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According to Aaron Suttles, Alabama has filled the vacancy created by the departure of Mel Tucker:
Alabama lands new assistant coach
Derrick Ansley, a native of Tallassee, Ala. who served as a graduate assistant at Alabama from 2010-11, will be the Crimson Tide's new defensive assistant coach, The Tuscaloosa News has learned.
It is believed that Ansley will coach the secondary and that first-year defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt will work with the inside linebackers. Mel Tucker, who coached the secondary last season, went to Georgia with former UA defensive coordinator Kirby Smart.
By all accounts, Ansley is a rising star in the coaching world, specializing in recruiting ability and coaching defensive backs. He will likely fill that role in Tuscaloosa while DC Jeremy Pruitt takes the inside linebackers. Local Kentucky radio correspondent Freddie Maggard is obviously high on Derrick:
If-when confirmed, UK will lose its best on-field teacher and coach. Derrick Ansley invaluable in secondary personnel-performance upgrade
— Freddie Maggard (@FredMaggard) February 7, 2016
Derrick Ansley will be a defensive coordinator and eventual head coach. One of the brightest young coaches in the business. Huge loss for UK
— Freddie Maggard (@FredMaggard) February 7, 2016
Sounds good to me. As a graduate of Tallassee High School who was an all-conference defensive back at Troy, he should be a huge asset to recruiting with plenty of local contacts. Welcome aboard, Derrick, and Roll Tide.
UPDATE from CB:
Under his guidance in Lexington, the Wildcats went from 64th in the nation in passing defense in 2013 to 44th in 2014 and 28th this past season (198.1 ypg), which was a tad better than Alabama (200.6 ypg).
As a bonus, Ansley also recruits the state of Georgia really well. While at Tennessee, he got Cameron Sutton to leave the Peach State. He also got Boom Williams among other Georgians to go to UK.