New Georgia State coach Shawn Elliott jokes Steve Spurrier can run offense

New Georgia State coach Shawn Elliott, a former South Carolina assistant, was asked several questions about assembling a coaching staff during his introductory news conference on Friday.

He joked he already has one member of his staff in place.

“I called Coach (Steve) Spurrier to see if he’d be my offensive coordinator. He asked if he could come just on Saturdays,” Elliott said with a laugh. “I said ‘Yeah.’ ”

While the Head Ball Coach won’t be calling plays for Elliott next season, a former USC coach could be. Elliott sounded as if former Gamecocks assistants will at least be considered for openings on his staff.

“There’s a lot of people that I’ve reached out to and there’s a lot of great coaches that have reached out to me as well. I’m going to do my due diligence and go through those names,” Elliott said when asked about hiring coaches with ties to USC. “It’s not going to be a hurrying process to hire a staff. It’s about having the guys that you’re comfortable with, that trust you, and you have trust in them. Great recruiters. We’ve got to go in and do evaluations. Yes, there’s some guys in mind.”

One name to watch is South Carolina State offensive coordinator G.A. Mangus. Mangus coached at USC from 2009-15 and was a successful recruiter as well as quarterbacks and tight ends coach. He helped develop South Carolina quarterbacks Connor Shaw and Dylan Thompson during his time in Columbia.

Mangus had other coaching opportunities after not being retained by current USC Will Muschamp, but opted to stay close to home and coach for the Bulldogs this season instead.

S.C. State defensive coordinator Kirk Botkin, who was also an assistant at South Carolina, could also be considered for Elliott’s staff. Like Mangus, Botkin had other coaching opportunities, but opted to stay close to home as he continued his coaching career.

When asked specifically if he has reached out to Mangus and Botkin, Elliott said, “At this point, I’ve reached out to several (coaches) and there’s about 200,000 that have reached out to me as well. The process will take its course and we’ll see who we hire.”

Elliott acknowledged it’s nice to have coaching connections after spending time at USC and Appalachian State.

“Just the development of the coaches that you come in contact with, the parents, everybody, the administration, it’s a great experience and a good resource to lean on,” Elliott said.

This story was originally published December 10, 2016 at 12:24 AM with the headline "New Georgia State coach Shawn Elliott jokes Steve Spurrier can run offense."