My dearly departed grandmother used to say
,...\"A bit dog barks the loudest...\"...God rest her soul....and NO,...she lived in Memphis and was a diehard razorback, so the attribution wasn't UGA related, but I can certainly see a connection today!...Two separate articles indicating the same content, which, to apply another idiom,
\"Where there is smoke, there's fire\"...that was for the hosedraggers out there
....But I digress,..it appears that the Chavis story is gaining traction and CJC is doing little dispel and/or derail the rumor mill....Not sure how I personally feel about CJC...afterall, he was a
VILE...but then again, we willing accepted one from Free Shoes U and he turned out pretty good. CJC is a proven commodity, from the old school and might just bring the right mix to our otherwise conflicted rise beyond also ran!!!..............
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LSU's Chavis ponders Georgia job
By Glenn Guilbeau •
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. • December 31, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. — He who raids can also get raided.
Just weeks after raiding Southeastern Conference coaching staffs at Florida and Tennessee to hire new coaches, LSU coach Les Miles may be getting raided himself by Georgia coach Mark Richt.
Richt, who fired three defensive coaches after a 7-5 regular season that saw his defense finish 70th in the nation in points allowed and 90th in pass efficiency defense, is interested in defensive coordinator John Chavis and possibly defensive line coach Brick Haley of LSU.
Miles, smarting from a 108th finish in total offense in the nation in 2009, hired receivers coach Billy Gonzales from spread icon Florida to be passing game coordinator and added offensive assistant and recruiting ace Frank Wilson from Tennessee early this month to be running backs coach and recruiting coordinator. He gave each hefty raises and better titles.
Chavis, who made $500,000 in 2009 in his first season with LSU, could stand to make significantly more at Georgia and move closer to his native South Carolina and to Tennessee, where he coached for two decades and still owns a home.
Twice on Wednesday at a news conference for the Capital One Bowl, where 9-3 LSU plays 10-2 Penn State on Friday at noon, Chavis was asked about the Georgia job. Twice, he could have put to rest all Georgia talk and said he was staying at LSU as Miles emphatically and clearly said on the day of the 2007 Southeastern Conference Championship Game when stories swirled that he was Michigan bound. But twice, Chavis left open the possibility he is Georgia bound.
Asked about the Georgia job, Chavis was evasive.
\"Well, we're excited about what we're doing at LSU, and my focus has been on LSU and will continue to be on LSU,\" Chavis said. \"We've got an opportunity to win 10 ballgames, and certainly that's what we want to do. That's where our focus is going to be, and I'll talk as long as you want to about LSU and about our players. Be happy to do that.\"
Later in the news conference, Chavis was asked point blank if he would be coaching at LSU next season, and he punted.
\"Like I said earlier, I'll be happy to talk about the bowl game and anything beyond that, I want to leave it like it is,\" said Chavis.
This could well mean one of two things — either Chavis has already accepted the Georgia job and is waiting until after Friday's game to publicly announce it or he is deciding between the two schools. After the news conference, Chavis told a reporter he understood that the question had to be asked.
Meanwhile, LSU was busy Wednesday night trying to convince Chavis to stay by raising his salary to what Georgia is offering, according to a member of LSU's athletic department.
Richt has not spoken publicly about any of his possible future hires. He has only said he wants his new defensive coordinator in by the first week of January, which is days away.
Richt fired defensive coordinator Willie Martinez, defensive co-coordinator John Jancek and defensive ends coach Jon Fabris after a season that saw the Bulldogs finish 10th in the SEC in points allowed with 26.4 a game, including 40 points three times, and 11th in pass efficiency defense with an SEC-high 23 touchdowns allowed.
Chavis drastically improved LSU's defense from a disastrous 2008 season as the Tigers finished third in the SEC and 12th nationally in scoring defense with 16 points allowed a game and fifth in the SEC and 18th nationally in pass efficiency defense in 2009. In 2008, LSU finished 11th in the SEC and 73rd nationally in pass defense and ninth in the SEC and 56th nationally in scoring defense with 24 points allowed a game.
With two other defensive openings at Georgia, Chavis may get to hire his own assistants if he goes to Georgia. Richt has said he wants his new coordinator to be able to do that. Chavis was not allowed to bring in his own assistants to LSU when he was hired.
Miles did not return a text about Chavis' status on Wednesday night, but he did comment on Chavis' situation with Georgia on Tuesday.
\"We have not discussed Georgia in any way,\" Miles said. \"Certainly, there's word out that Georgia has interest, but I have not spoken to Georgia.\"
A native of Dillon, S.C., Chavis is not very familiar with Louisiana and did not purchase a home in Baton Rouge after taking the LSU job in December of 2008. He instead bought a condominium and did not sell his home in Knoxville, Tenn. His wife Diane rotated between Knoxville and the Baton Rouge condo over the last year. His two grown sons John and Jason also remain in Knoxville, which is just 142 miles from Athens, Ga.
Most of Chavis' coaching experience is also in the SEC East. As the Volunteers' defensive coordinator from 1995-2008, Chavis routinely fielded one of the SEC's best defenses.
While at Tennessee, Chavis appeared close to taking other jobs several times, but he stayed at Tennessee. He nearly joined Lou Holtz at South Carolina early this decade and came close to taking NFL jobs with Indianapolis and Houston, but in the end he stayed put.
Chavis, 53, also has an old school persona and spoke often of his loyalty to Tennessee as he moved into LSU. Taking his third job in three years would be very uncharacteristic of Chavis' work history. It would not make sense to LSU's players either.
\"I don't think he's leaving,\" Sheppard said after the news conference Wednesday. \"I thought he really enjoyed being at LSU this season. He was the difference in our team this season. I haven't got the feeling he's leaving.\"
Senior outside linebacker Harry Coleman, whom Chavis moved from safety with very successful results, echoed Sheppard when he spoke to reporters on Tuesday.
\"I would be real surprised if he left,\" Coleman said. \"He was the key. He got the best out of all of us. It would be a real surprise if he left.\"
Haley came to LSU after last season from the Chicago Bears, where he coached the defensive line for two seasons. Before that he was a defensive line coach at Mississippi State from 2004-06. He is familiar with Georgia's recruiting base as he was Georgia Tech's linebackers coach in 2002-03 and coached linebackers at nearby Clemson in 1998.
LINKAGE:
www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20091231...-ponders-Georgia-job
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LSU’s Chavis sidesteps talk of UGA job
4:06 pm December 30, 2009, by Tim Tucker
LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis left speculation swirling today that he is considering the same job at Georgia.
He was asked twice about the issue at a Capital One Bowl news conference in Orlando -– and twice answered without distancing himself from the UGA job.
The first time, he said: “Well, we’re excited about what we’re doing at LSU, and my focus has been on LSU and will continue to be on LSU. We have an opportunity to win 10 ballgames, and certainly that is what we want to do. We’ve got an opportunity to be the third team in the SEC to win 100 ballgames in a decade, and certainly that is what we want to do. So that is where our focus is going to be. I’ll talk as long as you want to about LSU and about our players. Be happy to do that.”
In other words: a protracted no-comment about the Georgia job.
Later in the news conference, asked pointedly if he would still be at LSU next season, Chavis replied: “Like I said earlier, I’ll be happy to talk about our players, about this bowl game. Beyond that, I really want to leave it like it is.”
An LSU athletic department official told Gannett Louisiana Newspapers this afternoon that LSU was trying to match a Georgia offer to Chavis.
On Tuesday in Orlando, LSU head coach Les Miles acknowledged Georgia’s interest in Chavis, who is completing his first season as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator after 20 years on the Tennessee staff.
“We have not discussed Georgia in any way, [but] certainly there is word out that Georgia has interest,” Miles said Tuesday. “I have not heard from Georgia. I don’t really want to talk about that. . . . It’s a distraction to a game.”
LSU plays Penn State in the Capital One Bowl on Friday.
Georgia coach Mark Richt has been seeking a new defensive coordinator since the Dec. 2 firing of Willie Martinez. UGA associate athletics director Claude Felton said Wednesday that Richt, consistent with his policy throughout the process, would have no comment on any potential candidate.
Chavis made $450,000 plus bonuses at LSU this season. Indications have been that Georgia would be willing to go higher than that and offer a multi-year contract to the right candidate.
Chavis, 53, a South Carolina native, coached at Tennessee from 1989 through 2008, serving as defensive coordinator his final 14 years in Knoxville. The Vols ranked among the SEC’s top four teams in total defense in 10 of Chavis’ 14 years as coordinator.
In Chavis’ first season at LSU, the Tigers’ defense improved dramatically, ranking third in the SEC and 12th nationally in scoring defense (16 points allowed per game).
Another veteran defensive coordinator, Virginia Tech’s Bud Foster, considered the Georgia job earlier this month but declined UGA’s offer after receiving a sweetened deal to stay with the Hokies. Georgia also discussed the job with former Clemson defensive coordinator (and former Kansas State co-defensive coordinator) Vic Koenning, who recently was named DC at Illinois.
Georgia also has two other openings on its defensive staff, but Richt has said the first priority is to hire a coordinator, who then will have considerable input into filling the other positions.
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LINKAGE:
blogs.ajc.com/uga-sports-blog/2009/12/30...esteps-uga-question/
GO DAWGS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!