Fit, confidence help Fran Brown fulfill purpose at Georgia

Look at the biographies of each Georgia assistant coach and one stands out as different. It belongs to Fran Brown and unlike the rest of Georgia’s staff, he’s not rooted in the South.

A New Jersey native who played his college ball at Western Carolina, Brown returned to the Northeast for the majority of his coaching career. There was no preexisting relationship that brought him to UGA, no familiarity with the area.

Brown saw an opportunity, he jumped at it, and the rest, much like the puzzle piece Kirby Smart referenced during the interview process, has fallen into place.

“Earth’s my turf,” Brown said with the kind of confidence that probably helped win over a head coach and staff he’d never worked with prior. “I’m going to fit in wherever I go because I’m comfortable with who I am.”

It’s not all that exciting, but that’s how Brown ended up at Georgia. As far as he knows, or is willing to say, there wasn’t a call from this coach to this other coach who recommended him.

That’s not to say that he didn’t get a glowing reference from former boss Matt Rhule. Now the head coach at Nebraska, Rhule took three Georgia players out of the transfer portal last month and points to Brown a reason why. The Cornhusker head coach said in his National Signing Day press conference that he trusts Brown’s judgement on those guys. He also made mention of how Brown is headed for bigger things in the coaching ranks.

A near miss…

Among the things Rhule mentioned could be in Brown’s future was a head coaching opportunity. It wasn’t that long ago that Brown narrowly missed out on one of those and, in hindsight, probably should have gotten it.

When Geoff Collins left Temple for Georgia Tech after the 2018 season, Brown interviewed for the head coaching gig. The Owls settled on Manny Diaz but he was on the job for less than three weeks before Miami came calling.

That restarted the hiring process for Temple. Brown interviewed again but was passed over once more. Rod Carey was hired. Diaz wanted him as co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach. Carey kept him with those same titles but one year of that and Brown was ready to move on.

He returned to his home state of New Jersey and spent two seasons working on Greg Schiano’s staff at Rutgers. The “reset” button had been pressed and Brown locked in.

“I was just working,” Brown said when asked about how he became a candidate for the Georgia job. “That’s where I was, keeping my head down, doing my job where I was at. Then God opened the opportunity. I got a chance to come here with coach Smart, coach (Will) Muschamp, (Glenn) Schumann. I got a chance to talk to those guys and I thought it would be a good fit. They felt it would be a good fit. So getting a chance to come here with the best team in the country and continue to help it stay the best team in the country. It’s a good deal, man. A lot of opportunity. Not a lot of people get this opportunity. There’s only, what, 131 jobs in the country? I get to have this one? Man.”

What Brown saw in Georgia…

The interview process isn’t just for the head coach to decide if he wants to hire someone. It’s a chance for the candidate, Brown in this case, to see if it is where he wants to work. The mutual interest is implied by the existence of an interview, but when there’s so little familiarity present, each side has to read things quickly.

Brown didn’t once bring up the number of blue-chip prospects who live within a 100-mile radius of Athens. He didn’t talk about how Hartsfield-Jackson Airport is a national and international travel hub, allowing Georgia to be a destination for prospects all over the country. No one would have had a cross word to say about him if he did but if that was what attracted him to UGA, he’s not talking about it.

“Just from talking to them about personal stuff,” Brown said. “We coach football. We love football but it was the personal. It’s the way they are as husbands and fathers and things of that nature. That’s what also felt good to me. I have three children a wife of 22 years. Just understanding and knowing that they’re family oriented, God-fearing men. That’s what helped me a little more. The football thing, that always handles itself. That’s what you do. That’s what my job is but we’ve got a lot of the same purposes in life — to help young men get to where they want to get to.”

Mission accomplished…

When Brown spoke with DawgsHQ last month, it was two days before Georgia won its second National Championship in as many seasons. While the Bulldogs were heavily favored in that game, Brown wasn’t assuming anything. To say he was worried about TCU standouts Quentin Johnston and Max Duggan is probably a bit strong but those players certainly had his attention.

Being in the moment is a massive part of the process at Georgia. It’s one day at a time and one play at a time and getting caught up in the past or future is discouraged.

But we’re dealing with humans here. Brown recalls the media day that happened about nine days prior in Atlanta. That one took place at the College Football Hall of Fame and it gave Brown a chance to look around. He saw the number of Bulldogs, coaches and players, who had been inducted.

Brown knew he’d have a chance to win a National Championship when he decided to come to Georgia. That trip to the Hall of Fame, however, helped him understand how much it would mean.

“Being at this school holds a lot of weight,” Brown said. “I can achieve all of my personal goals if I help this team achieve our team goal”