Georgia expected to hire North Carolina offensive line coach to replace Matt Luke

Following the departure of former offensive line coach Matt Luke, the Georgia Bulldogs have found his replacement. Kirby Smart is going after North Carolina offensive line coach Stacy Searels, according to DawgsHQ.

Searels has coached the Tar Heels offensive line since 2019. He also coached at Texas (2011-13), Virginia Tech (2014-15) and Miami (2016-18). This season, UNC posted their second season leading the ACC in rushing yards behind Searels’ offensive line.

If pen hits the paper for Searels to Georgia, it won’t be his first time in Athens. He coached the offensive line for Georgia from 2007 to 2010, earning the title of running game coordinator in 2010. With current Georgia offensive analyst Mike Bobo as the offensive coordinator and Searels leading the offensive line, the Bulldogs ranked in the top 25 for fewest sacks allowed three times.

A native of Trion, Ga., Searels played at Auburn in the mid-to-late 1980s before a brief career in professional football. Then, he returned to Auburn as a graduate assistant to get started in coaching in 1992.

In 2003, he joined Nick Saban’s staff at LSU where in his first season as the offensive line coach, the Tigers won the National Championship. Searels and Georgia coach Kirby Smart crossed paths briefly during the 2004 season as Smart was the defensive backs coach before continuing on with Saban to the NFL and Alabama.