Georgia defensive backs coach Charlton Warren has been hired to replace Kane Wommack as Indiana’s defensive coordinator, a source confirmed to the Daily Hoosier on Sunday. ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg first reported the hire.
Warren has previous experience as a defensive coordinator at Air Force from 2008-13. Since then, he has served as a defensive backs coach at Nebraska (2014) North Carolina (2015-16), Tennessee (2017), Florida (2018) and Georgia (2019-20.)
The 43-year-old played defensive back at Air Force from 1996-99 and spent 10 years in active service with the Air Force before he began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater in 2005.
Under Warren’s tutelage, Georgia placed two defensive backs on the All-SEC team this season — first-team safety Richard LeCounte and second-team cornerback Eric Stokes. The Bulldogs finished second in the conference in both scoring defense and total defense and finished 8-2 with a win over Cincinnati in the Peach Bowl. In 2019, they led the SEC in both scoring defense (12.6 ppg) and total defense (276.0 yards per game), won the SEC East and beat Baylor in the Sugar Bowl after falling to eventual national champion LSU in the conference title game.
Warren had varying levels of success as co-DC and DC at Air Force. The Falcons ranked 10th in scoring defense and 11th in total defense in 2009 when they went 8-5 with a win over Houston in the Armed Forces Bowl. They were 28th in scoring defense and 37th in total defense in 2010 when they went 9-4 with a win over Georgia Tech in the Independence Bowl. The Falcons went to six bowl games in his seven years as a full-time staff member.
Warren has a strong reputation as a recruiter, especially in Georgia as an Atlanta native. The Hoosiers have made the Southeast an important part of their recruiting strategy with focus on Florida and Georgia. He also has experience dealing with multiple defensive formations, as the Bulldogs used a three-man front with either four linebackers or five defensive backs. The Hoosiers used a four-man front, but mostly played a nickel formation with the Husky serving as a hybrid safety and linebacker. The Hoosiers finished 19th in scoring defense and 43rd in total defense in 2020, going 6-2 with a loss to Ole Miss in the Outback Bowl.
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