After Bryan Harsin was hired to be the head coach at Auburn, Boise State then filled its opening by hiring Oregon defensive coordinator Andy Avalos to be its new head coach. That left an opening on the Ducks’ staff that now needs to be filled.

According to Bruce Feldman of FOX Sports and The Athletic, a trio of SEC assistants are among the candidates to become Oregon’s defensive coordinator under head coach Mario Cristobal — Tennessee defensive coordinator Derrick Ansley, Mississippi State defensive coordinator Zach Arnett and Georgia co-defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann.

Feldman also listed Seattle Seahawks assistant head coach Clint Hurtt, former Texas defensive coordinator Chris Ash, Atlanta Falcons run game coordinator Tosh Lupoi and Army defensive coordinator Nate Woody as potential candidates.

Ansley has spent the past two seasons as Tennessee’s defensive coordinator. He’s mostly coached in the SEC, serving as a graduate assistant at Alabama from 2010-11, the defensive backs coach at Tennessee in 2012, the defensive backs coach at Kentucky from 2013-15 and the defensive backs coach at Alabama from 2016-17. He also spent one season with the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders as defensive backs coach in 2018.

Arnett just completed his first season on Mississippi State’s staff. Prior to joining the Bulldogs, he was an assistant for San Diego State from 2011-19, serving in various roles during that time. He was a graduate assistant for the Aztecs from 2011-13, the linebackers coach from 2014-17 and the defensive coordinator from 2018-19.

Schumann has been Georgia’s co-defensive coordinator the past two seasons, but he’s been on the Bulldogs’ staff since 2016 as linebackers coach. Before that, he was on Alabama’s staff from 2008-14, serving as a student assistant (2008-11) and as a graduate assistant (2011-14).

Avalos had been Oregon’s defensive coordinator the past two seasons before leaving to take his first head-coaching job at Boise State.

If any of Ansley, Arnett or Schumann is hired, then that will open an SEC defensive coordinator job, as one of their schools would then have to find a replacement for its loss (unless Georgia decided to no longer have co-defensive coordinators).