After a seven-win season in 2024, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football head coach Brent Key added four new coaches to his staff this offseason, including a former head coach.
Former Kennesaw State head coach Brian Bohannon returns to the program as a senior offensive assistant. In ten seasons as head coach of the Owls, Bohannon went 72-38 with four FCS Playoff appearances. Bohannon, who helped the Owls transition to the FBS level, was fired on Nov. 10 after a 1-8 start to the 2024 season.
Prior to his time at Kennesaw, Bohannon spent 16 seasons coaching under former Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson, including as quarterbacks/b-backs coach in Atlanta from 2008-12. He played wide receiver at Georgia from 1990-93 before starting his coaching career at West Georgia as a graduate assistant. The veteran coach brings deep ties to the state of Georgia and decades of coaching experience.
Key added former Alabama assistant Kobie Jones as cornerbacks coach. After playing and coaching at Alabama State, Jones spent two seasons coaching cornerbacks at high school football powerhouse IMG Academy. He then joined the Crimson Tide in 2023 as a graduate assistant. In 2024, he was retained and promoted by new head coach Kalen DeBoer, where he served as an assistant cornerbacks coach last season.
Jones replaces former associate head coach for special teams/cornerbacks coach Ricky Brumfield, who left the program for unspecified reasons on Oct. 29. Brumfield was recently hired as Syracuse’s special teams coordinator.
Mike Polly joins the staff as an assistant offensive line coach after an 11-year tenure at Middle Tennessee State, where he held numerous roles. As Middle Tennessee’s offensive line coach from 2022-23, he coached Keylan Rutledge, who transferred to the Yellow Jackets and earned First Team All-ACC honors last season.
The Kentucky native began his coaching career at Georgetown College before joining Middle Tennessee State as a graduate assistant. He reunites with offensive coordinator Buster Faulker, as the two coached together at both MTSU and Murray State.
Key also added Emil Ekiyor Jr. to serve as a quality control coach on the offensive line. Ekiyor Jr. played collegiately at Alabama from 2018-22, where he was coached by Key as a freshman. He started 13 games for the Crimson Tide’s 2021 National Championship team and was named First Team All-SEC after the 2022 season.
After going undrafted, he signed a free agent deal with the Indianapolis Colts before being cut in preseason camp. Since then, he’s worked for several charities and in the insurance industry. His stint with the Yellow Jackets will be his first college coaching job.