Muschamp to Georgia is official. His role with Bulldogs detailed by Kirby Smart

A new face has been spotted around Georgia’s football facilities over recent weeks. In many ways, it’s a familiar one.

Will Muschamp, former South Carolina coach and a Georgia player in the 1990s, has assisted the UGA program in a volunteer-like role since the offseason began in early January. He moved his family into the Athens area, but Georgia issued a statement that Muschamp wasn’t employed by the university as discussion around his role began to escalate.

That changed last week.

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart confirmed Wednesday that the program finalized the logistics of Muschamp joining the staff. He will be in an “off-the-field role,” also known as an analyst, and work on the defensive side of the ball, Smart said.

Muschamp’s son, Jackson Muschamp, joined Georgia’s football program last season as a walk-on quarterback.

“His family has been his focus for him lately,” Smart said. “He sees it as a good opportunity to give back to them and be able to watch his son play.”

Muschamp was head coach at South Carolina from 2016 before being fired in November. The Gamecocks hired Shane Beamer to replace him last month.

Beamer and Muschamp have connected, the new USC coach said Wednesday in an interview on the SEC Network.

“He’s been very open and helpful for me,” Beamer said. “He doesn’t have to do that. Tons of respect for him.”

The Gamecocks and Bulldogs play Sept. 18 at Sanford Stadium in Athens.

Muschamp worked as Florida’s head coach from 2011 to 2014. He was fired by the Gators and spent the 2015 season as Auburn’s defensive coordinator. He was hired as the USC head coach in December 2015.

Muschamp finished his South Carolina tenure with a 28-30 record across more than four seasons. He has not commented publicly or on social media since his dismissal at South Carolina.

When South Carolina fired Muschamp in November 2020, the school was set to owe him 75% of his salary for the rest of his deal — a total of around $15.3 million spread out through the end of 2024. Instead, his contract buyout was negotiated to a lump sum of $12.9 million that was paid out at the end of the year.

As part of the settlement, both sides fully released each other from all claims and promised not to sue each other. Muschamp also agreed that he will not “actively recruit or encourage” any current student-athletes at South Carolina to enter the transfer portal or transfer to another school, “through direct or indirect communication.”

Muschamp returns to Georgia after playing safety in a Bulldog uniform from 1991-94. He has made 10 different coaching stops over more than two decades at the professional and college levels.

Muschamp’s return to Athens seemed a strong possibility from the moment Georgia’s season ended. Smart’s relationship with Muschamp has been a talking point each time the two coaches squared off over five seasons, as they were hired into their head coaching roles in 2016.

Now, Smart and Muschamp get some time together, and it has already served to the Bulldogs’ benefit.

“He has already made a lot of strides in helping me and our staff,” Smart said. “He’ll be able to help coach the coaches. It’s very valuable to have a guy who has been a head coach at two places in our conference (Florida and South Carolina), because he knows the ins and outs. He’ll help in a lot of ways.”

Georgia understands Muschamp’s track record, especially as a defensive coordinator at stops across the Power 5. It’s not yet known how long he’ll serve as an analyst or whether, but an eventual return as an on-field coach wouldn’t be a surprise move.

A Tuesday night report by Matt Zenitz of AL.com added that Georgia plans to hire Robert Muschamp, Will Muschamp’s nephew, in a support staff capacity. Robert spent time as a graduate assistant at Tennessee after playing tight end at Auburn.

It’s now a family affair at UGA for the Muschamps. And the new time being spent in Athens has an official title.

“Any time you’re an aspiring coach, you want an opportunity to go coach on the grass,” Smart said. “He’s not done with his coaching days.”

— The State’s Lou Bezjak contributed