Reports: Texas A&M to hire away defensive coordinator from SEC rival

It’s reportedly a “done deal.” Texas A&M has its new defensive coordinator.

DJ Durkin is leaving Ole Miss for the Aggies, according to multiple reports. He just wrapped up his second year as Ole Miss’ assistant coach, co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.

SOURCE: This is a done deal. DJ Durkin is leaving Ole Miss to become the new DC at Texas A&M. @BrentZwerneman first reported the hire was happening. https://t.co/mstRbzSuiX

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 5, 2022

Durkin got his coaching start in 2001 as a graduate assistant at Bowling Green before moving on to Notre Dame as a GA in 2003. He went back to Bowling Green in 2005 as defensive ends coach and moved up to linebackers and special teams coach in 2006.

From there, he headed to Stanford from 2007-09 and worked at Florida from 2010-14. Durkin served as Michigan’s defensive coordinator in 2015 and became Maryland’s head coach from 2016-17. He was let go as Terps coach in 2018 and became analyst with the Atlanta Falcons in 2019. After that, he arrived at Ole Miss in 2020.

He’ll replace Mike Elko, who left for the head coach job at Duke this offseason. Texas A&M held teams to 327.5 yards per game this season — third-best in the SEC.

More on DJ Durkin’s move to Texas A&M

Throughout his career, Durkin made his career by coaching stifling defenses. However, his track record took a hit when he was fired amid controversy from his head coaching post with the Maryland Terrapins.

Since, Durkin has reshaped his image and returned to the sidelines. After taking over the Ole Miss defense in 2020, he transformed the Rebels from one of the SEC’s worst to a formidable unit. While Ole Miss was built on offense, their defense won them multiple games in 2021.

After losing defensive coordinator Mike Elko to Duke, Jimbo Fisher was on the look for a formidable replacement. While Durkin may be a controversial hire among the fanbase, one thing is for sure — he knows his stuff on defense.

Last season, Texas A&M was able to see DJ Durkin’s defensive prowess first hand. The Ole Miss defense shut down the Aggies offense, leading to a 29-19 victory in Oxford for the Rebels.

Many expected the Aggies to defeat the Rebels, as Texas A&M was becoming one of the hottest teams in the nation at the time. However, Ole Miss doused their fire. While the Aggies would go on to defeat Prairie View in their next game, they would end their season with a loss to LSU prior to pulling out of the Gator Bowl.

Next season, the expectations will be high for the Aggies to reach new heights under Jimbo Fisher. With DJ Durkin calling his defense, perhaps Texas A&M can finally find the immense success they’ve been searching for.