Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson retired on Wednesday after 11 seasons at the school, and national college football reporter Bruce Feldman “wouldn’t be surprised” if Temple University coach Geoff Collins is among those considered to replace him.
Collins, who is from Georgia, spent the 1999 and 2000 seasons at Georgia Tech as a graduate assistant. He served as the Yellow Jackets’ tight ends coach during the 2001 season then returned to the school in 2006 as the director of player personnel.
In two seasons at Temple, Collins has a 15-10 record. He has experience recruiting in the South from his time at Georgia Tech and as the defensive coordinator at Mississippi State University and the University of Florida.
This year’s freshman class at Temple includes players from North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida. One of the Owls’ transfers, senior cornerback Rock Ya-Sin, leads Temple with 12 pass deflections after coming to Temple from Presbyterian College in South Carolina.
Collins was also a reported candidate for a different Power Five job earlier this season.
In October, Feldman reported Collins “could be in the mix” to replace D.J. Durkin at the University of Maryland.
Coaches have a pattern of leaving after only one or two winning seasons
Temple’s Geoff Collins fits right in with other college football coaches who left one school after a couple winning seasons.
Geoff Collins
Temple
Collins has had two winning seasons at Temple since he started in 2017. He went to one bowl last year and the team is bowl elligible this year. He has a .600 winning percentage.
Tom Herman
Houston → Texas
Herman had two winning seasons at Houston while he was there from 2015-16 and went to two bowls. He had a .846 winning percentage before he left for Texas.
Justin Fuente
Memphis → Virginia Tech
Fuente had two winning seasons at the end of his four seasons at Memphis from 2012-16. He went to three bowls during that time. He had a . 531 winning percentage before he left for Virginia Tech.
Matt Rhule
Temple → Baylor
Rhule had two winning seasons at the end of his four seasons at Temple from 2013-16. He went to two bowls during that time. He had a .549 winning percentage before he left for Nebraska.
Scott Frost
UCF → Nebraska
Frost had one winning season at the end of his two seasons at UCF from 2016-17. He went to two bowls during that time. He had a .731 winning percentage before he left for Nebraska.
Luke Fickell
Ohio State → Cincinnati
Fickell had no winning seasons in his one season at Ohio State in 2011. He went to one bowl during that time. He had a .462 winning percentage before he left for Cincinnati.
The two favorites for the job at Maryland are Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell and University of Alabama offensive coordinator Mike Locksley, who is a former Maryland assistant, AL.com reported.
If Maryland hired Fickell, who won the 2018 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year award, it’d continue a trend of American Athletic Conference coaches taking Power Five jobs after strong seasons.
Former Central Florida coach Scott Frost inherited a team that went winless in 2015, but he quickly helped turn the program around. UCF went a perfect 13-0 in 2017 before he left for the University of Nebraska, his alma mater.
Former Temple coach Matt Rhule led the Owls to back-to-back conference championship appearances, including their 2016 win, before taking the job at Baylor University following four seasons at Temple.
Rhule’s opposite number in the 2015 conference title game, Tom Herman, left for the University of Texas after two winning seasons at Houston.
Temple and Georgia Tech are scheduled to play on Sept. 28, 2019, at Lincoln Financial Field.
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