How Schumann’s coaching hopes have been impacted by Georgia’s defensive slide

ATHENS — Timing is everything in life. And Glenn Schumann has picked a heck of a time to field his worst defense in his helm as Georgia’s defensive coordinator.

The defensive coordinator has come under plenty of scrutiny at Georgia for the performance of the defense this season. The Bulldogs rank last in the SEC in sacks and tackles for loss, while ranking 30th nationally in scoring defense. If that holds, it would be Georgia’s worst finish in the category since the 2016 season, coach Kirby Smart’s first in Athens.

“I think I’d start with tackling,” Smart said about what improvements he’d like to see from the defense. “I think, at the end of the day, that’s what defense is about. Good defenses have few missed tackles. When you look at the two of our lesser performances, there were a lot of missed tackles. The first thing you start with is that. You’ve got to tackle well.

This dip in performance comes at a time when Schumann was supposed to be seen as an ascending star in the coaching ranks. In the past, he’s interviewed for the defensive coordinator job for the Philadelphia Eagles while being a reported finalist for the head coaching job at North Carolina just last year. That job ultimately went to Bill Belichick, who has yet to win a game against a Power Four opponent this season.

With jobs like Penn State, Florida and LSU already open, Schumann would seem like someone who would normally appeal to those jobs. Dan Lanning landed the Oregon job in 2021 after serving as the team’s defensive coordinator. Colorado hired Georgia defensive coordinator Mel Tucker in 2018. Even Fran Brown, a defensive backs coach at Georgia, was hired as the Syracuse head coach in 2023.

But Georgia’s defense is going in the wrong direction at the worst possible time for Schumann’s coaching stock. Of the coaching hot-board lists for the big jobs, Schumann’s name isn’t coming up.

Schumann likely is far more concerned about shoring his defense than hunting for his next job. He’s dealt with coaching rumors before, and that’s never seemed to have much of an impact on him or his players.

“I think we’ve just got a great relationship,” linebacker CJ Allen said. “You know, obviously being recruited throughout the process until now, so, man, me and Coach Schu, we’ve got a great relationship, for sure.”

Schumann is in his 10th season on Smart’s staff. He’s been the primary defensive play-caller for the past four seasons, taking over the job from Lanning to start the 2022 season.

To this point, Schumann’s career resembles that of Smart. He waited and waited and waited, spending nine seasons at Alabama before getting the Georgia job.

Smart had the benefit of being a Georgia alum. Schumann graduated from Alabama, which doesn’t expect to have an opening anytime soon.

Smart spoke this week on the pros and cons of taking a job at your alma mater.

“I think there’s an attachment, and you understand it well,” he said. “There’s also a burden that comes with that, in terms of, I’ve been other places, and you never have to worry about keeping people happy that played there before, or the people that were involved there before, or feeling like your time is their time. I’m not just talking about former players and lettermen. I’m talking about alumni and everybody else.

“So there’s advantages and disadvantages to it.”

While Schumann may not be a candidate for a high-end job, his salary at Georgia may keep him from taking a Group of Five job. Schumann makes $2.003 million as Georgia’s defensive coordinator. Using 2024 salaries, Schumann was the seventh-highest paid assistant coach in the sport.

Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield, who has the Tigers at 7-1 and sitting at No. 25 in the AP Poll, makes $2.25 million per year according to the USA Today coaches database. Alex Golesh of South Florida makes $2.5 million.

Would it be worth it for Schumann to take a marginally higher-paying job at a program with fewer resources? Dell McGee took the Georgia State job after spending eight seasons as Georgia’s running backs coach, and his record is 4-16.

To this point, Schumann’s resume speaks for itself. He has signed and developed three Butkus Award winners as Georgia’s inside linebackers coach. He’s worked up close with one of the best head coaches in the sport, having a large hand in how the Georgia defense plays.

That unit isn’t the game-wrecking Georgia defense we saw in 2021 or even when Schumann took over in 2022. It’s a younger defense, one that dealt with significant turnover this offseason.

Schumann could’ve been gone as well had North Carolina moved in a different direction with its coaching search. Instead, Schumann returned for his 10th season on Georgia’s staff. He’s the last remaining on-field assistant from Smart’s first coaching staff.

Given how the Georgia defense is playing, Schumann may stick around even longer, instead of leaping for one of the top open jobs in the sport.

Correction