Travaris Robinson leaving Alabama football to join Kirby Smart at Georgia
Travaris Robinson is the latest coach to leave Alabama following the retirement of Nick Saban.
Days after Saban announced he’d be ending his career, and hours before the Tide is set to announce new head coach Kalen DeBoer, Robinson has decided to leave for rival Kirby Smart and Georgia.
The Bulldogs revealed Robinson’s appointment on social media Saturday morning. Robinson, who was Alabama’s cornerbacks coach, will be a co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at UGA.
“We are pleased to announce Travaris Robinson,” Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart said in a statement released by the school. ” … Travaris has 17 years of college coaching experience, including over a decade in the SEC mentoring some of the top defenses statistically in the NCAA.”
Will Muschamp, previously in Robinison’s role at Georgia, is stepping down to “spend more time with his family” while staying on staff as a defensive analyst, per UGA.
Robinson’s new contract details have yet to be reported. He earned $800,000 in 2023, according to USA Today’s database of assistant salaries. That was the 115th-highest salary for any non-head coach in college football.
Muschamp reportedly made $857,000 for the same role.
Robinson, 42, arrived in Tuscaloosa ahead of the 2022 season. Following a two-year NFL career following an all-conference stint at Auburn, Robinson bounced around from The Plains as a graduate assistant to coaching secondaries across the south, from Western Kentucky, Florida and others.
Muschamp hired Robinson at Florida in 2011 to coach defensive backs and followed him to Auburn in 2015. When Muschamp was named head coach at South Carolina later that year, Robinson became his cornerbacks coach. Robinson then left for a year on Mario Cristobal’s staff at Miami.
When Robinson got to Alabama, he lived up to this reputation as a recruiter and developer. The Tide had multiple All-SEC selections this fall, from potential first-round draft picks Kool-Aid McKinstry and Terrion Arnold to elite freshman Caleb Downs.
Robinson’s departure leaves another glaring hole on DeBoer’s coaching staff, which needs to be stocked with regional knowledge considering DeBoer’s mid-western roots. It’s also the latest former assistant of Saban that Smart has poached to Athens. Current Georgia strength coach Scott Cochran, then-analyst Dan Lanning and Smart himself, all won national titles with Alabama.
Now, with Robinson and Holmon Wiggins (at Texas A&M) leaving for different SEC rivals, Kevin Steele and Saban retiring and the status of offensive coordinator Tommy Rees unclear, it appears to be a regime change in Tuscaloosa.
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