THE FLATS – Georgia Tech football has welcomed Kobie Jones, Mike Polly, Brian Bohannon, and Emil Ekiyor, Jr. to its coaching staff, head coach Brent Key announced on Friday.
“We’re thrilled to introduce Kobie, Mike, Brian, and Emil to our team,” Key stated. “They bring a wealth of experience and expertise, but more importantly, they are all outstanding individuals and leaders who will enhance our team’s strength both on and off the field. They are valuable additions to our program and the Georgia Tech community.”
KOBIE JONES – CORNERBACKS
Cornerbacks coach Kobie Jones joins The Flats after spending the last two seasons at Alabama.
A highly respected emerging coach, Jones started at Alabama in 2023 as a defensive graduate assistant under the renowned head coach Nick Saban before being elevated to assistant cornerbacks coach under head coach Kalen DeBoer in 2024. During his two years in Tuscaloosa, he contributed to the development of two all-America cornerbacks, Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry, who were drafted in the first and second rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft, respectively. Under Jones’ guidance, the Crimson Tide captured the 2023 Southeastern Conference championship and achieved a total of 21 victories in his tenure.
Before his time at Alabama, Jones served as defensive backs coach at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., one of the country’s premier high school programs, during the 2021-22 seasons. There, he coached over six defensive backs who progressed to play at the Power Five level and led the Ascenders to an impressive two-year record of 17-2 against high-caliber teams nationwide.
Jones began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Alabama State, in 2020-21, during which the Hornets went 3-3 in the Covid-19-delayed spring 2021 season.
As a player, Jones spent four seasons at Alabama State as both a quarterback and defensive back (2016-19), appearing in seven games as a quarterback during his redshirt freshman year in 2017, where he amassed 575 passing yards and three touchdowns, including a standout 173-yard game against Tuskegee that earned him Southwestern Athletic Conference Newcomer of the Week honors. He also recorded five tackles over four games as a defensive back in 2019.
Jones played and coached at Alabama State alongside current Georgia Tech football chief of staff Donald Hill-Eley.
Originally from Ocala, Fla., Jones holds two degrees from Alabama State: a bachelor’s in political science and government (2019) and a master’s in information technology (2021).
MIKE POLLY – ASSISTANT OFFENSIVE LINE
Mike Polly joins Georgia Tech as the assistant offensive line coach, bringing 17 years of collegiate coaching experience.
Most recently, he spent 11 seasons at Middle Tennessee, where he held various positions including running backs coach (2013-15), offensive tackles/tight ends coach (2016-21), and offensive line coach (2022-23). Additionally, he served as the special teams coordinator from 2014 to 2021 and as the run game coordinator from 2016 to 2023.
Throughout his time at Middle Tennessee, Polly helped develop 10 all-conference players, including Robert Jones, a two-time all-Conference USA offensive lineman now with the Miami Dolphins. He also mentored Georgia Tech’s Keylan Rutledge, who earned all-America recognition in 2024, resulting in a spot on the C-USA all-freshman team in 2022 and first-team all-conference honors in 2023. Polly played a significant role in guiding the Blue Raiders to seven bowl appearances in 11 seasons.
Before his tenure at Middle Tennessee, Polly spent three seasons at Murray State, where he started as the offensive tackles/tight ends coach in 2010 and later became the offensive line coach and special teams coordinator in 2011 and 2012. He contributed to an offensive unit at Murray State that consistently ranked among the top five in NCAA Division I FCS for total offense, and he helped the program achieve its first-ever 1,000-yard rusher in 2011.
At Georgia Tech, Polly will again collaborate with Rutledge and reunite with offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner, having previously coached alongside him at Murray State (2010) and Middle Tennessee (2013-15).
Polly began his coaching journey as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Georgetown (Ky.) College, in Spring 2007, before serving a three-season stint as a G.A. at Middle Tennessee (2007-09). In his third year as a G.A., the Blue Raiders made only their second Division I bowl appearance in history (2009 New Orleans Bowl).
A distinguished student-athlete at Georgetown from 2002 to 2006, Polly earned all-conference honors as a senior co-captain offensive lineman and was recognized as a four-time academic all-conference selection and a three-time academic all-American. He holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Georgetown (2006) and a master’s in sports management from Middle Tennessee (2008).
Originally from Erlanger, Ky., Polly is married to his wife, Meagan.
BRIAN BOHANNON – SENIOR OFFENSIVE ASSISTANT
After a highly successful decade as head coach at Kennesaw State, former Georgia Tech assistant Brian Bohannon returns to The Flats as the senior offensive assistant for the Yellow Jackets.
Bohannon compiled an impressive 72-38 record (.655) as the first head coach of Kennesaw State from 2015 to 2024. During the program’s initial seven years, he led the Owls to seven consecutive winning seasons, four 11-win seasons, four NCAA Division I FCS playoff appearances, and three Big South Conference titles. KSU maintained a top 15 ranking in the FCS for five straight years from 2017 to 2021, achieving a No. 5 final ranking in 2018. In his last three seasons, he managed the team’s transition to NCAA Division I FBS, highlighted by a significant 27-24 victory over previously undefeated Liberty in 2024, marking one of the season’s biggest upsets.
Throughout his tenure at KSU, Bohannon received several accolades, including the American Football Coaches FCS Coach of the Year in 2017, and was named Big South Coach of the Year three times (2017, 2018, and 2021) as well as AFCA District Coach of the Year in 2018.
Before leading Kennesaw State’s football program starting in 2013, Bohannon spent 16 seasons as an assistant under College Football Hall of Fame head coach Paul Johnson, including five years as the quarterbacks/B-backs coach at Georgia Tech (2008-12). He also served as a wide receivers coach under Johnson at Navy (2002-07) and Georgia Southern (wide receivers from 1997-99; defensive backs from 2000-01). During his 16 years with Johnson, Bohannon contributed to Georgia Southern’s two NCAA Division I-AA national championships, five consecutive Southern Conference titles, Navy’s five Commander-in-Chief’s Trophies and five bowl appearances, and Georgia Tech’s three ACC Coastal Division championships and five bowl games.
Bohannon started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at West Georgia from 1994 to 1995, followed by a year as the wide receivers coach at Gardner-Webb in 1996.
A native of Griffin, Ga., Bohannon played wide receiver at the University of Georgia from 1990 to 1993, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business in 1993. He later obtained a master’s in business education from West Georgia in 1996. Bohannon and his wife, Melanie, have three children: sons Blake and Braden, and daughter Brooke.
EMIL EKIYOR, JR. – QUALITY CONTROL – OFFENSIVE LINE
Former all-Southeastern Conference offensive lineman Emil Ekiyor, Jr. has joined the Georgia Tech staff as a quality control assistant for the Yellow Jackets’ offensive line.
Ekiyor played at Alabama from 2018 to 2022, where he was recruited by Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key, who was the offensive line coach at Alabama during Ekiyor’s first season. He participated in four games as a reserve in 2018 under Key and eventually played in 53 games, starting 40 at guard over five seasons. A three-year starter, he earned first-team all-SEC honors in 2022 and helped the Crimson Tide’s offensive line win the 2020 Joe Moore Award, recognizing it as the best in the nation. During Ekiyor’s tenure in Tuscaloosa, Alabama captured three SEC championships and the 2020 national title.
He was invited to the 2023 Senior Bowl and NFL Combine, subsequently signing a free-agent contract with the Indianapolis Colts. After his time with the Colts, he ventured into the insurance industry before returning to athletics. He also founded The Chase, an organization aimed at empowering youth and young professionals in the U.S. and Sub-Saharan Africa through coaching and mentoring programs focused on success mindset, positive habit formation, and financial literacy.
Ekiyor has volunteered with organizations such as the Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, and Samaritan’s Feet. While at Alabama, he led an initiative through Samaritan’s Feet that provided 25,000 students in Alabama (ages 4-14) with a pair of new shoes before the start of the school year in fall 2022. For his community efforts, he received the Senior Bowl Community Service Award in 2023.
A native of Indianapolis, Ekiyor graduated from Alabama in 2022 with a B.A. in communication.
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