Jeremy Pruitt will start from scratch after all.
In the hours following Pruitt’s introduction as Georgia’s new defensive coordinator Wednesday, two more assistants decided to leave the Bulldogs. Chris Wilson, the Bulldogs’ defensive line coach for the past year, accepted a position on the staff at USC, people familiar with Wilson’s decision told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Meanwhile, inside linebackers coach Kirk Olivadotti is returning to work for the NFL’s Washington Redskins, according to several published reports, citing sources. He will also coach inside linebackers for the Redskins, according to The Washington Post.
That means that Pruitt, who left BCS champion Florida State to take over the Bulldogs’ defense, will have to hire a new staff. Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, who also coached outside linebackers, took the same job at Louisville. Defensive backs coach Scott Lakatos resigned Thursday. Pruitt said he will coach defensive backs.
Both Olivadotti and Wilson expressed interest in succeeding Grantham, but neither got the chance. Coach Mark Richt tabbed Pruitt 48 hours after accepting Grantham’s resignation. Richt said at Wednesday’s news conference he hoped both Wilson and Olivadotti would return, “if they want to.”
The mass exodus comes at the end of a season in which Georgia finished in the bottom half of the SEC in almost every defensive category except for rush defense.
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