Former Maryland head coach DJ Durkin was fired amid a major controversy last year, but he has since been able to find work with two top SEC programs. The most recent is bringing him on as an assistant coach.
Durkin has agreed to a deal to join Lane Kiffin’s staff at Ole Miss as an assistant coach, Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports reports. The Ole Miss athletic administration and campus officials signed off on the hire after doing an extensive background check on Durkin.
“We received consistently strong feedback about Coach Durkin’s strong character and work ethic and his positive impact on the communities and institutions where he was previously employed,” Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter said in a statement. “Once we had the chance to spend time with Coach Durkin, we were even more convinced that he is exactly the type of accomplished coach with strong football credentials who is also a proud and committed family man that will make him a great addition to our new staff.”
Durkin quickly moved up the college football coaching ranks and was hired as the head coach at Maryland back in 2016. He went 10-16 in his two seasons with the Terrapins, but he was fired after one of his players collapsed on the field and died during a summer practice. Durkin was initially cleared to return to work following an investigation, but he was later fired by the school due to public outcry.
Maryland admitted that the player, 19-year-old offensive lineman Jordan McNair, did not receive proper care after having a seizure.
Durkin worked as a consultant for Alabama last season, and Nick Saban had to do some damage control after he faced criticism for allowing such a controversial figure to be associated with the program. Ole Miss will likely deal with similar backlash.
