Texas Football: Georgia DC Dan Lanning passes on Horns offer
The defensive coordinator search looks to still be going full boar for newly hired Texas football head coach and the former Alabama Crimson Tide offensive coordinator (and reigning Broyles Award winner) Steve Sarkisian during the holiday weekend. Texas hired Sark to become the fourth head coach in a span of less than 10 years for the program back on Jan. 2. And with that, most of the assistants that were on staff with now former fourth-year head coach Tom Herman are gone.
That includes the former Rutgers head coach and first-year Texas defensive coordinator/safeties coach Chris Ash. Although Ash looked to have this defense trending in the right direction last fall, the Longhorns decided that he wasn’t a sure thing on Sark’s coaching staff moving forward.
Yet, with the search to find both coordinators on for Sark and the Longhorns as of the morning of Jan. 18, the possibilities might not be as open as most fans would think. Texas reportedly (per 247Sports) were turned down last week by the current Georgia Bulldogs defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Dan Lanning to hold the same role on their staff on the Forty Acres.
Known as one of the better defensive coordinators in the SEC in this day and age, Lanning is also a solid recruiter. Even though his defense didn’t live up to the hype during the 2020 season, Lanning would still be a good addition to the Texas coaching staff had he joined as the next defensive coordinator.
Georgia’s defense ranked 17th in the FBS in points allowed per game (20.0). They also allowed just 321 total yards per game, and just under five yards per play, during the 2020 season. Georgia has become a premier landing spot for blue chip defensive talent in this day and age.
Meanwhile, Ash’s defense ranked 61st in the FBS during the 2020 season in points allowed per game (28.5). They also allowed just over 406 yards per game, and 5.2 yards per play. Both of those team defense stats were dramatic improvements for the Longhorns compared to the 2019 campaign.
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Texas fans also saw Ash join the Jacksonville Jaguars coaching staff along with recently hired head coach Urban Meyer last week in his first NFL assistant role of his coaching career to date. Their DC search will continue on with the opportunity to get Ash back now gone and Lanning having already rejected their offer.