Georgia announces two departures from Kirby Smart’s staff, new special teams coordinator

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — The Georgia Bulldogs have a new special teams coordinator after more staff changes announced Wednesday by head coach Kirby Smart.

Kirk Benedict, who served as special teams analyst the last two seasons, has been promoted to replace Scott Cochran.

According to Smart, Cochran and offensive analyst Darrell Dickey both resigned to pursue other opportunities.

Cochran, a former strength coach at Alabama, moved to Georgia in 2020 for an on-field coaching position. He took a leave ahead of the next season to deal with mental health issues before rejoining Smart’s staff after the first seven games of the 2021 season.

The 64-year-old Dickey spent one season at Georgia after five years as the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M. He is a former head coach at North Texas.

“I want to thank Scott and Darrell for their contributions to Georgia football,” Smart said in a statement. “We wish them all the best moving forward.”

This was the latest round of coaching changes for the Bulldogs. Defensive backs coach Fran Brown left to become the head coach at Syracuse, and co-defensive coordinator Will Muschamp moved down to an analyst role to spend more time with his family.