It's Time for 'Money Down'

CHAPEL HILL – Any way to get off the field, right?

Even raising seemingly silly signs with the dollar symbol on them, assistant coaches and student managers jumping up and down screaming “Money Down!”

Bizarrely chaotic to some, absolutely necessary to Geoff Collins.

That’s how he sees it, with an assist from former Florida Coach Jim McElwain.

North Carolina football fans must brace themselves for what’s coming this fall, because that’s what they will see.

When the Tar Heels are on defense and opponents are facing third downs, multiple signs with a giant “$” on them and other emblems will soar into the air, often with whoever is holding them jumping up and down yelling, too. Perhaps even the public address announcer will get into the act. That was the case at Georgia Tech, where Collins was the head coach for almost four seasons before being terminated in the middle of the 2022 campaign.

Each time an opposing team playing at Tech had third down, the video board erupted with cartoonish dollar signs and “Money Down” bouncing around as the PA guys hollered into the microphone that it was third down and the money down.

“Third down, get off the field,” UNC safety Jakeen Harris said when asked what Money Down means.

Perhaps cheesy to some, Harris and the Tar Heels like it. They say it perfectly reflects those situations.

“It’s always money down,” he said. “Every time it’s third down, anytime I’m on the field, it’s money down. That’s the down to get off the field. That’s the down to make your money on.”

Getting off the field on third downs hasn’t been easy for UNC teams in recent years. Last year’s club was decent, sitting in the middle nationally ranked 60th in defensive third-down efficiency.

With Collins in his first year as UNC’s defensive coordinator, he brought with him something he believes is an essential part of how he runs a defense. It’s the terminology of finding a way to spark an even greater sense of urgency in his unit on any third down.

The concept was born when he was at Florida working under McElwain, went with him in head-coaching stops at Temple and Georgia Tech, and after a year on the shelf, as Collins didn’t coach last fall, it’s back. And the Money Down’s home in Chapel Hill.

“The emphasis on it around here is huge,” Collins said.

What is it’s origin, however?

“My first spring at the University of Florida (2015) with McElwain, I think it was practice three, we were going to do third downs,” Collins explained. “And Mac was like, ‘we need to come up with something cool, something that makes sure the guys understand the situation,’ all of these things.

“So, this was Jim M saying this, and I go in there and start bouncing it around, and I’m like, ‘let’s go out there and call it money down. Let’s make some signs.’ I think somebody still has the original ‘Money Down’ sign that was drawn in Sharpie. And it just kind of took off and has followed me wherever we’ve gone.”

Defining its true value is difficult. Collins’ defenses at Florida were excellent, but they were also at Mississippi State before money down’s birth, and he was the coordinator on that side of the ball at both programs.

In 2015, the Gators were No. 8 nationally on defense, and No. 18 on third downs allowing a conversion rate of 33.5 percent. The following year, they were No. 5 overall and No. 24 on third down at 34.9 percent.

Yet, the two Mississippi State defenses, which likely had much less overall talent, were Nos. 28 and 21 on third downs in 2013 and 2014, respectively, when he was the coordinator in Starkville.

It didn’t work out too well during Collins’ 38-game stint as head coach at Georgia Tech, in which the Yellow Jackets won only 10 games. But being a head coach is vastly different from the role of coordinator. Collins has the respect of UNC Coach and Hall of Famer Mack Brown, who easily partitions Collins’ roles. He was hired accordingly.

Now, the players get it, they respect it, and have embraced it.

“We take it serious and we talk about that as a team,” senior safety Stick Lane said. “Money down is knowing where you at on the field, and knowing down and distance. Is it third-and-six, third-and-long? Where your leverage at, where your help is. And once we see that sign go up, we know it’s time to get off the field.”

And it’s fun, too.

“As soon as you see that sign; you’re tired, you’re running around, you’re focused but you’re not really looking at the sticks,” Lane said. “And once you look over to the sideline and you see that money down, you know it’s third down.”

Odds are UNC fans will welcome “Money Down” if it works. They certainly have seen plenty of struggles in those situations.

The No. 60 ranking last fall was pretty good, all things considered. The 2021 and 2022 Carolina defenses ranked Nos. 99 and 95 on third downs, respectively, and that was with different coordinators.

So, there’s no need to forgive Tar Heels fans if they see “Money Down” as a bit gimmicky. But in the end, it won’t matter as long as it works.

And if Collins’ track record solely as a coordinator is any indication, “Money Down” just might be embraced among the pines.