Syracuse made it official Tuesday, tabbing Georgia assistant Fran Brown as its new head coach.

The Bulldogs’ secondary coach, a New Jersey native, takes over for Dino Babers, who was fired last year after eight seasons.

Brown just completed his second year with Georgia, where he’s coached the Bulldog secondary into one of the best units in the SEC.

Georgia comes into Saturday’s SEC Championship against Alabama (4 p.m., CBS) with the top pass defense in the conference (176 yards per game). The team’s 12 interceptions are tied with five other schools for No. 1 in the league.

It’s expected that Brown will pull double duty between his new job at Syracuse and Georgia throughout the postseason.

Kirby Smart’s search for a new secondary coach is expected to commence once the season is complete. One name to possibly keep an eye on is Houston defensive backs coach Doug Belk, following the firing of head coach Dana Holgorsen.

A Valdosta native, Belk is considered one of the bright young coaches in the country, having served on the staff with the Cougars since 2019, including the last two seasons as defensive coordinator.

Belk worked as a graduate assistant at Alabama for three seasons (2014-2016), including the first two years with Kirby Smart.

Of course, how Brown's departure will affect the players he helped recruit to Georgia remains a question.

Cornerback commitment Ondre Evans told UGASports that he's "still committed to Georgia."

There are others to keep an eye on.

Brown also helped land five-star Ellis Robinson. The two go back to Brown's days at Rutgers. However, according to Rivals analyst Adam Friedman, he expects Williams will remain with the Bulldogs, as head coach Kirby Smart and defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann.

In a tweet Tuesday afternoon, Robinson seemed to say he's sticking with the Bulldogs.

Other Brown-recruited commitments include a pair of New Jersey natives, defensive tackle Jordan Thomas, and offensive lineman Nyier Daniels.

Brown also recruited 2025 running back commit Jabree Coleman.

Prior to coming to Georgia, the 40-year-old Brown served two different stints at Tempe (2011-2016, 2019), Baylor (2017-2018), and Rutgers (2020-2021).

A graduate of Western Carolina, Brown also played two years with the Cincinnati Bengals (2007-2008).