Social media reacts to Dell McGee departure for Georgia State job
A long-standing member of the Georgia staff is now moving on to bigger and better things. Having spent eight seasons under the direction of Kirby Smart in Athens as the running backs coach, Dell McGee was officially named the next head coach at Georgia State on Friday night.
With somebody that’s spent that much time within the program, there’s bound to be plenty of reaction. Former players, assistants (both current and past) and fans all took to social media to share their thoughts on the move for McGee. DawgsHQ has rounded that up and presents some of the highlights for you below…
“Thank you to President Blake, Athletic Director Charlie Cobb and the entire search committee for the opportunity to be the head football coach at Georgia State University,” McGee said in a statement.
“I’ve spent 20-plus years coaching in Georgia. As a native of this state, this opportunity to develop student-athletes here has always been the blessing I knew I was preparing for. I am forever grateful for Coach Smart and the University of Georgia for supporting me in my dream of being of a college head coach,” he continued. “Georgia State is primed for success. As a premiere institution in the best city in America, I can’t wait to lead the football program as we compete for championships.”
McGee is the fifth head coach to leave UGA for a head coaching opportunity since Smart took over in 2016. McGee is the third non-coordinator/position coach only to be hired as a head coach, joining Fran Brown who left for Syracuse in December and Sam Pittman, who became the Arkansas head man in a little over four years ago. Mel Tucker and Dan Lanning left Athens from coordinator positions for Colorado and Oregon respectively while Shane Beamer at South Carolina is another member of the Smart coaching tree having been a part of the original staff.
The former Carver High School (Columbus, Ga.) head coach had just one year of on-field college coaching experience when Smart hired him. He spent the 2015 season at Georgia Southern and was the interim head coach for the Eagles in their bowl game. Prior to his time in Statesboro, McGee was an analyst as his alma mater, Auburn. He coached at UGA for three seasons before adding run-game coordinator to his resumè, a title he held from 2019 through the 2023 season.
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Smart built the program and got it to the highest level with a great deal of contribution from McGee, who started his career at UGA by helping develop Nick Chubb and Sony Michel. McGee was responsible for landing D’Andre Swift in his first full recruiting cycle. Those ball carriers represent three of the five running backs in Georgia history who registered multiple 1,000-yard seasons. Herschel Walker and Knowshon Moreno are the other two.
McGee also led the way in recruiting Zamir White, Kenny McIntosh, Daijun Edwards, and Kenny McIntosh while playing a big role in Georgia landing James Cook. Those five running backs helped Georgia win two straight National Championships in 2021 and 2022. Since McGee joined the Georgia staff, the Bulldogs have had six running backs drafted with one in the first round, three in the second round, one in the fourth round and one in the sixth round.
McGee will get the chance to coach his son Austin in Atlanta. A three-star cornerback out of Athens Academy, he signed with Georgia State in the Class of 2024.
McGee’s move means Georgia will look to replace a fourth assistant on staff this offseason. Fran Brown and Will Muschamp have been replaced in the secondary by Donte Williams (USC) and Travaris Robinson (Alabama). Muschamp has remained with the program in an off-field role while Brown is the new head coach at Syracuse. Meanwhile, on the offensive side of the ball, a search was already ongoing to replace wide receivers coach Bryan McClendon who made a move to the NFL and joined the staff of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
