Per a report from Bruce Feldman of the Athletic, the North Carolina Tar Heels are expected to hire former Georgia tight end coach John Lilly to the same position in Chapel Hill.
Lilly, who spent eight seasons in Athens as the Dawgs’ tight ends coach and offensive special teams’ coordinator, left UGA in 2015.
In 2016, Lilly was the tight ends coach for the Los Angeles Rams. After taking 2017 off, Lilly joined Jeremy Pruitt’s staff in Knoxville as Tennessee’s Executive Assistant to Head Coach.
Most recently, Lilly spent the 2019 football season as the tight ends coach for the Cleveland Browns and was not retained when the franchise fired Freddie Kitchens.
Lilly will take over at UNC for Tim Brewster, who left to become the tight ends coach at Florida.
SOURCES: Former #Browns TE coach John Lilly is expected to become the new tight ends coach at #UNC. Before his time in the NFL, Lilly was tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator for a decade at FSU and also coached at UGA.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) February 12, 2020
Assistant coaches live a bit of a nomadic life, and for Lilly to have eight years in the Classic City was a treat for DawgNation.
During his time with the Bulldogs, Lilly was part of several record-setting seasons: 72 touchdowns in 2012, 484.14 yards per game in 2013 and 41.3 points per game in 2014. All were the best marks in school history. He served as the Bulldogs’ interim offensive coordinator during the 37-14 win over Louisville in the 2014 Belk Bowl and the 24-17 victory over Penn State in the 2016 Tax Slayer Bowl. Both Louisville and Penn State had top 15 nationally-ranked defenses.
He coached star tight ends Arthur Lynch, an All-SEC First Team honoree and fifth-round NFL draft pick; Orson Charles, a fourth-round selection by the Cincinnati Bengals; and Aron White, the Most Outstanding Offensive Player at the 2009 Independence Bowl. He guided Georgia’s punt unit, which included Ray Guy Award winner Drew Butler.
Lilly brings a wealth of knowledge to Carolina and may possibly be a secret weapon for Heels. He is highly respected and has a knack for exploiting a defensive team’s weakness.