George Helow joined the Terrapins coaching staff in January 2020 as Special Teams Coordinator and Inside Linebackers Coach.
Helow (pronounced He-LOW), has previously been a part of two National Championship teams and has worked under some of the most respected minds in college football. His coaching career started at the University of Alabama under head coach Nick Saban. Helow has also worked under Kirby Smart, Jimbo Fisher, Mark Richt, Jeremy Pruitt, and Mike Bobo.
Helow comes to Maryland from Colorado State University where he spent the last four seasons on the defensive staff, serving as the safeties coach for the past two years. Helow worked with the outside linebackers as a defensive quality control coach and graduate assistant in 2016-17.
In 2019, Helow oversaw a secondary that allowed just 181.58 yards per game, the seventh best pass defense in the country and best in the Mountain West. Safeties Jamal Hicks and Logan Stewart combined for 193 tackles, eight tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two interceptions for the Rams as they held seven opponents to under 200 passing yards. In Helow's first season coaching safeties, in 2018, three of his defensive backs ranked in the top five on the team in tackles while the Rams ranked fourth in the Mountain West, only allowing 232.4 passing yards per game.
Helow has held stints at some of the nation's premiere collegiate programs during his coaching career, including the University of Alabama, Florida State University and the University of Georgia. In 2013, Helow helped lead Florida State to a national title as a defensive graduate assistant under Jimbo Fisher. He then spent two seasons as a defensive graduate assistant at the University of Georgia in 2014 and 2015 where he coached the safeties and worked closely with Jeremy Pruitt. Helow also earned a master’s degree in adult education from the University of Georgia during this time.
In 2012, Helow earned his first collegiate coaching job under Nick Saban at Alabama. Initially, Helow was an intern in the weight room that spring and summer, and then served under Defensive Coordinator Kirby Smart as a defensive intern in the fall. The Crimson Tide defeated Notre Dame in the BCS National Championship game and during the season allowed just 10.9 points per game.
Helow’s playing career began at Bishop Kenny High School in Jacksonville, Florida. From there, he attended Hargrave Military Academy Prep School in Chatham, Virginia. He played collegiately under both Ed Orgeron and Houston Nutt at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) from 2006-10 where he earned a business degree in marketing. He played in all 38 games for the Rebels from 2008-10, which included back-to-back Cotton Bowl victories in 2009 and 2010. Helow led the 2010 team in special teams tackles, and was nominated for the Burlsworth Trophy, an award given annually to the nation’s most outstanding college football player who began their career as a walk-on. After graduating from Ole Miss, Helow returned to Bishop Kenny for a coaching stint before joining Alabama’s program.
