With Mark Richt out at the University of Georgia, will the Bulldogs hire Kirby Smart?
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News broke on Sunday that the Georgia Bulldogs had fired embattled coach Mark Richt. It was an interesting decision by the Bulldogs given the proliferation of open coaching positions, not to mention high-profile gigs – Southern California and Miami immediately come to mind.
And yet, this parting has been building to a crescendo for a few years now. Richt has carried the persona of a man too nice to win it all. His teams are always good, but not great. And for the past three seasons he’s had ridiculously talented clubs lose head-scratching games and get frozen out of the SEC Championship Game (an essential play-in for the national championship). Come Sunday, the administration had finally tired of bumping its head on the glass ceiling of unrealized expectations and chose to part ways with Richt after 15 seasons.
Spinning forward, where will Georgia turn to now? As mentioned, they are hardly the top team on the market – arguably third. Also, they’re competing with the likes of division rival South Carolina in the head coaching sweepstakes.
The first name that will likely be on every list is Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart. Smart grew up in Bainbridge, Georgia, played at for the Bulldogs from 1995-98, and even coached under Richt as a running backs coach in 2005.
Furthermore, Smart is, without question, the top coordinator on the market. He’s been a hot commodity for several years now and has long been expected to move on to the head-coaching ranks when a job of his own liking manifested. Since being named Alabama’s defensive coordinator in 2008, Smart has lorded over seven defensive units that ranked top-5 in total defense (including the No. 1 clubs in 2011 and 2012).
Georgia will likely look for a fiery personality to go against the grain from Richt’s down-home persona. Expect to hear Smart’s name thrown about with vigor by the media, and for the defensive coordinator to be on Georgia’s shortlist of desired prospects.