Verducci out, Davis in as Florida OL coach

By Adam Silverstein
February 13, 2012

When former offensive coordinator Charlie Weis left the Florida Gators to take the head coaching job with the Kansas Jayhawks, it was assumed that offensive line coach Frank Verducci, who worked with Weis at Notre Dame, would soon follow.

Verducci instead stayed put in Gainesville, FL for the time being has now moved on “to pursue other interests,” according to a Florida release, as the Gators announced Monday that the Utah UtesTim Davis will take over for him in 2012.

The Gainesville Sun reports that Verducci was fired after pursuing jobs in the NFL (including one with the Kansas City Chiefs). A source close to the team tells OGGOA that head coach Will Muschamp was not properly informed about the job search.

A veteran coach with more than two decades in the business, Davis has worked on the offensive line with Walla Walla (1988), Idaho State (1989), Utah (1990-96, 2011), USC (2002-04), the Miami Dolphins (2005-06) and Minnesota (2009-10).

He was also a volunteer, student assistant and graduate assistant at Utah, Wisconsin and Arizona for seven years (1981-87) and served double duty as offensive coordinator at Walla Walla and tight ends coach at Utah (1994-96).

Following his time as assistant offensive line coach under Nick Saban at Miami, Davis spent a year as Saban’s director of player personnel with Alabama (2008). He added the role of running game coordinator when he took the Minnesota job in 2009.

Davis and Muschamp are connected through Saban, both having served on the Dolphins’ coaching staff during the 2005 season. Muschamp spent just one year in the NFL before returning to college the following season.

“He was a guy that brought energy and passion to the job every day,” Muschamp said of Davis’s attitude while with Miami. “He is going to bring toughness. I thought he did a great job with our offensive line [with the Dolphins]. Everywhere he has been and he’s coached they have been able to run the football and create the play-actions of it, be able to spread the field, understand the protections and do what you’ve got to do to be able to keep the quarterback upright.

“You look at some of the guys he has worked for and you talk about Barry Alvarez, you talk about Nick Saban, you talk about Pete Carroll. You talk about those guys and what they have accomplished. He knows what it takes to be successful.”

[EXPAND Click to expand and read the remainder of this story.]Davis actually pursued the offensive line coach job with Florida when Muschamp took over in 2011, but Weis’s relationship with Verducci obviously took precedent.

“It wasn’t available then,” Davis said. “I told [Muschamp], ‘Well, I’m going to be persistent. I’m going to keep trying.’ I always wanted to work and coach in the SEC, especially with guys I know and have coached with.”

Though Davis has been a part of three BCS bowl teams and two national championships as a member of USC’s coaching staff, he has never coached alongside new Gators offensive coordinator Brent Pease.

He did, however, work on staffs with current Florida running backs coach Brian White and tight ends coach Derek Lewis. Davis spent his four-year tenure at Wisconsin with White, three years of which White also served as offensive coordinator. Lewis, an assistant with Minnesota from 2007-10, worked with Davis for two years.

“It was easy [to make the move] because of Will and Dan and Brian and D-Lew,” he said. “You don’t make a decision like this – leaving your home state and everybody you know – without having somebody you know. That’s one of the things in coaching you can’t do. You have to be able to connect yourself with the guys you work with.

“The SEC is the premiere conference in the country, and you get a chance to work with guys you’ve worked with who are very successful, very motivated, they want to be the best. You’re working in a great environment and a great program like Florida. It’s everything that you dream about.”

Photo Credit: Mike Terry, Deseret News[/EXPAND]

14 Comments

  1. David says:

    LINtastic (Adam — that one’s for us Knick fans) GREAT hire. Just great. Has worked with these guys before. You look at what he did with Wisconsin, USC, etc … His recruiting work at Alabama. Great get by Muschamp. Verducci only came because of Weis and we saw how that went. Next up, Aubrey Hill.

    • CeeThree says:

      +1 on Aubrey Hill being up next.

      As for this situation, very strange set of events, regardless, welcome aboard Tim Davis, now go recruit Laremy Tunsil as if your job depends on it. I was never a fan of Verducci from the day he was hired, glad he’s out from a football perspective but always hate to see people lose their job, wish him the best of luck in whatever he does from here.

  2. g8ter27 says:

    Any idea why Frank really left?

  3. Aligator says:

    Verducci going to Kansas?

  4. Daniel M. says:

    Clean out every single trace of Weis. Sorry Verducci, you have Charlie’s chicken grease odor on you.

  5. Timmy T says:

    Welcome to Gator Nation, Coach Davis.

  6. GG says:

    Can things get any weirder in Gville? Who’s next? Never seen anything quite like the last 12-18 months.

    • David says:

      Who is next? Hopefully, Aubrey Hill. Dude didn’t coach well at UM, hasn’t coached well at UF, didn’t recruit a single WR (Pittman was committed before Hill came), and was part of the Shapiro scandal at UM…

  7. g8ter27 says:

    Yes appears he did get the boot. So apparently he interviewed with KC last week (only what I have heard) and according to other reports his family still lives in Indiana and he sucked at recruiting. Muschamp’s quote when referring to Tim Davis saying “he is committed to being a Gator and that is important to me” makes me think that those reasons are real.

  8. jay d says:

    I`m glad muschamp is at least willing to fire coaches who arn`t working out ( hopefully foley will do the same next year if there is no visible improvements). next man in line steps up…… Gators do not have time for coaching to be in disaray…… one would think the coaching change over would be a non-issue in the second year……buckle your seat-belt kids….looks like its gunna get bumpy!…..also….stop with these big name hires….they hardly work out….to relive success at another school is very rare and only the best of the best make it happen….with that being said…I like the fact that I havn`t heard of this davis guy before…..lets see what he`s got!!

  9. Ken (CA) says:

    I have never really understood how coaching works, unless it is something contractually stated that must inform if looking for a job, I have never understood why schools have to ask permission of other schools to talk to a coach or coach to inform the head coach he is looking at another position. The last thing I would ever do is tell my employer I am looking for a better job until I actually have one to go to.

  10. Courtney says:

    Hill did a great job with the miami wrs look at the numbers of benjamin and hankerson, both record setting.he is also one of our best recruiters. I hardly think its one mans fault for pulling in one wr. Obviously our focus was getting in dl. Looks like a great hire though perfect timing seein that we have to start over on o anyway. Besides just because you coach a certain position does not mean you recruit extensively to that position.

  11. scooterp says:

    The dude even looks crazy. We need that……….. just looking at the picture posted, he does not look like head coaching material, which means he might actually stay for awhile.

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