After he left the Marines, he went into coaching. He worked at Georgia Tech for head coach Bobby Dodd. Carson took over as head coach in 1967. Under Carson, the Yellow Jackets had three 4-6 seasons in a row before going 9-3 and winning the Sun Bowl in 1970. In 1971, Tech finished 6-6 after a Peach Bowl loss. He was fired by Georgia Tech after that season. While at Georgia Tech, he made the "Cover 2" defensive strategy that has been widely used by the NFL.