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Georgia reportedly hires Donte Williams as defensive backs coach
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Georgia reportedly hires Donte Williams as defensive backs coach
Georgia has found its replacement for Fran Brown, as Donte Williams is expected to be hired as the new defensive backs coach for Georgia.
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Hmm. I admittedly don't know anything about this guy. Here's hoping he's a talented coach looking to get out of a bad situation. Considering Smart's general aptitude, it seems like a real possibility.
USC Defensive Backfield? Really? Hmmm....must have something to do with recruiting the West Coast...not so much "coaching". Besides...UGA already has 3 of the best DB coaches in the Nation.
Kirby's got a strategy. I love it!
Reportedly a very good recruiter according to Dawgs HQ.
Great recruiter and a good coach......working for Lincoln Riley, I don't care if you're Gordon Ramsey, you can't make Lobster Thermidor with crawdads so coming to Georgia.....where Defense is always spelled with a capital D, Coach Williams will shine!
He usually does! :)
Lateral move for Donte. Kirby is after a recruiter. Brown was an excellent recruiter. Makes sense to me. I suspect mucho dinero involved as well.
Cali? I'd rather have someone that can win in Metro Atlanta!! There's no reason for the best recruits in this state to leave and play elsewhere.
Donte was the key recruiter who secured the short-term commitments from Mykel and Christen. The thought out here was that Donte was kept on by Riley specifically because of his recruiting ability and good relationships with local high school coaches.
That said, he REALLY struggled when named the temporary HC after Helton's firing. Somewhat unfair criticism as he just didn't have those admin/big picture tools yet. He's also taken a lot of heat from fans WRT the lack of development of the DB's. Again, somewhat unfair as the scheme has been horrible and Grinch was an abomination.
Lastly, I don't think even Donte knows what his coaching ceiling is because he's a defensive-minded guy who has worked for 2 morons in Helton and Riley. They don't know, appreciate, or understand what good defense is. So, just like Saban has taken rejects under his wing (Kiffin and Sark) and they succeeded, so too can Donte under Muschamp and Smart.
One other thought....recruiting isn't just about kids in high school. How many times has Kirby mentioned over the last couple years that coaches now have to make time to recruit their own players to keep them from leaving. If there's a coach on staff who can play a bigger role there, why not? If any of the Mykel portal rumors were accurate, and admitting you can't predict what these players will do, having Donte on staff is the best weapon to keeping Mykel on board. And while Kirby is at it, aim that Donte missile in the direction of Carrollton.
I thought Belk was the big fish ?
Just wanted to let you know there are many of us old Dawgs that appreciate your inciteful west coast perspective.
I was thinking the same thing.@wpony714 . Well said...and kind of informative. I didn't know what the "Fan Perspective" vs "Football Reality", might have been.
Sounds like Kirby landed another good one, though. From most of what I've seen and heard. I still think his "main thing"...is gonna be recruiting & team connection. Maybe he blossums into something more. Kirby seems to have a knack for seeing DNA strands, others miss.
I'll take all the Bowers and Milton's we can get.
True. Jermaine was a definite miss though.
I won't be surprised if USC CB Domani Jackson hits the portal. He's had perhaps the tightest connection with Donte.
Recruiting is king. Well, after NIL. A recruiter has to get their attention and be able to hold it before recruiting gets serious. Donte Williams seems to have that skill. There may not have been anyone better and/or closer that CKS identified or could sign. I wondered about Corey Raymond. He was known as recruiter extraordinaire at LSU and recruited well at FU. But he seemed to wash out at FU pretty quickly. On the surface this is about as good a hire as could be expected.
With you on being able to recruit LA better than ATL not making a lot of sense. Hopefully he will be able to recruit Gwinnett, Cobb, Dekalb and Fulton better. It would be hard not to. The bar has been set pretty low there.
Having to trust Kirby on this. USC pass D was atrociously bad. Looks like a recruiting move.
Head scratcher....USC has a terrible defense and he's not one of the top 25 recruiters per 247.
Scheme and Grinch were more the issue. Grinch made personnel decisions and the entire defense, including the position coaches, were an unhappy group. Did Bear Alexander look like he improved or regressed? With his abilities, and the coaching he did have at UGA, he should have flashed and dominated from day 1. Instead, it took him more than half the season to show up and look like he knew what he was doing.
Donte is the epitome of a blue-collar coach. He didn't fall forward or wake up on 3rd base. He builds great relationships with players, with the media, with high school coaches. He was not set up to be successful....period. Helton, Grinch, Riley. I wouldn't wish that trio on ANY staff member.
Time will tell but give the man a chance with all that UGA has to offer, and under Kirby's tutelage, and he might develop quite nicely. His innate skills in recruiting can't really be taught so that's a win right out the box.
If he's already a good recruiter "before" he arrives in Athens....imagine what he might accomplish under Kirby's tutelage.
UGA has one of the largest, most comprehensive, meticulous...and successful "Recruiting and Player Evaluation & Development" departments in the Country.
How can he NOT get better?...whether he ever becomes the best or not. Look at all the great recruiters at UGA, now.
I have no doubt..."Recruiting" is a competition among UGA's very competitive Coaches. They're great at it...cause, they make it fun and enjoy their jobs. A formula for success, in any skillset or profession....IMO.
As I was saying, lol. Someone check the flight schedules for Domani to ATL.