Georgia Coordinator Lanning Says No to Longhorns

Texas's search for a defensive coordinator will continue into the weekend, after Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning spurned the schools advances on Friday

Matt Galatzan | Jan 16, 2021

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian missed out on adding yet another impressive name to his staff in Austin this week when Georgia’s Dan Lanning spurned an offer from the Longhorns for the team’s defensive coordinator position.

Lanning would have been the fourth assistant that Sarkisian had been able to lure away from the SEC, following the hires of offensive line coach and offensive coordinator Kyle Flood, tight ends/special teams coordinator Jeff Banks, and quarterbacks coach A.J. Milwee, all of whom came from Alabama.

Texas also added former Nick Saban assistant Bo Davis as the defensive line coach. Davis spent the last three seasons with the Detroit Lions at the same position.

Just 34 years old, Lanning was originally brought to Athens in 2018 to work as the outside linebackers coach, before taking over the defensive coordinator role in 2019 in replacement of Mel Tucker.

After his being inserted into the defensive coordinator position, Georgia ranked third in the country in total defense, first in scoring defense, 31st against the pass, and first in the nation against the run.

Georgia’s defense took a bit of a step back this past season in 2020, ranking 12th in total defense, 16th in scoring defense, and 88th in pass defense, but remained the best team in the country against the run, giving up just 72.3 yards per game.

Despite that downtrend this season, however, Lanning helped lead the Bulldogs to an 8-2 record and a second-place finish in the SEC East, behind their arch-rival Florida Gators

Considered a rising star at the position, Lanning also spent time at Memphis, as well as serving stints at Alabama, Sam Houston State, Arizona State, and Pittsburgh.

Published Jan 16, 2021

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.