ATHENS — Assistant coaches Travaris Robinson and Donte Williams signed lucrative, multi-year contracts when they joined Georgia coach Kirby Smart’s staff for the 2024 football season.
Robinson, who in January came from Alabama to become the Bulldogs’ co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach, signed a 3½-year employment agreement with UGA that will pay him $1.3 million annually through June 2025, then $1.5 million through June 2027. Robinson also received a $200,000 “lump-sum payment” that was due within 45 days of the Jan. 15 signing of a memo of understanding.
Soon after Robinson signed with the Bulldogs, former co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Will Muschamp resigned. Robinson had worked for Muschamp as defensive coordinator at Florida and South Carolina when Muschamp was a head coach at those schools.
Williams joined the Bulldogs’ staff in December and also is signed through the 2026-27 academic year. He came from Southern Cal to replace Fran Brown, who left to become Rutgers’ head coach. Williams is Georgia’s defensive backfield coach and works primarily with cornerbacks.
Williams’ deal calls for him to be paid $825,000 annually through June 2025, then receive $25,000 increases for Fiscal Years 2026 and ‘27. Williams, who moved to Athens from Los Angeles, also received $30,000 for moving expenses. Robinson received $20,000 for that purpose.
Other details include $850 monthly vehicle stipends. Only $350,000 of the coaches’ pay is considered base salary. The rest – $910,000 a year for Robinson and $500,000 annually for Williams – is labeled “supplemental compensation.”
UGA shared the coaches’ general salary information a week after they were hired in response to an open-records request from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and other media outlets. However, the terms and details of their agreements were not shared until this week. For Williams, that was a period of 152 days. For Robinson, that was 128.
Smart had to make two other assistant coach hires after wide receivers coach Bryan McClendon left to take an NFL job and running backs coach Dell McGee accepted the head coaching position at Georgia State. Those coaches were replaced by James Coley and James Crawford, respectively. Coley, who came from South Carolina, will earn $650,000 in 2024 and Crawford, who came from Georgia Tech, will make $450,000. UGA has not yet revealed terms of their employment agreements.
Typically, Smart’s staffs have ranked among the higher paid in college football. Payroll for his 10 assistants currently is $10.1 million annually. That ranks second among public schools behind Ohio State’s $11.425 million, according to a survey by USA Today.
Smart himself recently received a pay raise and new 10-year contract that will pay him $13 million annually, not including bonuses and outside income. That’s the highest in college football. The Bulldogs have the most wins in the nation over the past three seasons, going 42-2 while winning an SEC title and two national championships.
