LSU WRs coach Cortez Hankton surprises Malik Nabers with video at draft

Malik Nabers was surprised with a message from LSU receivers coach Cortez Hankton following his selection.

Shortly after being selected by the New York Giants in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, former LSU receiver was greeted by a surprise video from LSU receivers coach and co-offensive coordinator [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag].

The video was part of a series done by the NFL where several first-round picks were greeted with a message from someone who helped get them to this point.

Hankton begins with, “Dear Malik, I’m proud of you. Proud of you as a coach, a mentor, but more importantly as family.”

“In life, when the opportunity presents itself, we should all show gratitude to those who we deeply care about,” Hankton said.

“This is only the beginning and now it’s time to get back to work. Through this walk of life, I’ll be here for you, always and forever. I’ll have your back,” Hankton told Nabers.

Hankton thanked Nabers for allowing him to share this experience and said “it was a blessing” to coach him.

“He’s one of the reasons why I’m one of those great LSU receivers,” Nabers said after watching Hankton’s message.

Nabers signed with LSU before Hankton arrived, but he developed a relationship with Hankton while being recruited by Georgia, Hankton’s previous stop.

With Hankton at LSU, Nabers took his game to the next level, surpassing 1,000 yards in back-to-back years.

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Joe Sloan discusses working together with new co-OC Cortez Hankton

New LSU OC Joe Sloan is excited to be working alongside co-OC Cortez Hankton.

When former LSU offensive coordinator [autotag]Mike Denbrock[/autotag] took a job at Notre Dame, [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] didn’t have to look far to find replacements.

QBs coach [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] was promoted to OC while WRs coach and passing game coordinator got the bump to co-OC.

Sloan spoke with the media this week, elaborating on his working relationship with Hankton.

“Cortez, everybody sees his development at the receiver position with the way Malik and BT played and how they’re gonna go on and obviously be first-round draft picks,” Sloan said. “I think what people don’t see is his ability to game plan, his ability to understand how to attack defenses in the passing game, and he was doing a ton of that last year.”

Sloan says his relationship with Hankton goes back to Sloan’s days as a GA at South Florida.

“He and I met. He was trying to get into coaching. He and I met and stayed in touch for a long time. Almost worked together a couple of other times and I think our relationship together is really good working relationship. We keep each other centered and play off each other really well,” Sloan said.

“I think we have an unbelievable offensive staff,” Sloan added.

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Cordae Hankton joins LSU football staff as analyst

LSU added Cordae Hankton, the brother of Cortez Hankton, to the offensive support staff.

Another Hankton has joined the LSU staff. [autotag]Cordae Hankton[/autotag], brother of LSU wide receivers coach and co-offensive coordinator [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag], was hired as a lead offensive analyst.

Cordae is the younger of the brothers but brings a wealth of Power Five coaching experience to the staff.

He’s made stops at Michigan State, Virginia, Texas and Colorado in support staff roles. He has on-field coaching experience too, working with the running backs at Charlotte in 2022.

With [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] and Cortez Hankton now leading the offense, we’ve seen LSU move to get some new analysts in the door that have previous familiarity with Sloan and Hankton.

Cordae took to social media to announce the news himself, writing “Feels good to be home,” in a post.

Cordae played safety at Jackson State in 2006 and 2007 before working as a police officer in New Orleans. He later returned to school and earned a degree from Southern University in Baton Rouge.

This addition strengthens this staff’s already strong ties to the state.

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Report: LSU hiring veteran offensive assistant to analyst role

Todd Fitch has spent the last three years at Ohio State but previously worked with Joe Sloan at Louisiana Tech.

LSU will have a pair of new offensive play-callers in up-and-coming staffers [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] and [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag]. To help out that group, it seems Brian Kelly is bringing in an industry veteran.

The Tigers are reportedly set to hire Ohio State offensive analyst [autotag]Todd Fitch[/autotag] to the same position, where he’ll work with LSU’s quarterback room. The news was first reported by The Advocate’s Wilson Alexander.

Fitch has spent the last three seasons with the Buckeyes after a stint at Vanderbilt, where he was the offensive coordinator and later interim head coach during the 2020 season.

The 60-year-old has been a journeyman assistant with a number of programs dating back to 1986, and that includes a stint working with Sloan at Louisiana Tech, where they were co-offensive coordinators together in 2019 before Fitch left for Nashville.

Fitch also coached in the SEC at South Carolina from 1999-03, and he’s 0-1 in his career as a head coach.

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LSU Spring Football Outlook: How do Tigers replace Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. at WR?

With two of the most productive receivers in the nation moving on, what does LSU still have at the position heading into 2024?

Spring practice is the first real sign we’re moving away from 2023 and heading for the 2024 season.

At LSU, [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] is just a few weeks away from his third spring practice with the Tigers.

Throughout the spring, I’ll be taking a look at how LSU stacks up at every position. There’s still plenty to figure out at this point, some of which we’ll learn in the spring, but we know where LSU stands personnel-wise at these spots.

Now, we move on to the wide receiver position. LSU finds itself in an intriguing spot with [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag] and [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] gone. Let’s see what [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] and [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag] have to work with in 2024.

5 ways LSU’s offense could look different in 2024

Here are five changes that could come to LSU’s offense in 2024.

The LSU offense will undergo some changes this year.

LSU has new playcallers, with [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] and [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag] stepping up as co-OCs after [autotag]Mike Denbrock[/autotag] left for Notre Dame.

Top contributors are gone too, with [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag], [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag] and [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] off to the NFL and [autotag]Logan Diggs[/autotag] transferring to Ole Miss.

There’s a lot of optimism about what [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] can do at QB, but he’s a different player than Daniels. He won’t have any games where he rushes for 200 yards.

LSU’s style of play is going to be different, but that doesn’t mean it’ll be worse. Here are five things that could look different in 2024.

Brian Kelly elaborates on roles for co-offensive coordinators Joe Sloan, Cortez Hankton

Joe Sloan will call the plays, but Brian Kelly said Cortez Hankton will still have a “major role.”

LSU will have a new offensive play-caller in 2024 after previous offensive coordinator [autotag]Mike Denbrock[/autotag] left the Tigers to return to Notre Dame in the same role.

Rather than bring in an outside candidate, [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] opted to promote from within. Quarterbacks coach [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] and receivers coach/passing game coordinator [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag] were tabbed as the interim co-offensive coordinators for the ReliaQuest Bowl, and Kelly recently removed the “interim” tag from both their titles.

Visiting Senior Bowl practice on Thursday, where former LSU players [autotag]Charles Turner[/autotag] and [autotag]Jordan Jefferson[/autotag] are participating, Kelly spoke to the media and addressed the roles those two coaches would occupy.

Sloan will be the primary play-caller, though Hankton will also have a “major role” Kelly said per On3’s Matthew Brune.

“Joe will take the chief responsibilities and certainly be the play caller,” Kelly said. “Cortez will have a major role as well but at the end of the day if you don’t like the play call you can see me or you can see Joe. I think we’ll have a clear delineation in terms of the roles. Both of them are outstanding. Joe will be the play caller, he’ll handle the quarterbacks and I think it’ll be a team approach. We’ve got great coaches. [autotag]Brad Davis[/autotag] does a great job with the offensive line, [autotag]Frank Wilson[/autotag], Cortez certainly, [autotag]Slade Nagle[/autotag] is an experienced offensive coordinator from Tulane who’s done great things and gives us an experienced play caller as well. I think we’re gonna lean on the group and Joe will get the lead in play calling.”

Both Sloan and Hankton are key recruiters for the Tigers, and keeping them on staff was a must, especially with the makings of an elite 2025 class. Now, we have some clarity on how the roles will be separated between the pair.

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Atlanta Falcons request interview with former Georgia WR coach

The Atlanta Falcons are requesting an interview with former Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver coach

The Atlanta Falcons have requested permission to interview former Georgia Bulldogs wide receivers coach Cortez Hankton. Atlanta recently hired Raheem Morris as its head coach and is looking to fill its staff. The Falcons are interviewing Hankton for their vacant offensive coordinator position.

Hankton, who coached wide receivers at Georgia from 2018-2021, was recently named as the LSU Tigers‘ co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach. Hankton helped develop a lethal passing attack for LSU. Star LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels won the Heisman Trophy. Additionally, wide receivers Brian Thomas and Malik Nabers are expected to be high picks in the 2024 NFL draft.

How did social media react after the Falcons requested an interview with Hankton? What should Georgia and LSU fans know?

Falcons seek interview with LSU co-offensive coordinator Cortez Hankton

The #Falcons have requested an interview with LSU co-offensive coordinator Cortez Hankton, NFL Network reported on Friday evening

The Falcons have requested an interview with LSU co-offensive coordinator Cortez Hankton, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported on Friday evening. Hankton, 43, is a former NFL wide receiver who joined the LSU football staff in 2022 as passing-game coordinator and wide receivers coach.

Hankton, who was recently promoted to co-offensive coordinator, has helped the Tigers offense take off under Jayden Daniels. Many like the Falcons as a potential landing spot for Daniels, and it would make a lot of sense for Atlanta to hire someone like Hankton for offensive coordinator.

The Falcons are reportedly interested in Rams quarterbacks coach/passing-game coordinator Zac Robinson for their offensive coordinator vacancy. Robinson worked with head coach Raheem Morris in Los Angeles. The team was also linked to Cowboys defensive line coach Aden Durde.

Falcons request to interview newly promoted LSU co-offensive coordinator Cortez Hankton

Cortez Hankton was recently given the title of co-offensive coordinator along with quarterbacks coach Joe Sloan.

LSU has finally completed its 2024 coaching staff, but we could potentially be in for one more surprise.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Atlanta Falcons have requested permission to interview [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag], who was recently promoted to the role of co-offensive coordinator at LSU.

Hankton is being considered for the open offensive coordinator job under new coach Raheem Morris, the former defensive coordinator of the Rams who was hired by Atlanta on Thursday. In addition to his new role with the Tigers, Hankton also serves as the receivers coach and had passing game coordinator duties prior to his promotion this offseason.

It would make some sense for Hankton, who has ties to the area after spending several seasons on staff at Georgia.

Were Hankton to ultimately leave, fellow co-offensive coordinator [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] would likely receive the sole title, but that would create yet another opening on the coaching staff, which already had to replace most of the on-field defensive assistants as well as previous offensive coordinator [autotag]Mike Denbrock[/autotag], who left for the same role at Notre Dame.

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