Assistant Coach Pulls About Face; Leaves Texas A&M Football for Former Post

Wesley McGriff No Longer Joining Texas A&M Football Staff; Where Does Elko Turn?

Word started to leak out late last night from Auburn insiders that Wesley McGriff, very recently announced as the secondary coach and pass game coordinator for Texas A&M football, would be returning to the Plains to rejoin Hugh Freeze's staff. Billy Liucci of Texags reported at that time that things weren't finalized, but they were trending in that direction. Earlier today, the decision was finalized for coach McGriff, who chose to return to Auburn.

According to Justin Hokanson of AuburnLive, McGriff "never executed his contract" with the Aggies, which voids any buyout situation that might have otherwise been at play. After the departure of DC Ron Roberts, with whom McGriff apparently had been butting heads prior to his prodigal journey, it makes sense that things seemed cleared up for the secondary coach to return.

This is a boon for Hugh Freeze and Auburn, who have had some strange goings-on down on the Plains recently. Returning not only a veteran coach, but one possessing many existing relationships with the current roster, will help provide some stability in a turbulent time for the Tiger head man, now headed into his second year. This also may help explain why Keionte Scott ended up sticking around with Auburn rather than entering the portal, which seemed to be all but a foregone conclusion at one point.

For the Aggies' part, they are now in need of a final on-field coach to fully round out the Texas A&M football staff. Where should they look? Most staffs are completed by this point. Most staffs, that is, with one very notable exception. The recent retirement of the greatest to ever do it, Nick Saban, leaves his staff in limbo. One of the coaches that Tide fans have been desparate to keep in Tuscaloosa, due to his recruiting prowess and the productivity of his unit, is defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson.

Robinson, a former DC under Will Muschamp at South Carolina, has overseen an extremely stout pass defense for the Tide this year. During his time in Columbia, he recruited and coached standouts like Jaycee Horn, Israel Mukuamu, and Cam Smith. He would be a home-run replacement for McGriff; while not bringing the years of experience that the Auburn coach did, Robinson makes up for it with his considerable ability.

Plus, Alabama fans would hate to lose him. So it would be pretty funny.