Defensive coordinator leaves Hogs for Gamecocks

BY NATE ALLEN Northwest Arkansas Times

Posted on Friday, January 25, 2008

URL: http://www.wholehogsports.com/nwat/61542/

Less than a month on the job as Arkansas’ defensive coordinator and less than two weeks before the recruiting national signing date, Ellis Johnson has resigned from the Razorbacks and gone home to South Carolina.

The 56-year-old native of Winnsboro, S. C., was named Thursday as the defensive coordinator at the University of South Carolina by coach Steve Spurrier in Columbia, S. C.

Johnson had first discussed the South Carolina defensive coordinator opening in December with Spurrier. Spurrier hired Brian Van-Gorder who had coached linebackers in 2007 for Bobby Petrino with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons.

Petrino left Atlanta on Dec. 11 to become Arkansas’ coach and had Johnson hired as Arkansas’ defensive coordinator by Dec. 31.

VanGorder announced Thursday morning he’s returning to the Falcons’ defensive staff under Mike Smith, hired Wednesday as Petrino’s replacement in Atlanta.

With a Thursday morning phone call, Spurrier wasted no time hiring Johnson. Johnson is a SEC veteran with two tenures at Alabama as linebackers coach and defensive coordinator then coordinating Mississippi State’s defense from 2004-07 after being the head coach at The Citadel, his alma mater in Charleston, S. C.

Johnson has built time in South Carolina’s retirement system coaching high school and as Clemson’s defensive coordinator and at The Citadel.

“ South Carolina is home to me and my wife as well as much of our family, ” Johnson said Thursday. “ I have 16 years in the state retirement system there and it was something that we were always looking toward in the later stages of my career. ”

Johnson said the decision was “ difficult” and its timing “ unfortunate. ”

“ However, I feel that it was the right decision for my family, ” he said. “ I sincerely appreciate the opportunity Coach Petrino gave me to be a part of the Razorback program. ”

Johnson said he had not signed a contract at Arkansas. Of the resignation, Johnson said Petrino, “ handled it with class. He’s been in this profession long enough to understand these things. ”

Unavailable to media Thursday but quoted in a University of Arkansas press release, Petrino said, “ I spoke with Coach Johnson this morning and he felt like this is the best decision for his family. I certainly understand that. He and his wife are from South Carolina and many of their relatives still reside in the state. I wish Coach Johnson and his family the best. We will now move forward in hiring a defensive coordinator. ”

The current defensive staff includes line coaches Bobby Allen, a 10-year Arkansas veteran under former Arkansas coach Houston Nutt; Kirk Botkin, a new Arkansas coach but a UA grad and former Razorback tight end who also coaches special teams; new linebackers coach Reggie Johnson, who served as linebackers coach for Petrino at the University of Louisville; and defensive backfield coach Lorenzo Ward.

Ward would seem a possibility to rejoin Ellis Johnson if there is another vacancy on South Carolina’s defensive staff. He is very close to Johnson having both played and coached for Johnson at Alabama before moving on to coach the secondary for seven years at Virginia Tech and then one year coaching the secondary for the Oakland Raiders in the NFL.