Coley on why he turned down Texas A&M offensive coordinator job to stay at UGA

Earlier in December, James Coley was presented with a promotional opportunity.

Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher, hired away after a successful run at Florida State, contacted Coley, interviewed him and hoped to land the Georgia receivers coach to be his offensive coordinator. It would have been a chance for Coley to step back into a position he was previously in at stops with Florida State and Miami.

Given the fact the job would have moved him from a receivers coach to an offensive coordinator, it was seen, at least from an outside perspective, as a move to make. But when Coley made his final decision, he elected not to chase the job title and the extra money that would come with it.

“Sometimes you got to make decisions based on where you see your path going in the future,” Coley said during Georgia’s media day session at the L.A. Hotel Downtown. “I know it’s a no-brainer for people on the outside to say, ‘Well, it’s a title position.’ It’s a great school under a great head coach. I just had to make this a personal decision.”

Coley has been an instrumental piece to Georgia’s coaching staff in the two years he has been with the program. He has landed elite prospects from South Florida, which is his designated recruiting area. He has also helped develop wideouts Javon Wims and Terry Godwin.

Keeping Coley on staff figures to be quite valuable to a Georgia program that is making its first-ever appearance in the College Football Playoff. Coley said part of his decision came down to head coach Kirby Smart’s direction of the program.

“I think during this time of my life, Coach Smart was a big part of me staying,” Coley said. “The way they’ve embraced our family, the community has embraced our family. I just feel at home in Athens. I feel at home at Georgia. I really love the direction our program is going with Coach Smart. I can’t say enough about the guy. I have a lot of respect for him. I’ve got the same respect for Jimbo. I think he’s going to do a great job. But I just thought I was a better fit here.”

Smart was certainly thankful that Coley decided to stick with Georgia, considering the job prospect he had.

“Any time you get an opportunity to advance your career and grow as a coach, it’s really important that you handle it the right way and that you very selectively go about it,” Smart said. “I think it shows a lot of commitment to UGA that he decided to stay.”

While Coley will spend at least another year as the receivers coach at Georgia, being an offensive coordinator again still remains a goal. From a personal standpoint, the timing just wasn’t right for the time being.

“I do have a desire. I definitely want to one day call plays again and go that route,” Coley said.

This story was originally published December 30, 2017 at 2:48 PM with the headline "Coley on why he turned down Texas A&M offensive coordinator job to stay at UGA."