It didn't take long for the Atlanta Falcons' new regime to feel not-so-new. Kevin Stefanski and Jeff Ulbrich retained basically the Falcons' entire defensive coaching staff, which has taken the gatekeeping of top assistants to extreme levels, besides one rising defensive assistant coach. that is.
The Falcons aren't one to easily dispose of coaches who thrived with past regimes, except for one man. Unfortunately, outside linebackers coach Jacquies Smith was the odd man out and won't be retained by Stefanski because they instead promoted assistant John Timu to his OLB coach position.
However, the 35-year-old didn't take too long to find new work. According to ESPN lead College Football insider Pete Thamel, Smith is finalizing a deal with Texas Tech to assume the same position, which means that the Texas native will officially return to the Lone Star State this coming season.
Sources: Texas Tech is finalizing a deal to make Jacquies Smith the new OLB coach. He last coached OLBs with the Atlanta Falcons and brings significant recruiting experience in college from his time at Texas as an assistant edge coach. pic.twitter.com/8pf25YtJ3O
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) February 12, 2026
This is honestly kind of a bummer, since Smith was a good assistant who did solid work with the pass rush, but good for him. I would have expected him to land at least some promotion to return to college, but working with the Texas Tech defense comes with plenty of advancement opportunity.
After leaving Atlanta, Jacquies Smith didn't take long to land on his feet
Smith also has recruiting ties in the state, as he spent the 2023 season as an assistant edge coach with the University of Texas before spending the last two seasons in Atlanta. And as a guy who had a short NFL career as a pass-rusher, Smith has a lot of wisdom he can teach the youngsters at TTU.
The Missouri product did good work with Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. this past season, even though Ulbrich and Nate Ollie deserve more of the credit. They were both outside linebackers in college who changed positions last year, which Smith deserves his flowers for helping make happen.
Texas Tech is a landing spot that doesn't jump off the page, but the Red Raiders are fresh off of a College Football Playoff appearance as one of the best teams in a weak conference. They also had an elite pass rush, as David Bailey, Jacob Rodriguez, and Lee Hunter all have bright NFL futures looming.
It's not much, but at least he has an opportunity lined up, so here's hoping a bright assistant makes the most of it, even though he's not with the Falcons any longer. And here's hoping Ulbrich's faith in Timu is well-placed.