Georgia football defensive analyst Robert Muschamp has taken an opportunity with the Los Angeles Chargers as a quality control coach.
The former Auburn linebacker spent two seasons in Athens alongside his uncle and co-defensive coordinator Will Muschamp.
Muschamp spent his high school career at Darlington School in Rome, Georgia, and walked-on at Auburn during his uncle’s stint as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator.
Muschamp made his coaching debut as a graduate assistant at Tennessee from 2019-2020 before moving on to Georgia.
A member of the back-to-back College Football Playoff champions is joining the Chargers.
A member of the back-to-back College Football Playoff champions is joining the Chargers.
Matt Zenitz of On3 reported Thursday that Los Angeles had hired Georgia analyst Robert Muschamp in a quality control role. Muschamp is the nephew of Bulldogs head coach Will Muschamp, who has led Georgia to national championships in each of the last two seasons.
Before joining his uncle at Georgia prior to the 2021 season, the younger Muschamp played tight end at Auburn from 2015-18, then was a graduate assistant coach at Tennessee from 2019-20. His staff bio page on Georgia’s website lists him as a defensive quality control coach, despite Zenitz reporting that he was an analyst.
Muschamp’s specific title with the Chargers is not yet known. It’s equally likely that he focuses on either side of the ball, given his experience playing as a tight end and coaching experience on the defensive side of the ball. Teams are increasingly hiring former offensive players to coach defense and vice versa to bring different perspectives to their staffs. He’s also an experienced special teams player and could be joining the staff to help Ryan Ficken.
The path Muschamp has taken through the SEC also means he’s familiar with a number of Chargers players and potential NFL Draft targets. Offensive lineman Jamaree Salyer overlapped with him at Georgia in 2021, while Muschamp and wide receiver Josh Palmer were both at Tennessee in 2019 and 2020. Muschamp also played with Auburn pass rusher Derick Hall and linebacker Owen Pappoe in 2018. While at Tennessee, he coached wide receivers Cedric Tillman and Jalin Hyatt, linebackers Henry To’o To’o and Jeremy Banks, and offensive linemen Darnell Wright and Jerome Carvin. In Athens, he crossed paths with pass rusher Nolan Smith, tight end Darnell Washington, and offensive linemen Broderick Jones and Warren McClendon.
Whether those connections have any bearing on what the Chargers do in the draft is to be determined. Quality control coaches don’t have the same level of pull as a position coach or coordinator do, and tracing the history of every member on LA’s staff will inevitably draw connections between the Chargers and every player in the draft.
Tennessee defensive graduate assistant Robert Muschamp is joining Georgia’s staff.
He will serve in a defensive quality control position for the Bulldogs.
Muschamp is the nephew of former Florida and South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp.
Auburn wide receiver Griffin King (89), tight end Robert Muschamp (39) and Chandler Cox (27) celebrate while waiting for the trophy presentation after the team’s 63-14 win over Purdue in the Music City Bowl NCAA college football game Friday, Dec. 28, 2018, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn.
Muschamp came to Tennessee after playing at Auburn from 2015-18.
He played linebacker and tight end at Darlington High School in Rome, Georgia, while spending time at fullback, tight end and on special teams with the Tigers.
Muschamp served as a graduate assistant under UT head coach Jeremy Pruitt during the 2019 and 2020 seasons.
Tennessee-South Carolina Week 1 matchup headlined by program parallels.
KNOXVILLE — Tennessee enters game week for its first contest of the 2020 campaign.
Tennessee travels to South Carolina in Week 1 and will take on the Gamecocks at 7:30 p.m. EST. The matchup will be televised by SEC Network.
Vols Wire outlines the two programs having parallels heading into the season opener Sept. 26.
Mike Bobo — South Carolina offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach
Will Friend — Tennessee offensive line coach
Collin Hill — South Carolina quarterback
Jeremy Pruitt — Tennessee head coach
Sep 14, 2019; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Colorado State Rams quarterback Collin Hill (15) is congratulated by head coach Mike Bobo after scoring a rushing touchdown against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the second quarter at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
Photo by Dan Harralson, Vols Wire
Will Friend enters his third season as the Vols’ offensive line coach. Friend came to Tennessee after serving as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Colorado State under then-head coach Mike Bobo. Bobo is in his first season as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at South Carolina.
Apr 12, 2014; Athens, GA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt coaches on the sideline during the first half of the Georgia Spring Game at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Friend also served as offensive line coach at Georgia from 2011-14 when Bobo was the Bulldogs’ offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach through the 2014 season. Jeremy Pruitt served as Georgia’s defensive coordinator in 2014.
NEXT: Vols-Gamecocks parallels heading into season opener
KNOXVILLE — Robert Muschamp enters his second season as a defensive graduate assistant at Tennessee.
Muschamp came to Tennessee after playing at Auburn from 2015-18. He played linebacker and tight end at Darlington High School in Rome, Georgia, while spending time at fullback, tight end and on special teams with the Tigers.
Auburn wide receiver Griffin King (89), tight end Robert Muschamp (39) and Chandler Cox (27) celebrate while waiting for the trophy presentation after the team’s 63-14 win over Purdue in the Music City Bowl NCAA college football game Friday, Dec. 28, 2018, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn.
Muschamp comes from a football family.
He is the nephew of head coaches Will Muschamp at South Carolina and Mike Muschamp of the Lovett School in Atlanta, Georgia.
Tennessee’s second-year defensive graduate assistant — known as Rocky Top Bob — played for Tommy Atha at Darlington.
Atha discussed Muschamp coming from a football family and having the sport in his blood.
“Football is just in his blood,” Atha told Vols Wire of Tennessee’s Muschamp. “The football pedigree in that family, and it’s just not Will. His uncle Mike played for Steve Spurrier at Duke. His Dad, Pat, played at Army. Robert’s father and my father played high school football together at the old Rome High School. His grandfather, Larry, played at North Carolina. Football is just in Robert’s blood.”
Atha views Muschamp as being “a coach on the rise” in college football.
“I don’t think there is any question that the sky is the limit as far as Robert’s concerned in the college coaching world,” Atha said. “He certainly has the work ethic for it. He’s got the mind and the mental toughness.
“Obviously, there are some connections that always help at that level. When you put all that together, I think Robert’s got tremendous potential to rise in the coaching world.”
Muschamp’s experience playing on both sides of the ball at Darlington, and going from a walk-on to a scholarship player at Auburn, helps him in being able to teach and develop players throughout an entire roster.
“He is so smart with physical and mental toughness, he is a leader and has a great demeanor about him,” Atha said of Muschamp. “He played through a broken hand and a torn labrum when he was in high school. We were able to do a lot of things because he was a versatile kid. He was big enough that he could have been a lineman, but he was athletic enough to be a skill player. He was a tight end for us and he really helped us transform what we do offensively because we went from a three-back wing-option and morphed into more of a pro-style and used him as an H-back and a flex tight end. He was a big part of us morphing into a more pro and spread style offense that we are in now.
“We are a single-A program, and when you are one of the better athletes, you are going to play in all three phases. He was a SAM linebacker and set the edge and blew things up. Robert certainly did not shy away from contact as a super, physical kid. He was one of our better players on both sides of the ball. When you are a walk-on at a Power Five school, and stay the course, and eventually find your way on special teams after four years, that says a lot about you.”
Patrick Collier coached middle linebackers at Darlington during Muschamp’s senior season. Collier can also see Muschamp’s potential in the profession, a career that could see him next as a position coach.
“Robert is the type of person that will stop at nothing to achieve a goal he has set for himself,” Collier told Vols Wire. “So, if his goal is to one day be a position coach in the SEC, I believe that he will be able to achieve it.”
Tennessee will kick off the 2020 season against Muschamp’s South Carolina Gamecocks on Sept. 26. Kick off is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised by SEC Network.
