REPORT: Kirby Smart makes another Georgia football staff move, adds special teams analyst

ATHENS — Georgia football is adding former Louisiana special teams coordinator Robby Discher to its staff as a special teams analyst, per Chris Vannini of The Athletic.

“Most people would probably think I’m a little bit quirky, I’m one of those weird guys that loves special teams,” Discher said in 2016 interview while at Toledo. “I love trick plays, you’ve just got to get your head coach on board.”

There should be no problem with that at UGA, where Kirby Smart has become known for his fake field goals and fake punts the first five years of his tenure.

The Bulldogs ranked 5th in the nation in kick returns (29.70) and 8th in the nation in kick return defense (16.80) last season, tops in the SEC in both categories.

Georgia was not as good in punt return defense (7th SEC, 68th nationally), or punt returns (7th SEC, 61st nationally) in Scott Cochran’s first year as the Bulldogs’ special teams coach.

Discher was named Special Teams Coordinator of the Year by FootballScoop while at Oklahoma Sate in 2014. In 2018, Phil Steele named Discher the Special Teams Coordinator of the Year at Toledo.

Smart explained when he hired Cochran that other staff members would continue to work with special teams, including himself.

“’Glenn Schumann, Dan Lanning, Todd Hartley, Cortez, Dell, Chartlon, have all had special teams duties in their career, so this is not like Scott Cochran is the only special teams guy on our staff,” Smart said. “We have an immense amount of knowledge and experience on special teams. They’ll draw on that. Scott will be the special teams coordinator.

“But we’ll use the entire staff to help with that. We’ve got quality control guys who do a great job of coaching in our coaches. And then I’m involved in our special teams, and always have been and always will be, because I think it’s a really important part.”

Many felt Georgia’s hiring of Cochran would be critical last season, as he was considered one of the pillars of Nick Saban’s success.

WATCH: Scott Cochran speaks, Georgia ‘rock star’ hire of offseason

But when the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out all of UGA’s spring football session last year, Cochran’s impact was limited, and he was not able to build the sorts of relationships Smart had envisioned.

SOURCE: Georgia is expected to add Louisiana Lafayette special teams coordinator Robby Discher as a special teams analyst, a person with knowledge of the situation tells @TheAthletic.

Discher will work with ST coordinator Scott Cochran.

— Chris Vannini 😷 (@ChrisVannini) February 26, 2021

Georgia’s most notable support staff addition of the offseason came when Smart hired his friend Will Muschamp, who was fired as head coach of the South Carolina program last season.

RELATED: Kirby speaks out on hiring his old friend, Will Muschamp

“He’s already made a lot of strides in terms of helping me [and] helping our staff,” Smart said.  “He’ll be able to help coach the coaches, and he’ll be working with the defensive side of the ball. It’s very helpful to have a guy who has been a head coach at two places in our conference.”

Georgia’s other big hire was in the secondary, where former West Virginia secondary coach Jahmile Addae was hired to replace Charlton Warren, who left to become the Indiana defensive coordinator.

Muschamp, once a safety at Georgia was a secondary coach in his first three full-time coaching positions.