ATHENS — The success of new Georgia defensive backs coach Jahmile Addae “starts with his character” according to the man who gave Addae his first full-time coaching roll in the FBS ranks.
Arkansas State coach Butch Jones liked what he saw from Addae as a player at West Virginia, and he could see coaching promise when Addae was working as a graduate assistant coach at Michigan.
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“Jahmile has a unique skill set of being able to manage and coach and also relating to his players on a daily basis,” said Jones, who hired Addae to be his running backs coach at Cincinnati in 2010-11.
“He takes great pride in the fundamentals and details of what it takes to play winning football.”
Many have suggested the Bulldogs are in need of a players-coach in the secondary, where a great deal of coaching and development of young players will be needed in the coming seasons.
Addae, like Georgia head coach Kirby Smart, can relate to players as a former all-conference safety during his years as a player with the Mountaineers.
Jones told DawgNation that Georgia is sure to benefit from Addae, who he said would have “great success” working for Smart.
“I’m very excited for Jahmile to have this opportunity to work with Coach Smart in a great Georgia program,” Jones said. “He’s an individual who has worked his way up in the coaching profession, and it all starts with his character and family.”
Jones, himself, is back in the head coaching ranks at Arkansas State after spending the past three years on the Alabama staff after being fired with four games left in the 2017 season.
Jones was 34-27 during his five years on Rocky Top and led the Vols to three straight bowl wins and their first Top 10 appearance in the rankings in 10 seasons after a win at Georgia in 2016.
The coaching carousel turned at UT again on Wednesday when the school announced Josh Heupel as its new head coach, replacing Jeremy Pruitt who was 16-19 in three seasons.
Addae, whose hire was also announced on Wednesday, thanked the coaching staff at West Virginia and players on his social media account for the opportunities he has had as a player and coach with the Mountaineers.
Georgia has a massive rebuild underway in its secondary, with nine scholarship defensive backs having left the program since the end of the 2019 season, including four transfers.
Three former starting cornerbacks are departing the 2020 team, including All-Amerian Eric Stokes, projected first-round NFL draft pick Tyson Campbell and current Senior Bowl participant D.J. Daniel.
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