Georgia football: Matt Luke is not a devastating problem

On Monday afternoon, Georgia football announced that associate head coach and offensive line coach Matt Luke is stepping down from his position, giving the Dawgs another coaching vacancy to fill.

In the press release, Luke said he would be stepping down to focus on family after coaching for 25 years. Luke has been in college for 23 years and came to Georgia for the past two years after spending time at Ole Miss as the head coach.

He has done an excellent job recruiting for the Dawgs and keeping that offensive line at the same level Sam Pittman left it.

Even though it stinks to see the fourth assistant coach leave the program after the national championship season, this loss is far from detrimental.

Georgia football will find a solid replacement for Matt Luke.

Luke did a great job with his unit protecting the quarterback, only giving up 16 sacks through 15 games. The guard play hasn’t been the best the past two seasons, but it has been good enough to win a national championship.

He could see two offensive linemen in Jamaree Salyer and Justin Shaffer drafted in the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft. Not to mention both of those guys were second-team All-SEC. Warren McClendon made the Freshman All-SEC team in Luke’s first year.

There was more good than bad when it came to Luke, but there are younger and hungrier coaches out there that can elevate this group to another level.

Luke did work on the recruiting trail bringing in 14 offensive linemen in the past two recruiting cycles, including guys like Broderick Jones and Amarius Mims, two 5-star offensive tackles. Jones is already doing big things on that line, and Mims isn’t far off from getting significant reps.

No one wants to lose their offensive line coach, but it doesn’t seem like he will take another coaching job. Instead, he wants to spend time with his family, and after 20-plus years of coaching, that is understandable.

Georgia isn’t in a tough situation either with him leaving because head coach Kirby Smart has the entire offseason to find another coach. Many high-profile candidates have tight alliances with their current teams, but with the right offer, anything could happen.

Smart could look to the NFL, but there are still some college offensive line coaches that are good enough to take on this position. Some young offensive line coaches could be solid hires for the Dawgs if they can get them.

Plus, Georgia’s offensive line room is already attractive because of guys like Jones, Mims, McClendon, and the ones that will get significant playing time this year.

Georgia is a school with a rich tradition, and they just won a national championship — who wouldn’t want to coach there. If seeing how Smart does his hiring tells us anything, he already has a few names in mind, and the interview process is already underway.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see him hire a new offensive line coach before spring practice starts on March 15.