Could Georgia's latest assistant hiring help poach an Alabama star in the portal?

The ripple effects of Nick Saban retiring are only just beginning. With former Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer taking over for him at Alabama, not only are top-flight players and recruits entering the transfer portal, but notable coaches are on their way out as well. One coach Alabama could not afford to lose was cornerback coach Travaris Robinson. He now heads to Georgia to work for Kirby Smart.

Now how is Georgia going to make room for T-Rob? Well, he is replacing co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Will Muschamp on Smart's staff, as Muschamp is planning to spend more time with his family. While his son Jackson is on the Georgia football team, his other son Whit plays his college football for Clark Lea at Vanderbilt. Muschamp will be a defensive analyst in some capacity.

Even though there was no successor in place on Saban's final Alabama staff, Robinson was well on his way toward getting there. He and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees had among the brightest futures on his last Crimson Tide staff. So what does this mean for UGA? It means Robinson will join Smart, Muschamp and former USC interim coach Donte Williams in coaching up the same secondary.

Here is official announcement of Coach Robinson making his way over from Tuscaloosa to Athens.

Now that T-Rob is the latest Saban disciple to go to work for the Red and Black, does that mean he could be the missing piece to pick up Alabama stars like Isaiah Bond and Caleb Downs in the portal?

Could Travaris Robinson help Georgia poach Alabama stars in the portal?

The big key here is Alabama players will have an additional 30 days to decide if they want to transfer before spring practice commences. In theory, the same principle would apply to Washington as well with whoever ends up replacing DeBoer in Seattle. Thus, Georgia has a longer runway to go big-game hunting if they so choose. Also, let's keep in mind where Bond and Downs played high school football.

Bond played at Buford in Gwinnett, while Downs played his high school ball over at Mill Creek in Hoschton. In theory, you are a stone's throw away from Athens. More importantly, NIL will be a huge factor working against DeBoer for the time being. Prospective recruits are not going to want to take the Alabama discount because Saban is no longer the Crimson Tide's coach. Georgia benefits a ton.

I think what Smart is doing is smart. He knows that he will be losing even more assistants to other jobs in due time. Losing Fran Brown to Syracuse came as a bit of a shock, but good for him, man. In time, the Dawgs are probably going to end up losing coaches like Glenn Schumann, Bryan McClendon and maybe even Dell McGee to Power Four or Group of Five jobs. Backfilling is important.

The more I think about it, the notion of Georgia adding Robinson to their staff only makes them better.