Kirby Smart will be officially introduced as Georgia’s head coach on Monday afternoon in Athens. “I am pleased to welcome Kirby, his wife, Mary Beth, and their three children back home to the University of Georgia, and I look forward to supporting him in his new role as our head football coach”.
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Smart said he and his staff will do everything in their power to help their players be successful student-athletes. He did speak highly of Georgia’s interim head coach Bryan McClendon, who will coach the Dawgs in their bowl game against Penn State.
Smart’s hire was made official by the University of Georgia Athletic Association Sunday.
“Everyone says, ‘Well it should have been a head coach, ‘” Smart said. The Crimson Tide will face Michigan State in the College Football Playoff and Saban indicated that Smart would spend the next 7-10 days with his new squad before returning to Alabama practices. The new coach was widely regarded as one of the top assistants in the country, with Alabama perennially ranking among the top defensive teams in the country. “He’s as good an assistant coach, and as loyal an assistant coach, as I’ve ever had on my staff”.
Smart agreed to a six-year contract paying him at least $3.75 million a year.
“I’m working on recruiting for the University of Georgia full-time”, he said. Sensible stated College of Georgia President Jere Morehead & athletic director Greg McGarity “were very supportive of me doing this the right way” in splitting time between Alabama & Georgia.
With reports indicating Smart plans to stay on Alabama’s staff through the College Football Playoff, UGA’s biggest question mark is if it can hold onto the cast of commits Richt left behind. Smart met with Georgia players Sunday night.
A person with direct knowledge of the decision said Muschamp will be the Gamecocks next coach and hopefully bring some stability to a program after Steve Spurrier resigned in midseason.
He also could earn performance bonuses of up to $1.6 million if the Bulldogs win a national championship. Perhaps the most revealing moment of a press conference without much sizzle was his observation that the 2015 Bulldogs were “lacking somewhat” in “perimeter guys who can make explosive plays” on offense.
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Only Vince Dooley (201) won more games at Georgia. He graduated with a degree in finance and added a master’s degree from Florida State in 2003.
