Kirby Smart and Matt Luke Release Statements on Luke's Decision to Leave

News broke earlier today that Georgia offensive line coach, Matt Luke, made the decision to step down from his position at UGA. Luke's decision came as a bit of surprise and leaves the Bulldogs with yet another coaching position to fill this offseason.

In regards to why Coach Luke made the decision to step away from football, here is what he had to say:

“Today, after much prayer and conversation with my family, I have decided to step away from coaching and shift my focus to spending more time with my family,” said Luke. “I want to thank Coach Smart, his wife Mary Beth, and the entire Georgia family for an incredible past two seasons. I also appreciate Coach Smart's support in my decision today. He's a great coach, and I'll always cherish his friendship. It has been an honor of a lifetime to be able to win a national championship with this staff and these players, and something I will never forget."

Luke has been in the college coaching business for the last 23 years now which includes the last two seasons with the Bulldogs after the departure of former offensive line coach Sam Pittman. After putting in many years of time and effort into football, Coach appears to be ready to start the next chapter of his life centered around putting in time with his family.

The former Ole Miss head coach has played a huge role on Georgia's staff since his arrival, and head coach Kirby Smart had a lot of good things to say about Coach Luke and what the next step in the process is.

“Matt Luke has made the decision to step away from coaching football,” said Smart. “He has been an invaluable part of our staff and played a great role in helping us win a National Championship. We are so appreciative of everything he has done for Georgia Football. Matt, Ashley, and his children have been, and will continue to be, an important part of the Bulldog family and Athens community. We’re working on finding a coach that will continue to develop our young men and build our strong foundation with the offensive line.”

The Bulldogs have experienced quite a bit of movement not just from their roster, but from their coaching staff as well. Dan Lanning made the move to Oregon, Jahmile Addae made the transition to Miami, wide receiver coach Cortez Hankton went to LSU, and now Matt Luke has decided to leave the program as well.

With spring practice right around the corner, the Bulldogs are now challenged with finding Coach Luke's replacement before things get rolling again in preparation for the 2022 season. With the first day of spring practice inching closer every day, it shouldn't take too long for the Bulldogs to find their next offensive line coach.