Todd Hartley, a Georgia graduate and former member of the Bulldogs’ coaching staff, was announced as Georgia’s new tight ends coach by Kirby Smart Monday morning.
Hartley comes to Georgia from the University of Miami, where he served as tight ends coach and special teams coordinator. A native of Gray, Ga., Hartley graduated from Georgia in 2008 with a degree in health and physical education in May 2008. He was a student assistant with the Bulldogs from 2005-08.
“We expect Todd to be a great fit back at Georgia,” Smart said. “He worked with the team while he was in school at UGA until he graduated and then returned to our program for another year later in his career in a separate role so there is no doubting his allegiance and excitement about returning to join the Bulldogs. Todd has proven himself as an excellent position coach and as a top-notch recruiter and we look forward to his return to Athens.”
Hartley is best known for helping prepare Georgia’s defense for the 2009 Independence Bowl after Willie Martinez had been dismissed.
During his tenure with the Hurricanes under head coach Mark Richt, Hartley coached tight end David Njoku before he was taken in the 2017 NFL Draft as the 29th overall pick and also guided tight end Christopher Herndon as he was drafted in the fourth round as the 107th overall pick in last year’s NFL Draft. Njoku exploded for 698 receiving yards and eight scores during his final year with Miami.
Most recently, Hartley signed tight end Brevin Jordan out of Las Vegas, who was 247Sports’ No. 1 tight end prospect in the 2018 Class. Jordan finished his first season as an All-ACC Second Team selection after hauling in 32 passes for 287 yards and four touchdowns.
“I’m very thankful to Coach Smart for giving me and my family the opportunity to come back home,” said Hartley, who was recently named to the “35 under 35” list by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) 2019 Coaches Leadership Institute. “I’m honored to be the tight ends coach at my alma mater, a program which has become one that competes for national championships annually. I’m fired up to put that ‘G’ back on my chest and I’m ready to get to work.”
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