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Last year in March, Kirby Smart dropped the news that Phil Rauscher was officially in the Bulldogs’ offensive mix as an assistant. Fast forward to 2026, Smart soon realized Rauscher comes with firepower, and a promotion soon came for the coach. However, even before the season started, a $7.7B NFL titan is trying to swipe him from Georgia.
“Numerous sources, with ties to both the Georgia program and NFL, tell FootballScoop that Rauscher is being pursued by the Las Vegas Raiders to join the inaugural staff of new head coach Klint Kubiak,” reported Football Scoop’s analysts duo John Brice and Scott Roussel. “Multiple sources tell FootballScoop that Rauscher has been approached by Kubiak’s Raiders for the role of running game coordinator.”
Right now, the Las Vegas Raiders are in a full revamp mode when it comes to their coaching staff. Moving into the 2026 season, Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak will take up the head coaching throne. And he is the one who is pushing hard to take Smart’s coach under his wing and offered him the role of running game coordinator.
The Georgia head coach counted on Rauscher’s 15 years of coaching experience in the pro league to offer him the role of offensive assistant in 2025. Before stepping into Athens, he spent the last three seasons grinding in the NFL trenches with the Jacksonville Jaguars, coaching the offensive line and earning a run-game coordinator tag in 2024. Before that?
Rauscher’s last college stop was in 2014, when he ran the offense and offensive line at California Lutheran University. But Smart helped him to end the college football drought. After a year, when Stacy Sarels stepped back into an analyst role, the program promoted him to Georgia’s offensive line coach in January.
“Phil has been a tremendous asset to our staff and players,” Smart said. “He has earned this opportunity through his work ethic, technical expertise and his ability to connect with our players. We’re excited about the future of our offensive line under his leadership.”
While it’s expected that the Las Vegas Raiders are going to dish out a fatter cheque than his Georgia offer, there is another big factor for Rauscher to consider an NFL swap. The Raiders’ new coach alone is a big factor for Smart’s coach to fly to Las Vegas. Well, the duo coached shoulder-to-shoulder and made history together in the pro league.
They crossed paths a decade ago with the Denver Broncos, where Rauscher held the position of assistant offensive-line coach while Kubiak cut his teeth as an offensive assistant. Then again, Smart’s coach’s Minnesota Vikings chapter, called up for a reunion with Kubiak in 2021. Finally, their paths diverged when Rauscher was hired by Jacksonville in 2022.
Looks like Smart has enough reasons to worry about. After all, February has been all about coaching heartbreaks. The Michigan Wolverines lost their defensive line coach, Lou Esposito, to the Baltimore Ravens.
In case Georgia’s fear comes true, how will things look in Athens?
Kirby Smart’s dependence on Phil Rauscher for the upcoming season
Smart always saw Rauscher as irreplaceable since so much knowledge of the game and leadership qualities are rare to find in one person. Next season would have been the proving ground for the coach. Rauscher was to be tasked with putting together an experienced offensive-line while juggling a bunch of shifting pieces.
Georgia’s trench makeover starts on the left side. Smart has lost both offensive linemen, Micah Morris and offensive tackle Monroe Freeling to the NFL. They were the two ironmen who suited up for every game last season. Still, all that shuffling up front has left Georgia with some steadier cards heading into 2026. Dontrell Glover is one who logged 11 starts at right guard.
But Smart counted on Rauscher to make some crucial decisions. One of them would have been whether to elect Glover at right guard or flip him over to the left side. With so many things on Smart’s plate, there came an ultimatum.
“Kirby Smart has proven over the years that he reloads rather than rebuilds,” CBS Sports’ Robby Kalland wrote. “But for a Georgia team that’s slipped from its perch of the nation’s unquestioned best to simply being “one of the best,” the 2026 season will be a test of how easily they can fill gaps in this new era.”
With a new title in hand and work still left on the table, would Phil Rauscher jump ship, leaving Kirby Smart scrambling to reunite with Klint Kubiak?
