Mark Richt has officially plugged the hole on his Miami coaching staff.
Earlier this week, reports surfaced that the Hurricanes would be hiring Jess Simpson. Friday, those reports were confirmed as Simpson was announced as The U’s new defensive line coach.
Simpson replaces Craig Kuligowski, who left earlier this month for the line job at Alabama.
“We are excited to welcome Jess to our Miami family,” Richt said in a statement. “He has proven to be a great leader of men, and he brings a high level of energy, enthusiasm and expertise to our coaching staff.”
Simpson’s first, and only, on-field job at the FBS level came in 2016 as the line coach at Georgia State. He also held the title of assistant head coach for the Sun Belt Conference football program.
Prior to that, Simpson, who played his college football at Auburn and started his coaching career at his alma mater as a student assistant, spent 12 years as a Georgia high school head football coach, winning seven state championships and 164 games in that span. All told, Simpson spent nearly two dozen seasons at the high school level in his home state of Georgia.
“On every front, we are really excited,” Simpson said. “This is really turning the page and starting a new chapter for me and my family. Ultimately it was about the people and certainly this decision - to work for Mark Richt and having this opportunity at Miami in the defensive line room - was too good to pass up.
“Just saying that sentence – ‘working in the defensive line room at the University of Miami’ – is such a mouthful because of the greatness that has come from that room. I know the rich tradition of success, the types of players and defensive linemen that have come through the room and had an impact at this level and on the NFL level. We have some super talented kids in our room, incredible kids coming to join us this fall and then even more in the future. We have something special going on, and I’m honored to be a part of it.