Aggies set to hire Durkin as defensive leader
COLLEGE STATION — Mississippi’s defense held Texas A&M without a touchdown until midway through the third quarter and to 19 points total in mid-November.
A&M coach Jimbo Fisher has in turn hired Mississippi’s defensive coordinator, according to multiple insiders with knowledge of the hire. DJ Durkin replaces Mike Elko, who left A&M in December to become Duke’s head coach.
A&M is not expected to officially announce the hire for at least another day. Durkin’s official title at Ole Miss under coach Lane Kiffin was “co-defensive coordinator,” but there was no question he called the shots for a unit that improved throughout the season.
“He’s done a great job all season,” Kiffin said of Durkin following Baylor’s 21-7 victory over the Rebels in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans on New Year’s Day. “He’s done a fabulous job with our players, not just in performance but recruiting and flipping over a roster that … statistically over the last five years of defense here has been as bad as anybody in the country.”
The Rebels’ final five opponents this season averaged 18 points per game, and none scored more than 21. Durkin, a former Maryland head coach, inherits a wealth of talent on the Aggies’ defense — along with the nation’s top-ranked recruiting class, loaded with sought-after defenders.
Durkin, 43, had plenty of success as a defensive coordinator at Florida and Michigan before becoming the Terrapins’ head coach in 2016. He was placed on administrative leave at Maryland in the summer of 2018 after the death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair from heatstroke stemming from an offseason workout in the spring of 2018, but Durkin was reinstated after an investigation.
He was fired from Maryland by the university president a day after his reinstatement following backlash from the public and multiple organizations within the university, however, and Durkin has spent the past two years helping direct a revived Rebels defense.
Mississippi defeated A&M 29-19 on Nov. 13 in Oxford, Miss., and afterward Kiffin cited Fisher’s propensity for running a clock-draining offense as aiding the Rebels.
“We felt good knowing they were going to play really slow,” Kiffin said at the time. “That plays to our favor on defense. We don’t have a lot of depth on defense, and we overplay our players because of that.”
Then-A&M coach Kevin Sumlin nearly hired Durkin seven years ago before turning to John Chavis from LSU in January 2015. Sumlin and most of his staff, including Chavis, were released in December 2017, and Fisher was hired from Florida State.
Fisher had become quite familiar with Durkin’s handiwork in the Sunshine State. Durkin was Florida’s defensive coordinator in 2013 and 2014, and Fisher’s 2013 national champions defeated the Gators 37-7.
A year later, however, FSU edged Florida 24-19 en route to a 13-1 finish. Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston threw four interceptions against Durkin’s defense, and Fisher said the Seminoles were fortunate to “survive and advance” to their 28th consecutive victory.
The Aggies finished 8-4 this season and opted out of playing in the Gator Bowl against Wake Forest because of COVID-19 issues within the program. A&M linebackers coach Tyler Santucci was supposed to call the defense in the bowl in Elko’s absence but did not get the opportunity.
Santucci might still serve as “co-defensive coordinator” with Durkin moving forward, but calling the defense will clearly be Durkin’s job.
In addition, Fisher is searching for an offensive line coach to replace Josh Henson, Southern Cal’s new offensive coordinator and line coach under former Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley.