McGarity introduced as Georgia athletic director

“On September the 1st, Greg McGarity will become the new athletic director at the University of Georgia,” Adams said. McGarity, who has served the University of Florida’s athletic department since 1992, expressed multiple times what has been common knowledge for many within the Georgia Bulldog family — the athletic director position at Georgia is his one and only dream job. As an Athens native and graduate of Georgia, McGarity has long desired to return to the “home” where he began his collegiate athletic and administrative careers. “After being away from Athens and the University of Georgia for almost two decades, it is indeed great to be home,” the 55-year-old McGarity said. Although the search was expected to stretch over the course of six months or more, it was made clear by Adams that he and his search committee had found the prime candidate that met the majority of their desired traits. – The Red and Black

Urban Meyer still fighting discipline issues at Florida

Urban Meyer had a simple message for his players following Wednesday’s spring practice, and it had nothing to do with football. “No stealing, no drugs, no weapons!” Meyer barked at his players. “There’s a good decision and a bad decision. Make that good decision!” He still has three more days with his players this spring before NCAA rules limit his contact with them over the summer — including Friday’s practice and Saturday’s Orange and Blue game at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. But Meyer felt that Wednesday’s practice was the perfect time to read his players the riot act as they head into offseason workouts. Meyer delivered a fiery speech about “attitude, behavior, (and) performance” at the end of Wednesday’s workout that was easily audible from the sidelines of Florida’s practice field. The message was directed at the entire team, but he also got in the face of several veteran leaders and told them that bad conduct off the field will not be tolerated. – Palm Beach Post

Florida’s Urban Meyer got health advice from Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski

Florida coach Urban Meyer said after Friday’s spring football practice that he spent some time in Durham, N.C., with Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski to discuss how he handled his own health issues. Krzyzewski missed 19 games in the 1995 season and had hip replacement surgery in 1999 (left hip) and 2002 (right hip). “I went up there and I talked to him for a little while,” Meyer said. “I didn’t really meet with many guys (for other advice), I just talked to my closest friends.” … “I think the biggest thing I learned from (Krzyzewski) without getting into much detail is he surrounded himself with a little pack of people that he really trusts,” Meyer said. “If you look at his staff, they are all former players and he can do that because it’s a small staff. And I think that’s important, just surround you, get that little foxhole mentality with the guys that care about you and you care about them.” – WTSP-TV

Urban Meyer threatens reporter

“Don’t mess with our players. Don’t do it. You did it,” Meyer allegedly told Orlando Sentinel reporter Jeremy Fowler. “You do it one more time and the Orlando Sentinel’s not welcome here ever again. Is that clear? It’s yes or no.” Fowler wrote about the exchange in his “Swamp Things” blog on the paper’s Web site. It was something Fowler wrote on Monday that got Meyer fired up, according to the blog. In a previous report, Fowler quoted Gators’ wide receiver Deonte Thompson referring to former quarterback Tim Tebow as not being a “real quarterback.” Thompson said it and Fowler reported it, Fowler said. Whether Thompson meant to insult Tebow isn’t clear. But it apparently didn’t sit well with Meyer. “You’re a bad guy, man,” Meyer allegedly told Fowler. “You’re a bad guy.” – Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Tim Tebow’s struggle to impress NFL could hurt Gators in recruiting

Obviously not part of the preparation is Florida head coach Urban Meyer. In four years under Meyer, Tebow said he’d “never been asked to shorten or quicken my release and not have a loop in it.” You will hear some argue that Meyer is to blame for not doing a better job preparing Tebow for the NFL. But the truth is that Meyer’s only responsibility was to win games for his employer, the University of Florida. And he certainly did that. There is a lesson here, however, for young quarterbacks who envision themselves having the chance to play in the NFL one day: look around for a coach who runs an NFL-style offense, and coaches quarterbacks to play with NFL-style mechanics. – Birmingham News

Gators set to hire Teryl Austin

I’ve been told UF has come to terms with Arizona Cardinals defensive backs coach Teryl Austin, so the last step is an official announcement from the school. The Gators were leaning toward Austin for the last three days and this was going to happen, but a deal wasn’t officially done as of last night. Miami linebackers coach Micheal Barrow and Clemson co-defensive coordinator Charlie Harbison also were candidates this week, but both are staying at their respective schools. Austin will take over for George Edwards, who bolted for the Buffalo Bills after 27 days on the job. The original defensive coordinator, Charlie Strong, is Louisville’s head coach. Austin coached the Cardinals’ defensive backs the last three seasons. He held the same position with the Seattle Seahawks from 2003-06, which means he’s coached in two Super Bowls. His college resume includes stints at Michigan, Syracuse, Wake Forest and Penn State. – Orlando Sentinel

Charlie Harbison turns down Florida, will stay at Clemson

UPDATE: Football Rumor Mill can confirm that Charlie Harbison has removed his name from consideration and is no longer a candidate for the DC job at Florida.

So much for Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney easing back into work following vacation. A day after arriving back from skiing in Colorado, Swinney met with defensive backs coach Charlie Harbison on Wednesday. Harbison has been contacted by Florida, which is interested in him as a candidate to fill its vacant defensive coordinator position. – Charleston Post and Courier

Bills hire Gators’ DC

Buffalo Bills coach Chan Gailey has been filling his coaching staff with college and pro assistants but he dipped into the college ranks to find a defensive coordinator with NFL experience. Gailey has hired George Edwards as the Bills defensive coordinator. Edwards replaced Charlie Strong as the defensive coordinator at Florida on Jan. 10. He comes to the Bills, though, with more than a decade of NFL experience. Edwards coached the defensive line for the Dallas Cowboys in 1997 before moving to the Washington Redskins from 1998-2002 to coach the same position. He was the Cleveland Browns’ defensive coordinator in 2003. He coached linebackers for the Miami Dolphins in 2004 before accepting the linebacker job at Florida from 2005-09. – ESPN.com

Florida assistants headed to Louisville?

On the day he was introduced as Louisville’s new head coach, former Florida defensive coordinator Charlie Strong said he would not raid Urban Meyer’s staff. Three weeks later, two Meyer assistants are on the verge of joining Strong’s staff. Cornerbacks coach Vance Bedford has been offered the defensive coordinator’s position with the Cardinals. He was in South Florida recruiting for the Gators on Monday, but he is expected to make his decision to leave official later in the week. Running backs coach Kenny Carter, who dodged questions about his interest in Louisville after the Sugar Bowl last Friday, has been offered the running backs coach position at Louisville. He is expected to reach a decision on whether to take the job or stay at Florida by the weekend, Strong told The Sun on Monday night. Rivals.com reported Monday night that UF commitment Mack Brown, a top running back from Georgia, said Carter had told him he was leaving the UF staff. – Gainesville Sun

Urban Meyer denies Tyrone Nix turned down Gators

Urban Meyer hasn’t had to act as quickly in replacing Charlie Strong as defensive coordinator because Strong — as first reported in The Sun — will coach the defense in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1 vs. No. 4 Cincinnati (12-0) before returning to Louisville. Meyer denied reports Ole Miss defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix was offered the job and turned it down. “I talked to Tyrone. I’ve known Tyrone for a long time,” Meyer said. “But we would have had to change our whole defense if we hired him. We would have had to change everything our players are doing, and we didn’t want to do that. “I’m going to take my time with that hire.” – Gainesville Sun

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