UF will be his best gig for he can run his offense as he would like. If he selects Bama then he will run Nick’s offense with his input and updates. The Gators or on the mend so you need to find another gear.
OkieDawg
January 6th, 2012
6:44 pm
Bobo’s golden. Lainie Meshad Bobo is the niece of Barbara Meshad Dooley. Unless he goes to cousin-in-law Derek’s program, he is here for life. The boy married well. Ya think Vince still has influence with the decision makers? You bet’cha.
Fidlin1
January 6th, 2012
6:46 pm
Make him sign on the line which is dotted…
BillDog
January 6th, 2012
6:52 pm
OFFER BOBO AT NO COST TO ANY UGA OPPONENT AND CONTINUE TO PAY HIS SALARY. WE WON’T NEED AN O.C. IF HE IS THE COMPETITION’S O.C.
dmr
January 6th, 2012
6:58 pm
Bobo is not a Gus Malzahn or a Norm Chow. A multi-year contract should be based on the premise of whether or not someone is virtually indispensable. I like Bobo. Good coach, great recruiter. I just don’t know if he is the “right fit” to take Georgia’s offense to the next level. I think he is a poor strategist.
icedawg
January 6th, 2012
7:01 pm
Grantham has produced. The D has been much improved. Good sign.
17% of all GT graduates are millionaires
January 6th, 2012
7:03 pm
Enter your comments here
Stinger2
January 6th, 2012
7:11 pm
A GT fan, I feel badly for Bobo. All of the UGA fans who constantly bad mouth him have no clue about what the OC should do in any given play call situation. Sure fans can second guess but that is all they are qualified to do. These people should just be fans and lt the coaches do their job.
Brewmaster
January 6th, 2012
7:11 pm
Hey 17 %, I guess all those millionaires don’t buy many season tickets.
PLEASE KEEP RICHT & BOBO SAYS S.E.C
January 6th, 2012
7:13 pm
FIRE GRANTHAM AND GIVE BOBO A RAISE
GTBob
January 6th, 2012
7:14 pm
So Grantham is going to become the highest paid coordinator in FBS after one bad year and one decent year. Richt is going to get a raise and an extension without beating one ranked team and two poor seasons previously. Gotta love the business minds at UGA. Why not just give Bobo a million a year too? Who really cares what he is worth.
JJ
January 6th, 2012
7:16 pm
I liked the play of the defense and Grantham should get a raise. Still, the defense let
two wins get away (SCarolina & Michigan St.) and the wins were against several
teams that are clearly down. When are we gonna beat a good team again?
evil empire
January 6th, 2012
7:16 pm
no way grantham or kirby smart should (and probably aren’t) make more than john chavis…he’s forgot more football than those two clowns will ever know…
DirtyDawg34
January 6th, 2012
7:27 pm
Here is a “FACT” for you fact,10 out of 11 and you shared the 1990 NC with Colorado and our number of players going to nfl since 2000,are you ready for this nerd,(UGA-67 GT-32)!!!!!!!!
Bad Dawg
January 6th, 2012
7:28 pm
GTBob, It is a joke right?, I really think it is Michael Adams who is pulling the strings and there is an article on the internet I think on Al.com that shows his ethical issues and lack of integrity. As long as Adams is here Richt will be the head coach and Mike Bobo the offensive coordinator. I think Adams is the one who should be fired but I have no idea what it would take for that to happen short of an incident comparable to what happened to the previous AD.
Sharkman
January 6th, 2012
7:35 pm
Facts, get out of our blog you jealous tech loser. Mark Richt owns GT. Nough said on that. Moving on, send Bobo back to Thomasville, and THEN we can get a good O.C. whom we can give a mulit year deal. In the meantime, just for fun, why don’t we let CMR, and CTG keep their respective titles, HOWEVER, why don’t we pay CTG $3 million per year with a buyout clause, and pay CMR $750,000 with a one year contract. Maybe THAT will light a fire under CMR to do better against teams that are better than us. Like we did against LSU in the FIRST half of the SEC championship game.
Caleb Powell
January 6th, 2012
7:36 pm
The Ga program makes enough money throughout the year to pay him a million a year! Also, Uga should be offering a 5 or 6 year extention to keep him a Ga! Then to make sure no one tries to get him a hefty buy out clause!
Fire Richt
January 6th, 2012
7:40 pm
Go after Mike Gundy, he’s a man!
Tarryuga
January 6th, 2012
7:42 pm
HELL YES on Grantham, HELL NO on Bobo, PERIOD
(would’ve made the period larger but it won’t fit on the screen!)
Seriously, what is going on with Bobo and the issue of him even being considered as an OC in the future? Have we not seen enough?!?!?
Don’t kick him to the curb, but for DAWGS sake, get an OC!!!
Old Dawg
January 6th, 2012
7:45 pm
Facts: PJ 0-4 in bowl games at GT, 1-3 vs UGA.
Attendance? The Flats have huge empty sections at home games, including UGA – that’s pathetic for any D-1 School.
Great technical university, and you can’t compare the salaries and ratings between a school like Tech and UGA because of the differences in academic disciplines. The same goes for starting salaries for graduates, the career tracks are different.
One other thing, you’ve got some heifers and pure slap ugly cheerleaders. One would think a national brand could find hotter cheerleaders than that.
Nuff said.
WestOfAthens
January 6th, 2012
7:45 pm
Clearly the smart choice.
HBTD
kerryb
January 6th, 2012
7:46 pm
Doesn’t that tell you all you need to know about McGarity’s opinion of Mike Bobo’s job performance?
WestOfAthens
January 6th, 2012
7:46 pm
Enter your comments here
stupid
January 6th, 2012
7:47 pm
does anyone pay attention to the fact that with the offense not being able to sustain a drive, they are leaving the defense on the field too much, so that they are worn down by the 3rd or 4th quater. If the offense would sustain drives, the D would play that much better down the stretch. Look at some of the games we dominated on both sides of the ball and compare to where we struggled or lost. it seems obvious to me.
Tarryuga
January 6th, 2012
7:50 pm
stupid,
You got that right!
Why?
January 6th, 2012
7:51 pm
The contract means you have to pay him even after Richt gets the axe. Seriously, with that talent and schedule even Martinez could have been successful. Look at the four games against quality opponents. They gave up 35, 45, 42 and 33 points.
Did anyone believe the Dawgs were going to hold Mich St after they got the ball with 2 minutes left?
PIERCE CO DAWG
January 6th, 2012
7:54 pm
gt4ever ga owns you techies and always will. We own this state BOY!!!!! Don,t forget it!!!!!!
Tarryuga
January 6th, 2012
7:56 pm
Richt’s not going anywhere, BUT he needs to stand up and put the hammer down for an OC!
It’s working for the D, it WILL work for the O, with the right acquisition!
PIERCE CO DAWG
January 6th, 2012
7:57 pm
GT Bob do not mention smart business. You are not a very smart bunch keeping Johnson. Paul Johnson is a joke!!!!
kerryb
January 6th, 2012
7:57 pm
Why?
January 6th, 2012
7:51 pm
The contract means you have to pay him even after Richt gets the axe. Seriously, with that talent and schedule even Martinez could have been successful. Look at the four games against quality opponents. They gave up 35, 45, 42 and 33 points.
Did anyone believe the Dawgs were going to hold Mich St after they got the ball with 2 minutes left?
__________________________________________________________________
Come on, Really? Do you REALLY think Mark Richt is going to get the ax when they are talking about extending his contract an extra 3 years?
This is why
January 6th, 2012
7:57 pm
Yes, we gave up those points, but how many times were there pick 6’s, fumbles inside our own 35, and special teams issues that put our defense in terrible situations?? Can’t balme Grantham for that.
PIERCE CO DAWG
January 6th, 2012
7:57 pm
GO DAWGS
FLA DAWG
January 6th, 2012
7:58 pm
GIVE HIM AN EXTRA MILLION AND MAKE HIM THE HEAD COACH !!!
Unload Richt, Bobo and let Grantham bring in some NFL coaches that can coach SEC Football.
Tarryuga
January 6th, 2012
8:04 pm
Think I’ll go watch the “Weevil Bowl”.
Everyone just calm down.
bob
January 6th, 2012
8:11 pm
4 losses to mid to good teams.10 wins to who????.Records set against Sub-par teams.Look at next year,same song,second verse.Wait and see! 9 wins,verses Who?
bob
January 6th, 2012
8:13 pm
Look at SEC West teams.Georgia 6-4.
ed f
January 6th, 2012
8:25 pm
With an offense as bad as UGA has we need this Badly. The Defense Makes a big play and the Offense does nothing with it. I’d get rid of that Bozo and get someone who can figure out how to do anything other than punt and hope the defense holds. Uga is all Defense. Offense Hasn’t beaten a ranked team other than GT in How Long.
Columbus
January 6th, 2012
8:27 pm
@Facts…trying to say anything that supports GT being superior in football or ANY other sport over the last 20 years, especially football is HYSTERICALLY HILARIOUS! Lets just ask one thing concerning football. How many wins does your CURRENT coach have against our CURRENT coach? How many? Who won this year? Uh huh. Case closed.
GT hopes of beating UGA with their current coach is extremely slim. What is going to change? I hope you keep Johnson for another 10 years…..
Bobo should be on a day-to-day contract. I am assuming we dont have the cash to pay Grantham and an OC similar money or we would have one. I would rather have Eric Zeier as OC personally but I guess he is not into coaching. Bobo NEVER played a down in the NFL so he does not have that experience, knowledge of perspective. There is a light that has not yet gone off for Bobo and its past time for it to happen. UGA is going to have a lot of potential the next few years and I would hate to see Bobo screw it up. TEACH YOUR QB’S HOW TO THROW SHORT PASSES TO RUNNING BACKS! TEACH YOUR OFFENSE HOW TO RUN SCREEN PLAYS FOR PETE’S SAKE! Stop running the ball over and over and over trying to run out clock against good defenses when they are waiting on it! Throw to the backs and get them in a position of having some room to make a huge play and at least a large gainer! Those are great plays not being ran….When the running game is not going well this is VITAL!
Smart getting $850k…wow what a sweet situation he stepped into with Saban making him look so good he gets that kind of cash! I am sure he has learned a lot and getting head coaching offers bumped it up but $850k? WOW. Maybe he is better than I give him credit for but I definitely am not convinced and he has not had a chance to prove it. Regardless he is learning from the best…
Chris
January 6th, 2012
8:29 pm
Would love to see real fans start posting more on here. I know there are a lot of areas that need to improve for us to get where we want to be but come on… constantly bashing everything about this program is ludacris. I would much rather be where we are than where Notre Dame, Michigan have been lately and where Ohio St, Penn St are now. Go and be a fan of Purdue or Indiana then you REALLY have a reason to complain about sub par every year.
Bingo
January 6th, 2012
8:34 pm
Roaddawg80
January 6th, 2012
3:50 pm
Lock him up for 3 more years and give him $1,000,000.00 if he wants it. There is no way Kirby should be making more than him.
I am posting now because I can’t stand all the immature kids on here anymore. There will be all kinds that come on here and talk about his character and how he is embarrassing the university. Go home little kids we don’t care. The only thing that matters is getting to the top.
Now I am going back to georgia.247sports.com for some real conversations and updates.
Oh yeah, right, when did Grantham win a BCS title or even an SEC Title. He is not even in Kirby’s league. He is a good one but not that good of one. UGA should keep him, because without him you have no coach anyone else wants on their staff.