Navy football coach Paul Johnson heading to Georgia Tech after 6 years at Annapolis

12/7/2007 2:51 PM

By BRIAN WITTE
Associated Press Writer

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -Navy football coach Paul Johnson is headed to Georgia Tech after turning around a struggling program in six years at the military academy.

Johnson informed the team at an 11:45 a.m. meeting at Ricketts Hall, where the football offices are located, said Scott Strasemeier, Navy's associate athletic director for sports information.

Georgia Tech has scheduled a news conference for Friday at 5:30 p.m. EST, when athletic director Dan Radakovich will announce a new head coach.

Johnson, a former Georgia Southern coach, also negotiated with Southern Methodist and Duke this week.

He will replace Chan Gailey, who was fired one day after a 7-5 regular season ended with his sixth straight loss to Georgia. Gailey had four years left on his contract at $1 million per season.

The Midshipmen had a miserable 1-20 record in the two seasons before Johnson took over. He had a 2-10 record in his first season, but turned things around quickly. He led the Midshipmen to five straight bowl games, a school record. Navy will play Utah in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 20 in San Diego.

Johnson was 45-29 at Navy. He was also successful against the other service academies. He got his sixth straight win against rival Army last week, an unprecedented streak.

Earlier this season, Navy beat Notre Dame for the first time in 44 years, winning 46-44 in three overtimes.

Navy has been known for its rushing attack under Johnson, breaking school records for rushing yards per game.

Johnson came to Navy from Georgia Southern, where he lead the Eagles to two national championships. Overall, Johnson is 107-39 in 11 seasons.

Defensive coach Jon Tenuta was selected interim head coach for Tech's Humanitarian Bowl game against Fresno State on Dec. 31. Tenuta's status is expected to be addressed at the news conference Friday.