Colorado State football coach Mike Bobo talks about the 17 players the Rams signed Wednesday on the first day of the NCAA's new early signing period. Kelly Lyell
CSU football Mike Bobo reached back to his Southeastern Conference roots again to hire a new defensive coordinator.
John Jancek, who spent three seasons in that role at Tennessee from 2013-15, will be hired to run Colorado State University’s defense, FootballScoop reported Friday morning.
There was no immediate response from CSU, when asked to confirm the report.
Jancek’s name was first linked to the job Thursday afternoon, hours after FootballScoop and other media outlets reported that Derrick Ansley, Alabama’s defensive backs coach for the past two years, was passing up an offer to join Bobo’s staff as the Rams’ defensive coordinator to take a job as the secondary coach with the Oakland Raiders.
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Jancek and Bobo worked together at Georgia for four seasons from 2005-09. Jancek, 49, was the Bulldogs’ linebackers coach on Mark Richt’s staff, adding the title of co-defensive coordinator for his final season there in 2009. Bobo was Georgia’s quarterbacks coach from 2001-06 and offensive coordinator from 2007-14 before coming to CSU.
Tennessee’s defense improved statistically in each of Jancek’s three seasons there under then-coach Butch Jones, climbing from No. 94 nationally in total defense in 2013 to No. 37 in 2015. They went from No. 90 in scoring defense in 2013 to No. 19 in 2015. He was fired after the 2015 season after the Volunteers lost games they had led by 13 or more points to Oklahoma, Florida and Arkansas and let a 19-14 lead slip away in a loss to Alabama.
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Jancek spent the 2016 season at South Florida, serving as the safeties coach on Willie Taggert’s staff in his final season there and was a consultant at Kentucky this past season.
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Jancek was a defensive coordinator at Cincinnati for Jones from 2010-12 and went with the head coach to Knoxville, when he was hired by Tennessee.
Bobo said last month that he’d let his new defensive coordinator hire the position coaches who would work underneath him. FootballScoop reported earlier this week that George Helow, a graduate assistant at CSU in 2016 and defensive quality-control coach last fall, would be hired to fill one of those positions. Helow was certified as a recruiter and on the road meeting with prospects before last month’s early signing period.
A new contact period, allowing college coaches to meet in person with prospects and their families began Friday. CSU has eight scholarships available for the regular signing period that begins Feb. 7 after signing 17 players during the new early signing period.
Follow reporter Kelly Lyell at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news and listen to him talk CSU sports at 11:35 a.m. Thursdays on KFKA radio (AM 1310) and 10:45 a.m. Saturdays on Denver’s ESPN radio (AM 1600).
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