🏈 Brent Key fires DC Jason Semore, 3 assistants after 2-7 start

Georgia Tech fired four assistants on Monday, Nov 9. Head coach Brent Key dismissed defensive coordinator Jason Semore, offensive line coach Allen Mogridge, defensive ends coach Kyle Pope and wide receivers coach Jafar Williams, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports, citing the team's announcement. The AJC and On3 both put the news on Monday afternoon. On3 credits ESPN's Pete Thamel with the first report.

The scoreboard explains the timing. Per On3, the Yellow Jackets are 2-7 and dropped a fourth straight game on Saturday, a 44-17 home loss to Louisville in which the Cardinals piled up 456 total yards. Their only wins came against Mercer and Duke.

Who says what

The AJC says Semore, Mogridge and Williams were all in their first seasons at Tech, while Pope had been with the program for three seasons. It calls the moves a significant overhaul of a staff Key assembled ahead of the 2026 season.

On3 says Semore replaced Blake Gideon, who left in the offseason for Texas, and had never held a coordinator job at a Power Four school before this year. Through nine games, On3 says, the Tech defense ranks second-to-last in the ACC in yards allowed (418.9) and points allowed (32.2).

The response

"These decisions are not ones that I take lightly, especially in-season,"

Brent Key, in a Georgia Tech news release, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Key said in the release that he decided after "a lot of consideration over the last several weeks" that the changes were necessary for the final three games and to meet the program's "high expectations." After the Louisville loss, On3 quotes him saying the team's coaching and play were "embarrassing" and that "it starts with me." No public response from the four dismissed coaches was found in the reports read.

The contracts and buyouts

Here the receipts run out. None of the reports read states the salaries, contract lengths or buyout terms of Semore, Mogridge, Pope or Williams, or whether any money is owed on their way out. Mr Scandal's advice: treat any figure you see attached to these four as unconfirmed until a contract or open-records release appears.

How the staff is being rebuilt

On3's Jackets Online site says Key announced a restructuring of the offensive staff, with several current coaches promoted to fill the vacated roles for at least the remainder of the season. The reports read do not list the full set of promotions or name a replacement defensive coordinator. One commit told Jackets Online he has a good relationship with coach Brandon Torrey, who he said called him after the news. National Signing Day is less than a month away, On3 notes.

What happens next

Per Key's statement, the new arrangement covers the final three games of the season. No source read states who will run the defense or what the long-term staff plan is.

Backstory

Key's own paper trail runs the other way. ESPN reported in December 2024 that the school's trustees approved a new five-year deal through 2029. Per sources cited by ESPN's Thamel, it lifted him from $2.9 million annually to the middle tier of the ACC. Key took over as interim coach in 2022 after Geoff Collins was fired at 1-3. CBS Sports, citing ESPN, said Collins was expected to receive a buyout in the range of $11.3 million.

As of Nov 10, 6:20 AM ET, the firings of the four assistants are confirmed by the team's announcement as reported by the AJC and On3, and Key has given his reasons. Still pending or unknown: the contract and buyout terms, the full list of promotions, and who coordinates the defense. Tech has three games left in the season.