But for Rankin, who in his reign at Edinburgh from 1996-2000 coached both Hodge and Scott, the arrival of a new coaching set-up could pay dividends sooner rather than later.
"There were some lads in the team who you just knew would move into coaching," Rankin told the Scotsman.
"Duncan has got there by a slightly different route. Having started out as a kicking coach he has acquired enough knowledge working with Scotland to be given a role across the Edinburgh back-line.
"The so-called 'bounce' when a new coach comes in does happen and we've seen it with Scotland; players try harder to respond to a new hand on the tiller and an extra few percentages out of everyone can lift Edinburgh.
"It is an especially important time of the year, too, for the new coaches because this is the time to be looking seriously at the club scene."
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