Taking A Look At Jacksonville State OC Clint Trickett As A Potential Offensive Coordinator For Georgia Tech

Will head coach Brent Key go young at the offensive coordinator position or a more experienced play caller?

Jacksonville State Offensive Coordinator Clint Trickett gives instructions during spring football action in Jacksonville, Alabama April 17, 2025. (Dave Hyatt / Hyatt Media LLC) | Dave Hyatt / Special to the Gadsden Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As the search continues for the next Georgia Tech offensive coordinator, let’s take a look at a worthy candidate from Jacksonville State who had one of the better rushing attacks in the country in 2025. I am talking about no other than Clint Trickett. Let’s take a deeper dive into him as a coordinator. 

Background/Resume

Clint Trickett's playing days included two stints. He began at Florida State, where he played from 2010-2012, and then went on to finish his career at West Virginia (2013-2014). He finished his collegiate career with 5,837 yards and 32 touchdowns. 

Trickett began his coaching career at East Mississippi Community College, where he coached quarterbacks for two seasons (2015-2016). He coached for one of the best JUCO (Junior college) programs in the country. 

He would then move on to Florida Atlantic, where he began as a tight ends coach. He would coach that position group from 2017-2019. Then he would be the co-offensive coordinator for a season with the Owls before moving on. 

Trickett then moved on to Marshall and started out as a wide receivers coach/pass game coordinator. He would become the offensive coordinator for two seasons and the quarterbacks coach. Trickett led the Thundering Herd to a top 15 passing offense during his tenure. He was at Marshall from 2021-2023. 

Trickett then ventured to Georgia Southern in 2024 and led another top-ranked offense that averaged 358.5 yards per game and helped produce top running back Rasheen Ali, who earned all-conference honors. He served in a bevy of roles with the Eagles as tight ends and inside receivers coach, while also being a passing game coordinator. 

Trickett finally received his big break this past offseason and was named the offensive coordinator for Jacksonville State. He coached two 1,000-yard rushers this past season for the Gamecocks in Caden Creel and Cam Cook. Jacksonville State had the No.35 ranked offense, averaging 419.2 yards per game. Even better was the rush offense for the Gamecocks under Trickett. Jacksonville State ranked No.4 in the country in rush offense in 2025. The Gamecocks averaged 258 yards on the ground and had the most rushing yards this season of any team with 3,354 total rush yards. 

Pluses: ​​

He likes to run the ball: The identity of a Brent Key-coached team is running the football. Trickett showed that he will run the quarterback and the running back, which is something that the Yellow Jackets love to do. You look at Haynes King's numbers, and they embody just that with his 2,697 yards through the air and 922 rushing yards on the ground. It would be different for Trinkett, who will now be coaching Aaron Philo, Malachi Hosley, Trelain Maddox, and JP Powell. He will definitely have more talent at his disposal and one of the better running back coaches in college football in Norvell McKenzie. 

Can perform in big games: Jacksonville State played in the Conference USA championship a few days ago, and the offense gained over 300 yards. Even better, the ground game couldn’t be stopped as the Gamecocks rushed for 210 yards. Despite losing 19-15 in the big game, the Gamecocks offense performed well and continued to churn out yards in the championship game. Playing in the ACC, you will be in a number of big games with high stakes. It looks like Trickett will be ready for that if he is hired and the time comes. 

Minuses:

He is young: Trinkett is only 34 years old and just got his first major offensive coordinator experience. While he does run the football a good amount and can get yards on the ground, will he be able to evolve his offensive passing attack? He performed fairly decently with freshman quarterback Caden Creel, but he will need to take a jump forward in this category, especially with the Yellow Jackets. With him being young, it will take time until he has a complete offense. Are the Yellow Jackets willing to go through some of the growing pains in the process?   

Will Georgia Tech hire Clint Trickett?

It will be interesting to see what head coach Brent Key does here if he does go through with Trickett. He does fit the Georgia Tech mould with how much he likes to run the ball, but at the same time, the passing attack probably isn’t at the level Georgia Tech wants. He is also very young and still a bit inexperienced. After having Faulkner for some time, Key could lean on experience at the position and a more extensive resume. Time will tell if Key will go young or older.  

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