Kirby Smart was introduced as the new head football coach at
the University of Georgia during a press conference held Monday at the Georgia
Center for Continuing Education. He offered the following comments:
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| Photo By David Rogers |
Head Coach Kirby
Smart
Opening Statement…
“I don’t think words can express how honored and privileged
I am to stand before you as the head coach at the University of Georgia. I’d
like to first thank President (Jere W.) Morehead, Greg McGarity and the
athletic board. I also want to express how much I
appreciate the last nine years I spent at the University of
Alabama. Coach (Nick) Saban has been a great mentor during that time and I
would not be before you today were it not for him.
“I’ve thought about this day all of my life. As the son of a
high school coach and the best English teacher in the world, I've always
aspired to be a head coach. Thanks, mom, thanks, dad, for the example you set
for me and for so many others. As most of you know, I spent five of the
greatest years of my life here in Athens as a student-athlete. As I look
throughout this very storied program, there are several coaches that had a
great impact on my life here.
“Coach (Vince) Dooley has meant a lot to me in this
community and a great man. Coach (Ray) Goff, who, God bless him, brought me
here. I wasn't a very good player. Probably the reason he's not here is because
I wasn't a very good player. And Coach (Jim) Donnan has been a great asset to
me as I've grown as a coach.
“I'd also like to thank Coach (Mark) Richt for the
opportunity he gave me as an assistant here in 2005, and also for laying a
foundation of integrity at this university.
“But the most important thanks goes to my best friend, my
teammate and partner for life, my wife. She is my rock, and as a coach's wife,
she plays the role of both parents a great deal of time at our home. And the
best part, she's a born and bred Bulldog. From the time I met her, she's been a
Bulldog. We met here in Athens, Georgia, married here in Athens, Georgia, so it
is in a sense a homecoming for our family.
“Her father Paul is here helping with our three wonderful
children, Weston, Julia and Andrew. Without you, MB, none of this would be
possible.
“Now, a little bit about my vision for the University and
our football program. Our student-athletes will represent the University with
class and integrity. We will demand that. The greatest satisfaction I've
received as a coach is going into a 17, 18-year-old's home and, recruiting that
young man, and then watching them walk out the door as a graduate five years
later.
“We'll do everything in our power to help these kids be
successful as true student-athletes. That student comes first. Although we know
these young men will not be perfect, they'll be held to a higher standard of
behavior. Our ultimate goal is to educate students, and we'll do this the right
way, which is the Georgia way. Now about our football team and our brand of
football. Our teams will display great mental and physical toughness. We'll
play with great confidence and pride on the field. We'll work toward this with
relentless energy and passion, and I will demand that everyone in the
organization does that.
“In closing, I'd like to issue a call to action of sorts to
the Georgia people. We need to channel our faith, trust, and energy in the same
direction to support this team and this university. Thanks again. It's an honor
and privilege to be here before you, and I'll now take any questions.”
On his family…
“It's a special moment for me being able to see them and see
what Mary Beth has been through. The coaching profession is tough on the wives,
and she's done a great job with our children, raised them in a Christian home
and that makes me proud. It makes me proud to be back in Athens and be part of
this great community.”
On his staff at
Georgia…
“We don't put a timetable when we make those decisions. It's
a very fluid situation, constantly moving and changing. I won't put any
timetables on anything. Right now we're worried about getting on the road,
getting recruiting, and trying to assemble staff and talking to as many people
as we can.”
On coaching Alabama
in the College Football Playoff…
“First off, both President Morehead and Greg were very
supportive of me doing this the right way. It's very important to me that I
finish things the right way over there. A lot of these young men playing for
the University of Alabama I sat in their homes three, four, five years ago and
convinced them to come to the University of Alabama. And I don't think it would
be doing justice to turn and walk away from those kids.
“I think that President Morehead and Greg both supported me
fully, continuing to finish that, I'll at the same time honor my duties here.
Regulating your time will be very critical in the next probably month while we
get ready for this game, and also recruiting is in an active period right now.
So it will be a challenge, but a challenge I'm up to.”
On when he felt
prepared and ready to be a head coach and on any challenges of stepping into
that role…
“I think the growth you get from working at a place like
Alabama and with a program under Nick Saban, it helps me immensely. A lot of
people have said why not take a smaller school head job? I honestly feel my
growth was better being in a large program, being around Coach Saban and
learning how to manage a lot of the tough situations you deal with in the
media. So for me, the most difficult thing for me is the timing of this and
trying to move forward and grow and get the recruiting going.
“But as far as the challenges they present, it's there for
every head coach in the country. It's no different for anybody hitting the
ground running. Put your nose to the grindstone and deal with one issue at a
time. That's what we plan to do here as a staff.”
On opportunities
over the years to become a head coach…
“I don't think I need to validate the opportunities. To me,
the biggest thing is I've had opportunities to go places, stayed at Alabama
because I thought it was a good place. I waited on a great opportunity which is
here at the University of Georgia right now. No better place in the country to
be, one of the top programs in the country, top storied programs, very fertile
recruiting ground, very supportive administration. So I'm so excited to be here
right now and be here before you guys.”
On what his days
will be like preparing for the College Football Playoff and his message to
Georgia’s recruits…
“I'll be honest with them, that's the first thing. Be honest
with recruits, be up front. There is change going on and change is inevitable.
I think it's really important they understand that, and it's important they get
to know me.
“You ask what I'm going to be doing, I'm going to be real
busy. I've been real busy and I'm going to continue to be busy. But that's the
relentless energy and passion. That's the reason I am where I am today. I'm
going to do that recruiting, I'm going to do it coaching. I'm going to work for
the playoff game with the same energy and passion. That's what I hope to
achieve.”
On things he might
implement at Georgia from his time at Alabama…
“The process is hard work, that's what it is. It's hard work
through commitment and doing things the right way. A commitment to excellence
on the field, off the field, in the classroom, and every social aspect we have
for our players. The only way you achieve that is by getting a great
organization, a great support staff, surrounding yourself with great people and
great coaches. That's what I hope to do here at the University of Georgia.”
On his message to
the Georgia team on Sunday night…
“I spoke to the team last night. I talked to them about the
same things I just talked about here, having a commitment to excellence off the
field, especially right now studying for finals and making sure they stay
committed to the classroom. Finishing this season the right way with a chance
to win 10 games, which helps in recruiting.
“I spoke to those guys about doing the right things off the
field. If they can continue to do that, they can be successful. But I talk to
them about change. I told them, I guess it was 20 years ago, I sat in the same
place they were and had a new coach coming in. The uneasiness about having to
prove yourself again and start over sometimes as an upperclassman is tough. I
want to be here for them for that. We're going to challenge them and demand
toughness and effort out of every person and every aspect of their life. We're
going to push them harder than they've ever been pushed. But I think to be
excellent, they have to do that.”
On instilling
confidence in the Georgia fans that the team will move forward and be in a
better place fairly quickly…
“The only thing I can do is look forward. I've tried to
assemble the best staff possible to go out and get as much depth and good
players as we can in recruiting. Make sure those are the right kind of
student-athletes that will make right choices and decisions when they get here.
Then to get back here in January and get back to the grind assembling this team
and making this team the best it can be.
“I firmly believe that you can take and develop players and
you can show improvement within a team, and we need to do that here.”
On how close
Georgia is to competing for national championships…
“That's not a question that I like to answer, hypotheticals.
To answer that would be really difficult to say to put a pinpoint on a time on
that. We want to develop a really tough, physical team. We want to get great
recruits in here and do it the right way. That's what's important to me.
Continuing on the foundation of integrity is utmost importance for us here at
the University of Georgia.”
On the single most
important element he wants to instill in the program right away…
“Character, toughness, determination, a lot of those
factors, relentless effort. That's what we talk about all the time. That's what
we're going to sell this program on. Making sure every kid is buying into the
team aspect of that. Once you get that, you can achieve every goal you want.”
On Nick Saban’s
reaction to Smart getting the Georgia job…
“He was great. His reaction was he's excited for me. He and
I have a great relationship. We spent 11 years together, nine consecutively
there at the University of Alabama. He's been a great mentor for me, and he was
very supportive. Said he'll do anything he can to help me and continue that development.
He's always been supportive. He's got a lot of guys he's worked with out there
in this profession.”
On whether he will
be more hands on with the defense, not leaving it to assistants…
“Oh, no, I'm hands on with the whole program. I'm going to
be involved with everything. I mean, for me, that's one of the biggest
strengths I think I have as a coach is managing the whole thing, being involved
in special teams, being involved in the offensive and defensive sides and being
involved with coaches. The big thing is making sure everybody's on the same
page. Demand excellence out of everybody and make sure you get that. If you
don't, you've got to make a change.
“That's what being a head coach is about, and those are the
hard, tough decisions you've got to make, and that's what I'm ready to do.”
On how to get
people to believe that Georgia can win big games and compete for titles…
“I think you do that day-by-day. W-I-N, what is important
now? You build that faith, trust and confidence in your program by what you do
with your players. I think first and foremost these players at the University
of Georgia have to believe in themselves. We've got to do a good job of
instilling them with that as a staff.
“There are good players here, we've got to do a good job
with them. We've got to improve the depth. We've got to improve the quality of
the depth throughout the team. Both offensive and defensive lines, skill areas,
there is no area here that doesn't need improvement and depth. But that can be
done, and I think it will be done.”
On the 2005 season
at Georgia and what he took from that season…
“That's a unique question because that year I was the
running backs coach. It was a unique year for me because I was coaching on the
opposite side of the ball. I still think that was one of the greatest learning
experiences for me. To this day, I still use thoughts on defense that I learned
from being with Mike Bobo and the offensive staff, Neil Callaway here at the
University of Georgia that helped me become a better coach.
“So I advise every young coach, you can spin over to the
other side of the ball as a graduate assistant or another position coach, you
do that, because that helped me grow in 2005 to be on that side of the ball.
There were a lot of great players here that year, and it was a fun group to
coach at running back. We had a lot of good players in there.”
On how to handle
the dynamics of getting out to the recruits he wants to see this week…
“I'm going from here to go out and start recruiting and use
every minute I have of this contact period, in fact I'm ready to go right now
to see some guys. I've got to go see them. I've only got so long to go see them
and then it gets dead again and we go back to work on our bowl games and bowl
preps. So we have a detailed list of people we're going to see and attack and
see them one last time before it goes quiet again.”
On how long he will
work in Athens before returning to Tuscaloosa…
“It's not set yet. It's probably until Monday, Tuesday of
next week when we start bowl practice. I think Georgia starts around the same
time Alabama does. So I'll head back over to Tuscaloosa to start bowl prep with
them. Even while I'm over there, I've got a lot of good mentors in this
business, and one guy I want to thank is Dan Quinn of the Falcons. He called
and said, hey, look, if there is anyway I can help you, I went through a
similar process when he was with the Seahawks and also trying to take over the
Falcons. He talked about time management and managing your time the right way.
Spending every free moment you have and having people help you. I've got a
great organization and support structure here in place to help me time-wise to
have calls set up and ways for me to manage it better and utilize that time to
be fair to both places.”
On his offensive
philosophy…
“I think a lot of offenses, we've tried to defend have been
difficult. The media would say that the spread teams are Alabama Kryptonite,
but I would argue it could go either way. I think offensively, you have to have
balance. You want to be able to run the football and throw the football. It's
proven overtime that if you're one dimensional, you'll eventually get stopped.
“So to have balance, you've got to have good depth on the
offensive line, especially in this conference. You have to have big, grown men
that need lots of depth, because it's hard to get through it without having
injuries. But we want to make explosive plays on offense, which means you have
to have good skill people.
“To me, you have to recruit great skill people. They're here
in the state. They're here within a five-hour radius. You've got to go get them
and get them in your program so you can make explosive plays. I think that was
lacking in somewhat last year here on this team. The perimeter guys, you want
to be able to make explosive guys.
“So to do that, you've got to be great on third down on
offense. So those three target areas you have to have. Now to say are you going
to be spread or are you going to be pro? I don't think you can pigeon hole
yourself into that. I like to think you've got to be both in both situations.
You've got to utilize the talent you have on your team. What kind of players do
you have on your team? What does it set up to be successful? Do you have a lot
of good tight ends? Do you have a lot of good backs how about using those guys?
You get the best players the ball. I've learned that from the coaches I've
worked for. They've been the most successful when the good players got the
ball. So you need to go get good practice players and get them the ball. That's
what we plan to do.”
On his interactions
with Mike Bobo and Will Muschamp…
“Obviously Mike, I guess it was announced yesterday, texted
me and called me. We're close friends, family friends, kind of grew up
together. His dad's a high school coach as well as mine. Mike's been very
supportive of me. Been very helpful talking to and bouncing ideas off of. It
was the same way last year with him. He used me as a resource, and we used each
other because we both have different networks.
“Will, I've talked to Will. We're good friends, I'm happy
for Will and happy for his family.”
On the trend of
five coaches in the SEC East now with defensive backgrounds…
“For me it's just how it happened. It's what kind of people
you are, what kind of person you are. It just so happened that way. It could
change in four years and go back the other way. Obviously there's been a large
trend towards offensive coaches as well. It goes highs and lows, ebbs and
flows, who is stopping who and who is doing well.
“For the most part I've always thought of the SEC as a
defensive league. The highest ranked offensive statistical group might be 33rd
in the country out of our conference where there are a lot of tough defenses.
It's a tough, physical league. So you want to play good defense. Historically,
the teams with the best defense have been near the top of the conference. So I
think that's important to a trademark to have a good program in an SEC
Championship is good defense.”
On whether he has
been given limitations on his staff…
“Absolutely not. They've been totally supportive of any
decision I want to make, and that's the way it should be. I also want to
mention I see (UGA basketball coach) Mark Fox out there. I appreciate him
reaching out to me today. He's been a great asset to me already. I look forward
to meeting him and visiting with him.”
On retaining
current members of the current UGA staff…
“I don't want to put a timetable or any speculation. That's
really unfair to those coaches and their families. There will be consideration
there, obviously, but I do think it's very important that I hire my staff and
put my staff in place.”
On whether he feels
a certain pressure to deliver a higher level of expectation right away?
“No greater pressure than I put on my self, I can promise
you that. That's the way it should be. You put pressure on yourself and you
demand excellence from everybody in your organization. We're going to go out
there and have the intent to win in every game we play.”
