Sapakoff: Rattler-Loggains ‘partnership’ part of new SEC coordinators intrigue

6-8 minutes 7/23/2023
Ten of the SEC’s 14 offensive coordinators are new.
So are six of the defensive coordinators.
LSU and Vanderbilt are SEC outliers, back with the same pair of coordinators as in 2022.
That’s a lot of change — old, new, borrowed and garnet.
The list includes old guys such as Bobby Petrino, Kevin Steele and Mike Bobo.
Among the incoming play-callers is South Carolina’s Dowell Loggains and his so-far popular NFL leadership style.
Two of the SEC’s new defensive coordinators are Palmetto State natives, Steele and Travis Williams.
Ranking the SEC’s 10 most intriguing new coordinators, as it looks between the just-completed SEC Media Days gab fest in Nashville and the first major Saturday of season openers Sept. 2:
1. Bobby Petrino, Texas A&M offensive coordinator
An elite strategist, repeatedly proven. But will underachieving Aggie head coach Jimbo Fisher, a Florida State national championship winner who came to Clemson as a baseball player, really give the 62-year-old Petrino free reign?
2. Tommy Rees, Alabama offensive coordinator
Someone at SEC Media Days asked Nick Saban, 71, what it’s like working with the 31-year-old Rees.
“I feel like I’m still 39,” said Saban, who hired Rees after Bill O’Brien went to become the New England Patriots’ OC.
Quarterback Tyler Buchner followed Rees from South Bend after losing his job to former Oceanside Collegiate and Wake Forest standout Sam Hartman.
Rees has star potential; ask Clemson people. He called the plays as Notre Dame scorched the Tigers in South Bend in 2020 (47-40 in double OT) and 2022 (35-14).
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3. Dowell Loggains, South Carolina offensive coordinator
With Marcus Satterfield gone to Nebraska, this is fascinating because of Loggains’ miserable record in four NFL years as an offensive coordinator — while factoring in the lousy rosters of the Bears, Dolphins and Jets and a fresh opportunity to work with Gamecocks’ NFL prospect Spencer Rattler.
Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson at SEC Media Days raved about the 42-year-old Loggains, who spent the last two seasons as Razorbacks’ tight ends coach.
Rattler is happy, too.
“It’s more like a partnership than a coach-player relationship,” Rattler said.
Which is why Rattler in Nashville was referring to Loggains as “Dowell” and not “Coach.”
Kevin Steele, 3.0
4. Kevin Steele, Alabama defensive coordinator
Pete Golding left for Ole Miss “for whatever reasons,” Saban said. Welcome back, Mr. Steele, a 65-year-old Dillon native, who has seen it all.
Or most of it.
This is Steele’s third stop on Saban’s Alabama staff. He’s a former Baylor head coach (9-36 from 1999-2002) and Clemson defensive coordinator (2009-2011).
5. Mike Bobo, Georgia offensive coordinator
The first time calling plays for Kirby Smart (Todd Monken left for the Baltimore Ravens after two national titles at Georgia) but the second time as Georgia’s OC.
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Under Mark Richt as quarterbacks coach and/or play-caller, Bobo worked with such quarterbacks as David Greene, Matthew Stafford and Aaron Murray.
And so an SEC team has two coordinators (Bobo and defensive coordinator Will Muschamp) that were South Carolina head coaches in the same season (2020). It’s a record unlikely to be broken.
6. Kevin Barbay, Mississippi State offensive coordinator
The late, great Mike Leach was one of the sport’s passing game masters, replaced in this Stark Vegas play-calling role by Barbay.
The former Appalachian State and Central Michigan OC will run the ball more, with wide zone stretch schemes very unlike Leach’s limited regard for rushing offense.
Will it work? Hail State fans will find out early with LSU, at South Carolina and Alabama on the late September schedule.
7. Travis Williams, Arkansas defensive coordinator
A Columbia native and Spring Valley High School graduate, the former Auburn All-SEC linebacker was very aggressive as Central Florida’s DC the last two years. He replaces Barry Odom, who left to become head coach at UNLV.
Head coach Sam Pittman is ready to take chances, to an extent.
“I said, ‘Hey, man, I want to go after people but every now and then, can you leave a guy in the middle of the field back there, you know?’” Pittman said he told Williams after making the hire.
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8. Liam Coen, Kentucky offensive coordinator
Coen is back after serving as Mark Stoops’ OC in 2021 and then spending the 2022 season as the Los Angeles Rams’ OC. He replaces Rick Scangerello, fired after just one season, and gets to work with quarterback Devin Leary, often very good at N.C. State when healthy.
9. Philip Montgomery, Auburn offensive coordinator
Yes, new Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze has been a primary play-caller during his head coach life. But Freeze wants to do more big-picture work.
Montgomery was the Tulsa head coach from 2015-22 and a Baylor OC before that.
“Philip and I have a great understanding,” Freeze said in Nashville. “Listen, game planning is a combination of a lot of people that go into it. … Obviously, Philip will be the primary play-caller.”
10. Kirby Moore, Missouri offensive coordinator
Head coach Eli Drinkwitz, likely heading to the hot seat, isn’t calling plays anymore. Enter Moore, a former Fresno offensive coordinator who caught passes at Boise State from his brother, former star quarterback Kellen Moore, the Los Angeles Chargers’ play-caller.