Florida defensive coordinator Todd Grantham is no stranger to Georgia fans. Grantham served as defensive coordinator for the Bulldogs under Mark Richt from 2010-213 and is well-remembered for flashing the “choke sign” in 2010 to Florida place-kicker Chas Henry in an overtime game the Gators won 34-31.
In a story O. Henry fans would no doubt find compelling, Grantham is now at Florida, after three seasons at Louisville. The Gators rank first in the SEC in pass defense (160.1 yards per game), sixth in total defense (323.3 yards per game), seventh in scoring defense (16.6 points per game) and 11th in rushing defense (163.1 yards per game).
“He’s doing a good job this year at Florida,” Smart said of Grantham, who also has an extensive NFL background. “They’re aggressive, doing a good job of causing turnovers, got all kinds of fumble recoveries and all kinds of stipulates.”
Bulldogs defensive end Jonathan Ledbetter also is familiar with Grantham and the all-in style his defenses employ.
“I wasn’t here, but my brother was actually about to get recruited … before I got here, so (Grantham) was still the coach here and was still on the defensive side,” said Ledbetter, who has 21 tackles, including one tackle for loss, this season. “He is a really great coach. He likes to go all for it when he is running a defense and sends a lot of guys, and you can see that is what he is doing at Florida.”
In addition to Grantham, Florida also has a Georgia connection in linebackers coach Christian Robinson, who played 71 games for the Bulldogs from 2009-12. Robinson, who prepped at Greater Atlanta Christian in Norcross, spent two seasons as a graduate assistant at Georgia, then spent 2015 and 2016 at Ole Miss before joining Mississippi State in 2017 and coming to Gainesville earlier this year along with Mullen.
About the Author
