Derek Dooley, who spent three seasons coaching the Tennessee Volunteers football team, is running for the Republican nomination for the Senate seat in Georgia.

Derek Dooley's father is Vince Dooley, who coached the Georgia Bulldogs to a national title in 1980. Derek Dooley's campaign video leans on his Georgia roots as well as praising President Donald Trump.

"Trump campaigned on things, and he's turned them into results. I haven't known a president in my lifetime who's been able to achieve these kinds of results," Derek Dooley said. "That's what the people want. They want somebody who is going to mean what they say, say what they mean, and then go deliver results."

Derek Dooley advocated for cutting taxes and spending and maintaining the border while attacking Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., for supporting "woke stuff."

Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., and Buddy Carter, R-Ga., are also running in the primary. Ossoff is considered one of the most vulnerable senators in the 2026 midterms, running in a state Trump won in 2024.

Derek Dooley was recruited to run by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who declined to enter the race, Politico reported.

The Georgia Democratic Party called Derek Dooley a "failed and fired" football coach.

"This chaotic, crowded Republican primary just got messier with the entrance of failed and fired former Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley, who has failed to live up to his family name throughout his career," Georgia Democratic Party Chair Charlie Bailey said in a statement.

Derek Dooley was fired from Tennessee after three unsuccessful seasons. He last coached at Alabama as a senior offensive analyst.

According to the Washington Examiner, Derek Dooley did not vote in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections and has never donated to Trump.

"The amount of fear and desperation coming from career politicians about an outsider who hasn't even announced yet should tell Georgia voters all they need to know," said Derek Dooley spokesperson Connor Whitney in a statement to the Examiner prior to his campaign announcement.

"Like most Georgians, Derek built a life around his family, a job he loved, and helping young people succeed, not politics. These lame attacks are predictable and laughable."