Geoff Collins was fired at Georgia Tech on Sunday after a third double-digit loss to an FBS team in 2022. Who will replace him to fix the Yellow Jackets?
Patience only lasts but so long and Georgia Tech football firing Geoff Collins on Sunday is proof of that. Collins is out for the Yellow Jackets and athletic director Todd Stansbiry is reportedly likely to follow after the team dropped to 1-3 on the season with a 27-10 loss to UCF.
When the program brought in Collins from Temple after he went 15-10 in two seasons with the Owls, the Yellow Jackets began an arduous transition from a triple-option offense to a traditional balanced offense. And with that, everyone talked about having patience with Collins to make a difficult change to the DNA of the program.
That proved to be unsuccessful, however, as Collins never won more than three games in a season and finished his tenure with the Yellow Jackets at 10-28 overall and 7-19 in ACC.
Now the coaching search begins for a job that, bluntly, has some limitations. At such a prestigious academic institution, that can be an issue in getting high-end recruits. For me, that means the program needs to be wise with their hire, targeting offensive minds who have a proven track record of making the most out of perhaps limited talent to be competitive.
And much to the chagrin of one Georgia Tech football message board poster, that does not mean plucking Tommy Tuberville from the US Senate.
Having that in mind, these three replacements do fit that bill and currently aren’t elected members of Congress. They are also not Deion Sanders because let’s be honest, that’s probably punching above the Yellow Jackets’ weight in this situation.
Georgia Tech football: 3 replacements for Geoff Collins to get Yellow Jackets back to relevancy
Jeffy Lebby, Oklahoma offensive coordinator
Despite Oklahoma losing to Kansas State, there’s no denying the ability of Jeff Lebby to be an offensive wizard. His offense has produced incredible results at every stop, even with varying levels of talent, as UCF, Ole Miss and now Oklahoma have all thrived in this capacity. He’s the type of mind that could take a program with recruiting limitations like Georgia Tech and fully maximize what they’re capable of and, ultimately, make them competitive in the ACC, even if the Yellow Jackets aren’t a powerhouse.
It remains to be seen if Lebby will get a head coaching look due to his abhorrent connection to the Baylor scandal during which he even full-on defended Art Briles. But in terms of coaching pedigree alone, he would make a ton of sense.
Jamey Chadwell, Coastal Carolina head coach
Jamey Chadwell has proven that he can build a program into something that it’s never been before. While Coastal Carolina was an FCS power for a while, Chadwell has quickly made the Chanticleers on the best Group of Five teams in college football and has done so with some consistency now as the program is 26-3 since the start of the 2020 season.
Just as important as his ability to recruit well with limitations is Chadwell’s ability to run an offense that can maximize the talent. His hybrid-option approach is a nightmare to defend and has been wildly successful to this point. Georgia Tech would afford him the chance to accrue better talent than Coastal but still run that offense to level-up the Yellow Jackets in the Power Five level as a matchup nightmare.
Todd Monken, Georgia offensive coordinator
For all of the improvements that Stetson Bennett IV has made, the truth of the matter is that Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken has done a phenomenal job in taking a former walk-on in Athens and making him a quarterback capable of winning a national championship. Yes, the talent for the Dawgs is always going to be better than it will ever be at Georgia Tech, but Monken has proven his ability to develop players, to maximize talent, and to win.
This might be a bit far-fetched if Monken doesn’t have a huge desire to be a head coach as he surely wouldn’t take that gamble to go to Georgia’s biggest in-state rival. But if the Yellow Jackets can try to make that happen, it would definitely make Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate much more intriguing for years to come.
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