Alabama football losing new assistant coach Austin Armstrong to Florida | report

Austin Armstrong was not long for Tuscaloosa.

One of three new hires on the Alabama football coaching staff, Armstrong is leaving the Crimson Tide for the defensive coordinator job at the University of Florida, according to On3Sports.

Armstrong had previously been the defensive coordinator at Southern Miss, where his defense ranked No. 59 in the nation last year at 372.2 yards allowed per game. Reports of his hire at Alabama surfaced just five weeks ago. Alabama confirmed Armstrong's hire just nine days ago. The move is a promotion for Armstrong, who had been hired by UA coach Nick Saban as a position coach overseeing inside linebackers.

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Florida lost its previous defensive coordinator, Patrick Toney, to the NFL's Arizona Cardinals.

Armstrong's exit puts Saban in the position of having to scour for another defensive assistant coach in short order ahead of spring practice, which will end with the annual A-Day scrimmage on April 22. Armstrong had briefly replaced former UA assistant Charles Kelly, who accepted a job at Colorado on the staff of new coach Deion Sanders.

Saban also hired new coordinators this winter in Tommy Rees (offense) and Kevin Steele (defense).

Reach Chase Goodbread at cgoodbread@gannett.com. Follow on Twitter @chasegoodbread.