by Atlanta (AP) Derek Dooley, a former football coach at the University of Tennessee, declared Monday that he would run as a Republican in Georgia in 2026 against Democratic incumbent Jon Ossoff.
Governor Brian Kemp supports the 57-year-old Dooley, who has been hinting at a bid since June. He joins a GOP lineup that also includes activist Reagan Box and U.S. Representatives Mike Collins and Buddy Carter.
Kemp chose not to run for the seat himself and turned to Dooley. Ossoff is seen as the Senate’s most vulnerable Democratic incumbent running for reelection next year, and Georgia Republicans are hoping to unseat him.
In a two-minute introductory video, Dooley claimed that professional politicians like Jon Ossoff were the issue.They stand for lawlessness, the border’s open season, inflation worldwide, and progressive issues. Georgia needs fresh leadership. I’m running for the Senate because of this.
Trump and Kemp met and agreed to try to come to an agreement on a candidate of their choice. The Republican front-runner would be the one who was anointed by both. On July 24, Kemp informed Collins and others that he would back Dooley, which caused Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King to withdraw from the contest. However, the fact that Dooley is proceeding without Trump’s approval and that Trump isn’t yet prepared to endorse suggests that the collaborative effort may be collapsing.
Dooley is a first-time elective official. According to him, he would run as a political outsider, the same path David Perdue took in Georgia to gain a Senate seat in 2014. Dooley promised to cooperate with President Trump, stand up for you, and always put Georgia first. He would also provide good, old-fashioned Georgia common sense.
Dooley is the son of Vince Dooley, the renowned coach at the University of Georgia, who practiced law before becoming a coach. Before being sacked in 2012, Derek Dooley had a 15–21 record in his three years as Tennessee’s head coach, making him widely viewed as a failure. He has since served as an assistant coach for the University of Alabama, the Dallas Cowboys, the New York Giants, and the University of Missouri.
Kemp lived with Derek’s older brother, Daniel Dooley, at the University of Georgia as a teenager and was a regular visitor to the Dooley residence. Dooley has enlisted Kemp aides, such as political strategist Cody Hall and fundraiser Chelsey Ruppersburg, to manage his campaign. Kemp has the most successful Republican political organization in Georgia.
However, once Collins entered the race last week, some Republicans, including former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich, praised him. State senators, including Jason Anavitarte, the majority leader of the state Senate, are also supporting the congressman. Rep. Matthew Gambill, one of Kemp’s designated floor leaders in the state House, even broke with the governor to support Collins.
Dooley has already been made fun of by opponents for not endorsing Trump in public earlier. An anonymous website with a University of Tennessee theme, Dooley’s Volunteers, was founded. It quotes sports reporters who have covered Dooley’s coaching tenure and attacks Dooley for lacking conservative credentials.
This is Kemp’s most recent high-profile decision to support a political newcomer. Kemp appointed Kelly Loeffleras a U.S. senator prior to her defeat by Democrat Raphael Warnock in a 2021 runoff. Conflict between Kemp and Trump, who favored a different candidate, dogged her campaign. Democrats gained control of the U.S. Senate as a result of Perdue and Loeffler’s defeats to Ossoff and Warnock, respectively.
Then, in 2022, Trump named Herschel Walker, a legendary football player from Georgia, the Republican nominee. Walker’s candidacy turned out to be problematic, and Kemp simply stepped in to help Warren win the runoff.
There were some outcomes from their collaborative screening of 2026 prospects. Following pressure from other Republicans, U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene withdrew to run for the Senate.
Dooley is by no means the first football coach to enter the political race. His mother, Barbara Dooley, lost a Republican primary for Congress in 2002, and his late father was often mentioned as a potential candidate. Tommy Tuberville, the former football coach at Auburn University, is currently campaigning for governor after winning an Alabama Senate seat in 2020. Tom Osborne, the legendary coach at the University of Nebraska, was a member of the U.S. House for three terms.
Dooley was accepted as a wide receiver on a scholarship at the University of Virginia. After graduating from the University of Georgia with a law degree, he temporarily worked as an attorney in Atlanta before advancing through the college coaching ranks and taking over as head coach of Louisiana Tech for three years before joining Tennessee.
