Matt Luke stepping down from duties as Georgia offensive line coach
DawgsHQ has confirmed what was first reported by UGASports that Georgia assistant coach Matt Luke is stepping down from his role leading the Bulldogs’ offensive line. An official announcement is expected later today.
Luke, who also holds the title of associate head coach, joined the staff in December of 2019 following the departure of Sam Pittman. He came on during bowl prep for the Allstate Sugar Bowl matchup against Baylor before helping the Bulldogs to their second straight New Year’s Six Bowl game win in 2020. That season Ben Cleveland was named First-Team All-SEC while Warren McClendon earned All-SEC Freshman Team honors. Cleveland would go on to be picked by the Baltimore Ravens in the 2021 NFL Draft while Trey Hill was taken by the Cincinnati Bengals.
Georgia’s offensive line once again was one of the best in the country during Luke’s second season, finishing in the top-10 for fewest sacks allowed. On a per-game basis, the Bulldogs ranked atop the SEC.
Before coming to Georgia, Luke had built a long history as a successful offensive line coach at Murray State (2000-01), Ole Miss (2002-05 and 20012-16), Tennessee (2006-07) and Duke (2006-11). In addition to coaching offensive line, Luke held co-offensive coordinator titles while at Duke and during his second stint with Ole Miss. Under his direction, the Rebels set program records for scoring, touchdowns, total offense, passing yards and passing touchdowns, leading the SEC and ranking top-10 nationally in scoring, total offense and passing during the 2015 seasons. Furthermore, Luke helped coach future NFL Draft selections Laremy Tunsil and Fahn Cooper on the offensive line. Tunsil and Cooper are among the 42 all-league selections and 27 NFL draftees that Luke coached prior to his time at UGA.
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All that success as an assistant and coordinator lead to Luke becoming the head coach of the Rebels in 2017, a position he held for three seasons. He was named the interim head coach a week before fall camp when he took over after the firing of Hugh Freeze and responded with a 6-6 season, winning three of the final four games including a road win over rival Mississippi State. The interim tag was removed after that game. Faced with a reduction of scholarships and recruiting restrictions as a result of NCAA probation from the fallout of Freeze’s tenure, Ole Miss was unable to play in a bowl game and Luke went 5-7 and 4-8 over the next two seasons.
Georgia’s next offensive line coach will inherit a room recruited both by Luke and those that came before him. With the likes of former five-stars Broderick Jones and Amarius Mims, along with returning starters Sedrick Van Pran, Warren Ericson and Warren McClendon, the Bulldogs are set up for success in 2022. Furthermore, those guys will have to hold off other talented players like Tate Ratledge and Xavier Truss, among others, in competition for playing time.
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