Less than 24 hours after the Florida Gators sent Urban Meyer out a winner in his final game in the Outback Bowl, new UF coach Will Muschamp announced the hiring of five members to his coaching staff Sunday, including three off Meyer's staff.
Muschamp has retained Gators' running backs coach/recruiting coordinator Stan Drayton, tight ends coach Brian White and linebackers coach/special teams coordinator D.J. Durkin. The new members to the staff are former UF standout Aubrey Hill, who will coach the wide receivers, and Travaris Robinson, who will coach the UF secondary.
Hill coached the wide receivers at Miami the past three seasons, while Robinson, a former player at Auburn, comes from Texas Tech, where he spent this past season coaching the secondary under Tommy Tuberville.
"I thought it was important to have some continuity in the staff — D.J., Stan and Brian bring that to the table," Muschamp said. "They are also solid recruiters. Aubrey is obviously a Gator, and it's always a plus when you have someone coach at their alma mater. He understands the passion and the expectations here, and I know he is excited to return to Gainesville.
"Travaris worked on our staff at Auburn (when Muschamp was the Tigers' defensive coordinator) and is a winner. He has competed at the highest level in this sport and is a good young coach with strong ties to the South Florida area, which will benefit us in recruiting."
Muschamp's most important hiring announcements are still to come — and that is expected to happen today.
The Gainesville Sun and numerous other media outlets, including the Kansas City Star and The Associated Press, confirmed Saturday that Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Charlie Weis has agreed to become the Gators' offensive coordinator, and he is expected to be introduced Monday.
Kansas City coach Todd Haley confirmed after the Chiefs' game Sunday that Weis is leaving for the Gators.
"Charlie Weis is moving on," Haley said. "He's going to go to the University of Florida as a coordinator. There was obviously a lot of speculation on that. Charlie and I, the Chiefs, we had a bunch of real productive conversations this weekend — really productive. This is a bittersweet deal for me, as the head coach, because Charlie was someone I was obviously really excited to have in here.
"With that being said, Charlie is a family guy. He has a situation, a family situation, where he can go to Florida and be with his son, who is going to get into coaching. Without talking personally about Charlie, this is a great situation for Charlie. And I respect it 100 percent and we respect it 100 percent."
Weis, the former head coach at Notre Dame, is considered one of the top offensive coordinators in all of football.
Weis, 54, became the Chiefs' offensive coordinator this season after being fired by Notre Dame a year ago. His Kansas City offense is one of the most productive in the NFL. Weis will remain with the Chiefs through the team's run in the playoffs.
Muschamp also is expected to name a new defensive coordinator in the next day or two.
Two names that have emerged as strong candidates are Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart, who played with Muschamp at Georgia, and Seattle Seahawks defensive line coach Dan Quinn. Quinn and Muschamp were on Nick Saban's Miami Dolphins coaching staff in 2005 and, like Muschamp, Quinn is a high-energy guy who coaches with great passion.
"This is a good start to our coaching staff and I hope to have some additional announcements this week," Muschamp said.
With Weis coming on board Monday, Muschamp will have only three openings on his staff to fill (the NCAA limit on coaching staffs is nine). The Gators still don't have a defensive or offensive line coach, or a quarterbacks coach, although that's a role Weis likely will fill.
When Muschamp was introduced as UF's new coach on Dec. 14, he announced he was retaining strength and conditioning coordinator Mickey Marotti. So, Muschamp's new staff will have four holdovers from Meyer's staff.
Hill, 38, played under Steve Spurrier at UF from 1991-94, helping the Gators win three SEC championships. Hill had 86 career receptions with 18 touchdowns. He was a graduate assistant on Spurrier's staff from 1996-98. Before becoming UM's wide receivers coach, Hill held the same position at Pittsburgh for three seasons.
Robinson, 29, is a Miami native. He started his coaching career in 2006 after playing two seasons in the NFL with Atlanta and Tampa Bay. As a player at Auburn, he was an All-SEC defensive back his senior season.
While putting together his coaching staff, Muschamp also is facing the prospect of losing two juniors early to the NFL Draft — cornerback Janoris Jenkins, who missed the Outback Bowl after undergoing shoulder surgery, and safety Will Hill. Last week, senior center and team captain Mike Pouncey said Jenkins was "definitely" leaving and that he also expected Hill to put his name in the draft.
Since Meyer's sudden resignation Dec. 8, there have been rumors about possible player transfers, specifically members of Meyer's last recruiting class.
But true freshman cornerback Cody Riggs said after Saturday's game that none of the true freshmen are planning to transfer.
