Georgia Firebirds making coaching change

After falling to the Columbus Lions 86-0 in the season opener on Sunday night, the Georgia Firebirds decided to head in a new direction.

Late Sunday night, the Firebirds announced that head coach DJ Daniels was fired.

Firebirds General Manager Terrence Fowler released the following statement:

“This was a tough decision for me to make knowing how tirelessly DJ work to make this a winning team. He is a man of the highest character and integrity that I developed a close personal relationship with. I am extremely disappointed with how we have started the season but I feel confident that we can improve quickly with the talent that we have on our roster.”

The Firebirds also announced that Antwone Savage will replace Daniels as the head coach. Savage was part of Daniels’ coaching staff as an offensive assistant.

Savage was a standout at Westover and went on to play at the Univeristy of Oklahoma. At Oklahoma, Savage won a national championship and registered 157 catches for 2,009 yards and 13 touchdowns.

He also won an Arena Cup with the Spokane Shock and two league championships with the Albany Panthers.

The Firebirds have their home opener against the Atlanta Vultures on Sunday at 7:05 p.m. at the Albany Civic Center.