UNC Football: Potential Defensive Coordinator Candidates To Replace Gene Chizik
By Jordan Falls
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On Wednesday afternoon, the news that UNC Football fans have expected to take place since the end of the 2023 season finally dropped. Gene Chizik and the University of North Carolina had mutually agreed to part ways.
Chizik wasn't the only shake-up, as it was also announced that defensive line coach Tim Cross would also be leaving the program. Mack Brown is opting to stay in-house for the defensive line coaching position with former Senior Defensive Analyst Ted Monachino.
Just how crucial and important this hire is for Mack Brown and the UNC Football program cannot be stated. The struggles on the defensive side of the ball since Brown returned to Chapel Hill in 2019 have been evident, and at times, mind-numbing.
#UNC's defensive rank in FEI (per-possession scoring advantage) during Mack Brown 2.0:
— Greg Barnes (@GSBarnes23) January 3, 2024
2019 - 58th (Bateman)
2020 - 88th
2021 - 97th
2022 - 118th (Chizik)
2023 - 77th
On the outside, it could be difficult to get one of the highly-ranked defensive coordinators to come to Chapel Hill, especially given the fact Brown has already made it clear no matter who comes in, they won't have full control of their own staff with Monachino moving to the defensive line as well as 2023 Co-Defensive Coordinator Charlton Warren staying on staff to coach the defensive backs.
So, who could be the next defensive coordinator to take over in Chapel Hill?