ATHENS — It’s that time of year if you’re an assistant coach on the Georgia staff. With firings going on across the country, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to see someone like Glenn Schumann attached to various openings.
With North Carolina announcing it will part ways with Mack Brown, there is a Power 4 job befitting of Schumann’s stature. Various coaching “hot boards” have marked Schumann as an obvious candidate for the job, along with Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall.
Schumann has been on Georgia’s staff for nine years at this point, coming over with Kirby Smart from Alabama. He’s worked his way up from an unknown linebackers coach to being one of, if not the, best defensive coordinators in the country.
Smart has no problem discussing the impact Schumann has had on the Georgia program. And in Smart’s answer, he outlines why Schumann will one day make for a great head coach.
“Glenn’s always been wise, innovative, great teacher,” Smart said on Tuesday. “Both his parents were educators, and teachers, and coaches. And you can see he enjoys being in front of the group, in front of the room, and teaching different ways, thinking outside the box. And he works extremely hard. So he’s dedicated and spends a lot of time on his craft, whether it’s scheme, or fundamentals, or relationships. He was good when he started, but he’s just more experienced now.”
This is not the first time Schumann’s name has come up with other jobs. He interviewed to be the defensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles prior to the 2023 season, before ultimately remaining at Georgia.
In addition to putting his fingerprints on the Georgia defense for the last three years as the defensive coordinator, Schumann is one of the best recruiters in the country. He routinely signs the best linebackers in the country, including North Carolina native Jalon Walker in the 2022 signing class.
Walker was named a Butkus Award finalist this week. The Bulldogs have also sent waves of linebackers into the NFL, from Roquan Smith to Nakobe Dean.
Yet year after year, Schumann continues to churn out great linebackers for Georgia.
“He’s been a great reason in my growth, on and off the field,” sophomore linebacker CJ Allen said. “Just being someone I can go to and talk to about anything, whether it’s football or just life in general. Because he’s one of those coaches, he’ll always work back to life, so he’s like a life coach to me.”
Smart and Georgia are no strangers to losing coaches off their staff. Last year saw Fran Brown and Dell McGee get hired away to run Syracuse and Georgia State, respectively. Other past Georgia assistants who are now head coaches include Dan Lanning at Oregon, Sam Pittman at Arkansas and Shane Beamer at South Carolina.
While North Carolina may be the first major job to open this cycle, it may not be the only one. And with signing day and the transfer portal opening in the next two weeks, schools will undoubtedly want to move quickly to find their replacements. Brown was hired as the Syracuse head coach prior to Georgia’s SEC Championship game last year.
Georgia has a game against Georgia Tech this weekend and then will face the winner of Texas-Texas A&M in the SEC Championship game. Schumann’s candidacy will be worth following, but rest assured he’ll be focused on the task at hand for the Georgia defense.
