Report: Everett Withers to join Texas support staff

With the addition to former offensive analyst Andre Coleman to the on-field staff and fellow offensive analyst Larry Fedora’s departure to become the offensive coordinator for the Baylor Bears, the Texas Longhorns have some openings on the support staff. According to Anwar Richardson of Orangebloods, former Texas State Bobcats head coach Everett Withers is filling one of those roles.

The question is whether there’s some confusion about which side of the ball Withers will focus on — he’s only spent one year coaching offense and that was as a wide receivers coach at Austin Peay back in 1990. As a player at Appalachian State, he was a defensive back and a linebackers. Perhaps he will provide self-scouting for the offense from a defensive perspective.

Withers has a connection to Texas because he served as defensive backs coach for former head coach Mack Brown from 1998 to 2000 before jumping to the NFL and coaching the same position for the Tennessee Titans. And there’s a connection to the current staff, too — Withers was the assistant head coach/co-defensive coordinator/safeties coach at Ohio State in 2012 and 2013 when Texas head coach Tom Herman was the offensive coordinator.

After his time in Columbus, Wither was the head coach at James Madison and then took the job at Texas State, but went 7-28 in three seasons and was fired in 2018. Withers spent last season as the defensive backs coach for the New York Giants.

Richardson also reported that Corby Meekins is headed back to Houston as the tight ends coach. Meekins coached the same position at Texas for one year before coaching the wide receivers with Drew Mehringer for two years. When Herman rebooted his staff following the 2019 regular season, Meekins was moved into a support role.