Dan Mullen had an important decision to make in last year’s offseason when Sal Sunseri left for an Alabama reunion with Nick Saban. Mullen hired David Turner as his new defensive line coach, which proved to be a smart decision. This week, Turner has been recognized as FootballScoop’s 2019 Defensive Line Coach of the Year, an honor awarded by previous winners (below).

Even with Jabari Zuniga and Jon Greenard limited by injuries, the Florida defensive line anchored one of the SEC’s top defenses. The Gators recorded 49 sacks in 13 games, best for No. 4 nationally. An impressive 18 of those sacks came against in-state rivals Miami (10) and Florida State (8). With wins over the Hurricanes and Seminoles, UF claimed the unofficial “state champs” title for the Sunshine State in 2019.

The Gators were also strong against the run, holding teams to an average 3.19 yards per carry (No. 13 nationally). In overall rush yardage given up, 102.8 yards per game, Florida was No. 8 nationally.

Turner will receive the award and be recognized at an event at the upcoming AFCA Convention this month.

“Thanks for all the congrats!!” Turner wrote on Twitter. “First I want to say it’s a combination of a group of people, I had a group of guys that loved playing together and played well! Our DC Todd Grantham has a system that allows guys to showcase their talents and put up numbers within a team defense!”

Previous winners of the Defensive Line Coach of the Year: Dick Bumpas (TCU, 2008), Jim Panagos (Central Florida, 2009), Bill Kirelawich (West Virginia, 2010), Brick Haley (LSU, 2011), Randy Hart (Stanford, 2012), Ron Burton (Michigan State, 2013), Craig Kuligowski (Missouri, 2014), Bo Davis (Alabama, 2015), Greg Mattison (Michigan, 2016), Larry Johnson (Ohio State, 2017), and Ron Burton and Chuck Bullough (Michigan State, 2018).