Peers respect him and his new employer sought him out.

He has even received unequivocal support from St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher despite average numbers as an NFL assistant coach this season.

Brian Schottenheimer may not be a household name to most SEC fans, but the Georgia Bulldogs feel they’ve made a home run hire with their new offensive coordinator, a coach who has been selected to help the perennial East favorites win a league championship for the first time in 10 years this fall.

Equipped with several returning weapons in the backfield led by Heisman candidate Nick Chubb, the running game-minded play-caller should make a smooth transition into Georgia’s pro-style scheme with the Bulldogs coming off a school-record average of 41.3 points per game.

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Schottenheimer, a former Florida Gators quarterback under Steve Spurrier, applied for Vanderbilt’s head coach opening last season and has been seeking a return to where it started for him for several years.

“It’s kind of a dream come true to get back in the SEC with an elite program,” Schottenheimer said. “I played in the SEC and I love college football. Just the chance to come to an elite program like this. Obviously coach Richt is a big part of the attraction for me, what they’ve done here. The history and tradition was a big part.”

Schottenheimer beat out former Florida assistant Kurt Roper and Georgia tight ends coach John Lilly for the job and has the necessary thick skin to compete in the SEC as a 14-year NFL veteran and son of longtime head coach, Marty.

Toughness is something he’ll find useful at a program whose fanbase was often been extremely critical of his predecessor, Mike Bobo, during a long, successful tenure. At times to a fault, Schottenheimer has fed his running backs to a fault, but he’ll hear no complaints from the Georgia faithful if that’s the case in 2015.

Chubb is capable of exceeding his 1,500-yard total as a sophomore with a heavier workload. Fellow five-star Keith Marshall is back in the fold nearing full strength following multiple injuries alongside speedsters Sony Michel and Isaiah McKenzie.

The 41-year-old play-caller’s primary order of business during spring practice will be working with quarterbacks as he hopes to pinpoint a replacement for fifth-year senior Hutson Mason.

The three-player race features this season’s primary backup Brice Ramsey, heralded redshirt freshman Jacob Park and redshirt sophomore Faton Bauta, one of Bobo’s understudies. Good news for the Bulldogs is that four starters return up front along with primary receiving targets Malcolm Mitchell, Jay Rome and Jeb Blazevich to help obvious concerns under center.

Ramsey has game experience and seems to be the more pro-style option of the trio. It’ll be interesting to see who Schottenheimer and his offensive assistants tab as the frontrunner heading into August after spring ball.

You can expect a similar game-manager role due to the backfield talent returning and Schottenheimer’s heavy emphasis on the ground game.