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The Miami Hurricanes football program will be looking for a new linebacker coach.
According to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, Miami Linebackers Coach Travis Williams should accept the duties of defensive coordinator at UCF.
The UCF announced on Monday the hiring of former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn. Williams was on Malzahn’s Auburn coaching staff from 2016-20. He served as defensive co-coordinator from 2019-20.
Although Williams hasn’t been in Miami for even a month, his loss of staff matters as he is respected as one of the top linebacker developers and recruiters.
Former linebacker coach and defensive coordinator Blake Baker accepted the position of linebacker coach at LSU last month.
Manny Diaz, who has announced he will call the defense again in 2021, will have many directions to follow to fill the position. His background is with coaching linebackers and he could fill that role while using the assistant coach position elsewhere. Diaz could elevate analyst Bob Shoop to UM coaching, which he did in 2019 when Todd Stroud was appointed defensive line coach. There are some great options out there as well, such as former MU head coach Randy Shannon, who is not expected to be retained at UCF, and Kevin Steele, who was not retained in Tennessee.
Mississippi State analyst Jamar Chaney, a former NFL linebacker, has ties to Florida State and also has a relationship with Diaz.
Since 2016, Auburn’s group of linebacker positions have produced three All-SEC caps in Tre ‘Williams, Deshaun Davis and more recently KJ Britt. In 2019, Britt became the first school linebacker to be named the All-SEC First Team as Travis Williams himself was recognized in his outstanding 2004 season, in which he led the Tigers in tackles with 80 .
During the 2020 season, Auburn featured one of the nation’s most athletic linebacker tandems, Zakoby McClain and Owen Pappoe. Both players rely on speed with their ability to continue from sideline to sideline. McClain led Auburn’s defense with 113 tackles while adding 5.5 tackles for the loss and three sacks. Pappoe was second on the team with 93 tackles, six tackles for a loss and four sacks.
Auburn’s 2020 defense also introduced All-SEC preseason inside linebacker KJ Britt to linebacker, but he was limited to two games before his season was cut short by surgery that was needed to repair the damage. torn ligaments in his right thumb. In 2019, Britt finished the team’s season third in tackles with 68 tackles while adding ten tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. He was considered one of the top linebackers in the SEC.
In 2018, linebacker Deshaun Davis led Auburn with 112 tackles, 15 tackles for a loss and 3.5 sacks. Linebacker Darrell Williams was tied for second on the team with 74 tackles while adding seven tackles for a loss, sack and interception. Davis was a three-year starter for Auburn from 2016-18, and he ended his career with 262 tackles, 29.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks. At 5-foot-11, 236 pounds, Davis was selected in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals.
Williams has shown his ability to win big recruiting battles, especially as a linebacker. In the 2019 class, Williams was the senior recruiter for five-star Owen Pappoe from Grayson High School in Georgia. Williams took on her rival in the state, Georgia, and managed to land Auburn’s highest rated signer since the class of 2016. In the 2018 class, Williams was able to dive again in Georgia, earning the signing of the High school linebacker Valdosta Zakoby McClain, who was a four-star prospect who ranked at number 197 in the country.
Williams was also instrumental in landing four-star wide receiver Matthew Hill, four-star inside linebacker Wesley Steiner, four-star inside linebacker TD Moultry, four-star athlete Smoke Monday, four-star inside linebacker Desmond Tisdol, four-star cornerback Christian Tutt, four-star inside linebacker Michael Harris, four-star athlete Richard Jibunor, four-star linebacker Cameron Riley and four-star inside linebacker KJ Britt.
Williams ranked the nation’s 13th scout in the 2018 category, according to 247Sports. Williams has been credited with eight commitments for Auburn during this cycle, with six of those players ranking among the four-star prospects.
After a four-year career at Auburn, Travis Williams played a few seasons in the NFL before starting his coaching career at Spring Valley High School (SC) in 2008. He returned to his alma mater in 2009 as as graduate assistant, working. for his former defensive coordinator, Gene Chizik.
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