Five realistic candidates for the Georgia Tech job
Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson retired after 11 seasons on Wednesday. Johnson’s 83-59 record, included three division championships, one ACC championship and just one losing ACC record. The Yellow Jackets will play in their ninth bowl game of Johnson’s tenure this postseason.
Here are five candidates who will be asked to build on the success Johnson enjoyed with his triple-option offense he brought with him from Navy in 2008.
Brian Bohannon, Kennesaw State head coach
WHY IT’S REALISTIC: Bohannon has strong ties to the Georgia Tech program, having served as an assistant under Johnson at Georgia Tech. The 47-year-old Peach State native also has plenty of recruiting relationships in the state and beyond. He’s familiar with the landscape and with what it takes to win at unique program like Georgia Tech. The fact that he boasts a 36-11 record as an FCS head coach is also a bold tally mark in the pros column. This is a long shot, sure, but he may get a glance should the Yellow Jackets miss on a candidate or two.
WHY IT’S NOT: Bohannon’s version of the option offense is slightly different than Johnson’s. This is unlikely to be a major sticking point, but it’s certainly worth noting. The bigger issue will be the fact that Bohannon has never been a head coach at the FBS level and his Power Five assistant coaching experience is limited to his short time at Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets may want a more seasoned coach more familiar with running a major program.
Jeff Monken, Army head coach
WHY IT’S REALISTIC: Monken coached under Johnson at multiple stops and learned much of his offensive philosophy from the now-retired Georgia Tech coach. He’s also coming off of three straight bowl appearances at Army, a program that went 3-9 the year before he took over. Monken, who won 10 games last season, is becoming a bit of a hot coaching name and is in the process of proving he can maintain success despite major recruiting disadvantages.
WHY IT’S NOT: Monken is starting to become a buzzed-about young coach and may have his eyes on any number of other jobs, despite being seen as an “option coach.” He was mentioned as a possible candidate for the Kansas job before it was filled by Les Miles and could be linked to other, more traditional schools should he enjoy another season of success at Army. That said, the Tech gig seems like a nice fit for his background.
Ken Niumatalolo, Navy head coach
WHY IT’S REALISTIC: There’s something to be said for stability, and Niumatalolo provides plenty of that. A proponent of the triple-option offense, the 53-year-old coach wouldn’t need to remake the program’s identity. He’s also a disciple of Johnson’s and is as familiar with his mentor’s approach as anyone in the country. Johnson's jump from Navy to Tech was smooth. On the surface, Niumatalolo seems like an incredibly logical candidate.
WHY IT’S NOT: Niumatalolo might not be interested in leaving Navy, where he’s carved out quite a bit of job stability, to start over at Georgia Tech. There’s a chance the Navy head coach, who once turned down BYU, could be awaiting a different job opportunity or that he’s settled in at his current gig for the long haul. It’s also possible that Tech might prefer a different candidate, as the 3-9 record Navy posted this season isn’t exactly awe-inspiring.
Scott Satterfield, Appalachian State head coach
WHY IT’S REALISTIC: Satterfield is a full-fledged rising star in the coaching industry and would come with recruiting ties to the area. His 50-24 record at Appalachian State becomes more impressive when you realize the program went 3-7 the season before he arrived. Satterfield has spent time coaching in Florida, which is an important recruiting ground for the Jackets. Any time you can interview one of the nation’s top young coaches, it’s certainly worth making the call.
WHY IT’S NOT: The 45-year-old Satterfield has no ties to Georgia Tech or the state of Georgia. He also isn’t a student of the triple-option offense, so the pressure would be on to recruit a higher level of athlete. Satterfield has never coached at a Power Five school and that could hurt his standing as a candidate. It’s also possible that, even if offered the gig, the fifth-year Mountaineers coach would elect to wait for a different opportunity.
Ken Whisenhunt, LA Chargers offensive coordinator
WHY IT’S REALISTIC: Whisehunt played at Georgia Tech and would provide some measure of splash appeal, as he spent eight years as a head coach in the NFL and reached the Super Bowl with the Arizona Cardinals. He’s familiar with the landscape at Georgia Tech and likely has ties to high school coaches in Georgia, the state in which he was born and raised. Such a thing would minimize the recruit learning curve for a coach that has spent most of his career coaching professionals.
WHY IT’S NOT: Hiring an NFL coach with very little college coaching experience is a risk. So is attempting to convert a program with high academic standards from an option offense to a more traditional system. Whisenhunt last coached a college team in 1996, when he was an assistant at Vanderbilt. There’s a long list of reasons why hiring him would be a massive gamble, but there’s a chance such a gamble could pay dividends.
