Jim McElwain lays out timeline for hiring new defensive coordinator
By Andrew Olson
Published:
The next time the Florida coaches hit the recruiting trail, coach Jim McElwain would like to have his new defensive coordinator on the job.
Mac said no decisions would be made on full-tie DC until after bowl. Wants to make hire prior to hitting recruiting trail again.
— Edgar Thompson (@osgators) December 19, 2016
McElwain made the comments in a Monday media opportunity. Randy Shannon, who held the title of co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach is taking the place of Geoff Collins, who was named the new head coach at Temple last week, for the Outback Bowl. With a resume that includes prior experience as Miami’s defensive coordinator (2001-06) and later head coach (2007-10), Shannon is considered a strong candidate for the full-time job. McElwain reiterated that Shannon is in the mix Monday.
While McElwain said the decision will come after the bowl game on Jan. 2, one can expect it won’t take long. The recruiting dead period ends on Jan. 12, which means Florida will want to have its staff in place for the final stretch of recruiting before National Signing Day on Feb. 1. The Gators cannot afford to be short-handed on the trail, needing to close strong on a class that currently ranks No. 20 nationally and No. 9 in the SEC according to 247Sports Composite.
For the bowl game, McElwain said that the empty spot on the staff left by Collins’ departure will be filled by support staffer Mark DeBastiani, a longtime FCS defensive assistant before coming to Florida.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
