Report: Georgia Tech to hire Texas assistant Blake Gideon as defensive coordinator

Texas associate head coach for defense and safeties coach Blake Gideon is reportedly headed to the ACC. Gideon has been hired as the defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech, according to a report from Matt Zenitz.

He is leaving the Longhorns program after helping Texas to the semifinals of the College Football Playoff this past season.

Blake Gideon was not only on staff at Texas but he played for the Longhorns from 2008-11, serving as a four-year starter at safety. He was also named a team captain twice.

Prior to coming to Texas ahead of the 2021 season, Blake Gideon served as the special teams coordinator for Ole Miss.

Gideon helped lead a Texas secondary that was one of the best in the country in 2024. Texas ranked No. 7 nationally in passing yards per game allowed at 173.8. The Longhorns were also tied for the fewest passing touchdowns allowed with nine.

The Texas defense also finished with 22 interceptions, which tied for the most in the nation. The Longhorns had two really good safeties in 2024 in Michael Taaffe and Andrew Mukuba.

Now Blake Gideon is off to join a Georgia Tech program led by head coach Brent Key that is coming off of an excellent season in 2024. The Yellow Jackets finished with a 7-6 (5-3) record and nearly upset Georgia in Athens to close out the regular season.

Gideon is replacing former Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Tyler Santucci, who was recently hired as the linebackers coach for the Baltimore Ravens.

More on Georgia Tech DC Tyler Santucci taking assistant job with Baltimore Ravens

Blake Gideon is replacing Tyler Santucci, who left Georgia Tech after one season with the Yellow Jackets.

Santucci has been the defensive coordinator for Duke (2023) and Georgia Tech (2024) recently. He also received interest from NFL teams in the past.

Now, he’ll head to Baltimore to join John Harbaugh and his staff.

Santucci has a pretty extensive history at the college football level of coaching, but this will be his first journey into the National Football League. He worked with Texas A&M as their linebackers coach for two years (2020-2022) and even acted as their Co-Defensive Coordinator in 2022. Before joining Texas A&M, Santucci made a variety of stops across the college football landscape, including Wake Forest, Notre Dame, Texas State, and Stony Brook.

Not only did Santucci play for four years at Stony Brook (2006-2009), but he also spent from 2010-2013 on their coaching staff. The first two years, he served as a graduate assistant, working with the linebackers and then the defensive line. In 2012, he moved onto coaching the safeties. And in 2013, he worked with their defensive line.