Kirby Smart would be taking risk following Muschamp
It doesn't make sense for Kirby Smart to make lateral move from Alabama to Florida.
If we are to believe reports, Kirby Smart is considering leaving as the highly paid defensive coordinator at Alabama to become the highly paid defensive coordinator at Florida, thereby forming “Team Bulldog” in Gainesville with Will Muschamp.
I’ll ask the same question now that I did a year ago at this time when Bulldogs coach Mark Richt tried to lure Smart back to Athens: Why would Smart do it?
Smart is a terrific coach. I know some believe he gets too much credit for Alabama’s defense because he works for Nick Saban. But if he wasn’t highly regarded, he wouldn’t be on Saban’s staff and Alabama wouldn’t have bumped up his contract to $750,000 a year to keep him when Richt phoned.
But Smart’s next move should be as a head coach. He’ll get offers, as soon as next season. We all know there will be some tenuous heading coaching situations going into next season.
If Saban, who has a reputation for burning out assistants, is driving Smart nuts, that’s a factor. If Florida offers to elevate his pay even more, that also would be a factor (although it’s hard to imagine the Gators paying Smart much more than he’s making now). Finally, there’s the opportunity for Smart to work with a close friend in Muschamp.
But if Smart leaves, he will be taking an enormous risk. We know Alabama is going to be a very good team again next season. We don’t know that about Florida. The outgoing Urban Meyer said the Gators are “broken” right now. There’s a transition period for any new head coach.
Mostly, we still have no idea how good Muschamp will be as a head coach. The fact he was the coach in waiting at Texas and deserved this opportunity doesn’t guarantee he will be a success. It’s a different job with different responsibilities when you’re the guy in charge.
If Muschamp struggles, his coaching staff slides down with him. Smart already is a hot commodity. He’s not going to become a hotter commodity in Gainesville.
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353 comments Add your comment
5150 P.O.A.D.
December 13th, 2010
6:30 pm
Kirby Not So Smart
How wid UGA’s D do against Auburn in the second half.
TampaGator
December 13th, 2010
6:33 pm
oakwood Dawg….
Dream on! Muschamp will be in Gainesville for a long time….but you might get Smart after next year.
Special K
December 13th, 2010
6:34 pm
Randy!! From one winning program to another! RTR!!! I hope this is not true.
Mike Bobo 17 Int
December 13th, 2010
6:36 pm
Cam Newton and Reggie Bush…about the same as OJ Simpson..get the hardware and money and move on!
December 13, 2009
December 13th, 2010
6:38 pm
this just in moronic dawgs. Muschamp and Smart are both defensive coaches. Hahahahahahahaha
WAR CAM EAGLE
December 13th, 2010
6:39 pm
YOU DAWGS ARE LOVING ME NOW ARENT CHU?
HAHAHAHA
WAR CAM EAGLE
December 13th, 2010
6:39 pm
WHERE ARE ALL THOSE FORFIETS YOU SPOKE ABOUT FOOLS?
HAHAHAHAHAHA
WAR CAM EAGLE
December 13th, 2010
6:40 pm
THATS MR WARCAM EAGLE TO YOU DAWGS. I RUN YOUR STATE NOW!
HAHA
December 13th, 2010
6:42 pm
Kirby Smart is going to Florida.
Looks like UGA lost out on TWO potential head coaches. HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
HAHA
December 13th, 2010
6:43 pm
“Randy!! From one winning program to another! RTR!!!”
Since when did UGA have a winning program?
Special K
December 13th, 2010
6:45 pm
I’m BAMA HAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! RTR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ugs is not
Sir-Wrecks-N-Effect
December 13th, 2010
6:50 pm
If Kirby Smart goes to the gaytors he will simply be waiting for CMR to move on before being asked to be the next great head coach in Athens.
Corch Myer
December 13th, 2010
6:54 pm
So do you really believe Foley when he says he only talked with Muschamp? Either over the past 4 days or over the past year???
HAHA
December 13th, 2010
6:57 pm
“I’m BAMA HAHA!!”
Well, WAR EAGLE! Have fun at the credit card bowl. Also, I hear Smart is headed to Florida.
Maybelline
December 13th, 2010
7:00 pm
Since dawgtards seem to love living in the past, how about remembering the Jan Kemp trial, which exposed UGA and Vince Dooley for the jokes that they were. My favorite quote from the trial was this one:
O. Hale Almand Jr., a lawyer for the defense, offered a justification for the favorable treatment accorded the athletes, citing a hypothetical player. “We may not make a university student out of him,” he told the jury, “but if we can teach him to read and write, maybe he can work at the post office rather than as a garbageman when he gets through with his athletic career.”
The best thing about the trial was that it completely killed Vince Dooley’s shot at Congress, since he was exposed as a fraud and a cheat during the trial. Make no mistake – Dooley knew everything that was going on.
Nothing has changed in the almost three decades since the trial. If anything, the abuses are even worse. Exhibit #1: Jim Harrick and son.
Today the players are even more illiterate and felonious and, well, just plain stupid, as evidenced by their arrest records and record number of penalties. Even Vince Dooley couldn’t have controlled this mob, much less Mark Richt. And now even the (recently departed) AD is a drunk debaucherer.
Think about the football team THUGA puts on the field. 96% of the players are academically provisionally accepted, with Adams and his cronies knowing full well that they will use up all their coaching and tutors and elligibility and then have their asses kicked out on the street and soon be pushing grocery carts around Atlanta looking for a warm place to sleep. What a pitiful way to run the State’s flagship university.
There’s a reason why UGA is known as The Cesspool of the South.
ARdawg
December 13th, 2010
7:01 pm
TampaGator
Heh heh you got your feathers ruffled or what? My comments about your program wasn’t a dis. It is the reality. You call your Gator football program BCS championship caliber? How many BCS champions do you know of that have a 7-5 record and a Head coach that just stepped down? I can’t think of a single one. Your program is troubled and broken. If it wasn’t your Gators would have made a serious run at the BCS NCG. They’re not. They just got it broken off in their butts by FLA ST. It’s broke dude. Accept and deal with it.
Beast
No guy, just as broken. You guys have hired some fresh hot shot coaches so you are at least a year ahead of us in rebuilding the program. UGA is at least a year away. Does it take rebuilding for us? Who knows, hopefully not but my feeling is it will. I think you guys are better off than us and will fix your problems before we do ours but, that’s just a feeling
bob
December 13th, 2010
7:02 pm
Foley did a good in finding Meyer and Donovan. A pair of National Championships each.
He had a year to find this coach, as he probably wasn’t surprised after last year’s brief resignation.
Special K
December 13th, 2010
7:02 pm
HAHA, you “aint” won the title yet. Smart situation is easy. One more year and he is a head coach somewhere. Rip the ban-aid off and get it over with. uga can’t seem to figure that out. I will still take my title’s and and wins over yours though. RTR!!!!
ARdawg
December 13th, 2010
7:07 pm
In my opinion Kirby Smart won’t make an immediate impact for Florida’s defense. Muschamp won’t step into the HC role as quick as some of you Yahoo’s are thinking. It’s going to take some time and during that time both of their stock will fall. Kirby to UGA after sometime at Florida. Highly unlikely. Kirby’s shat as HC at an SEC school will dwindle rapidly unless he does prove to be wonderboy. Highly unlikely
bob
December 13th, 2010
7:07 pm
While Division 1 cannibalizes itself each December. The artist formerly known as Division 2 is deciding a champion with a playoff.
Corch Myer
December 13th, 2010
7:10 pm
I don’t believe Muschamp is ready for this challenge.
Kirby Smart
December 13th, 2010
7:12 pm
[...] Outland Trophy. 6) Malzahn does NOT win Broyles award. 5) Chizik does not win coach of the year awKirby Smart – new Florida football coach will Muschamp, a former defensive back at Georgia, 7) Fairley does NOT [...]
ARdawg
December 13th, 2010
7:13 pm
Neither of these guys have any HC experience. Yes they have both been involved with successful programs but, they weren’t the HC. There is a much different perspective from there and there is a learning curve
Hmmmmm
December 13th, 2010
7:16 pm
Does that mean UF will now run the 3-4 like UGA? Be interesting to see it.
The OC will be the big hire.
5150 P.O.A.D.
December 13th, 2010
7:20 pm
Hmmmmmmm
If Florida uses the 3-4 they will not run it like UGA. UGA doesn’t run it worth a crap. So, no Florida will not run the 3-4 like UGA for sure.
atltiger15
December 13th, 2010
7:25 pm
Not a FLA fan here but if Smart comes to aid his buddy Muschamp, the SEC East will have a long day ahead to beatthe Gators with the talent thats already there and the talent those two will be able to bring to Gainesville. The UGA dream team will become The Mus CHAMPS. Muschamp and Smart will cut the state of GA in half , with them taking everyone from Macon and below. I just ask them to leave some for the AU tigers…I have and will always appreciate the intensity and work ethic of Will, good luck FLA fans
atltiger15
December 13th, 2010
7:27 pm
ARDAWG
Richt was a lifelong asst before UGA. His first 5 yrs were preety good, now for the last couple i’ll leave that for you to decide
ARdawg
December 13th, 2010
7:35 pm
alttiger
True. Richt surrounded himself with good assistants and was successful”mildly” in his first year and then came on strong for the 3 subsequent years. Since then, don’t let the record fool you. The decline was evident in 06, then with the previous departure of BVG and Neil Calloway.
Maybe Muschamp can be as successful early as Richt. I do wish him and Kirby the best. I just wouldn’t bet my money on it, would you?
AltamahaDawg
December 13th, 2010
7:41 pm
Smart has been recruiting at Bama with Saban, cleaning up in Georgia, and its hard to imagine UF recruiting any better than they have been. Both schools have been signing top classes lately. What exactly scares you guys about him going to UF as far as recruiting?????
Delbert D.
December 13th, 2010
7:42 pm
Where is Smart going to go as head coach? Minnesota? Pitt? Temple? Vanderbilt?
Delbert D.
December 13th, 2010
7:50 pm
Pete Thamel of the Times has it right:
“The head-coaching jobs at Texas, Florida and Ohio State — in varying order — are widely considered to be the most attractive in college football. All three programs have enormous war chests, resources of local talent and long histories of Heisman Trophy winners and national titles.”
dcgator
December 13th, 2010
7:56 pm
Smart’s not even 35 and probably too young for say the UGA job. He already has a BCS championship at Bama and really has nothing else to prove. If he does it again at Florida with his good friend he will be 38-39 and ready.
My bet is he pulls the trigger for UF and all of the good SEC coordinators get a raise.
jumbeauxtiger
December 13th, 2010
8:01 pm
I see no reason for Smart to go to Florida unless he is tired of working for Saban.
Sautee Dawg
December 13th, 2010
8:01 pm
Smart and Muschamp are both hard workers and both will have success at whatever they do they both got their work ethic by playing at UGA. Both were fine players, and both willmake good coaches.
However our CMR is a hard working coach as well and he’ll get the UGA program going in the right direction regardless of what Smart and Muschamp do.
Bank on it.
Dr. Phil
December 13th, 2010
8:01 pm
There is no question that Saban is not a nice man to work for, and he will likely be heading for greener (as in money) pastures in the near future, particularly after the beat down by Auburn. Florida has plenty of talent and money. I think that Smart will join his pal at UF.
Sautee Dawg
December 13th, 2010
8:07 pm
Is Muschamp the first UGA player to coach a division 1 team since Pat Dye ?
KimZ'spackage
December 13th, 2010
8:10 pm
The SEC shake-up will make a few coaches some more money. Thank GOD no UGA coach will get any.
KimZ'spackage
December 13th, 2010
8:13 pm
Sautee
Why does that matter? He is not coaching at UGA and that says it all.
Sautee Dawg
December 13th, 2010
8:13 pm
My money says Smart stays at Bama so whenever Saban leaves he can take over. And you all know Bama fans would love to have him as headcoach.
Wouldn’t that be something, Muschamp at UF, Smart at Bama, Dooley at UT?
oakwood dawg
December 13th, 2010
8:17 pm
Dr. Phil, Smart to UF? That would be a lateral move and I think Smart is too smart to make that move. However, money talks and Bull$hit walks. In a few days we will know.
Sautee Dawg
December 13th, 2010
8:17 pm
With a 5 win and 7 loss record at Texas this season and the beatdown Muschamp took by Smart and Saban the previous season, what makes you think Muschamp is better that CMR?
Sautee Dawg
December 13th, 2010
8:23 pm
Texas won a championship with Vince Young but playing in that leauge their in it’s kinda hard to say how good a Head coach Muschamp will be. As far as taking a chance on an unproven headcoach I think Florida made the right choice.
dawgfan0711
December 13th, 2010
8:27 pm
Mike Bobo 17 int- You are a dumb A*S! Muschamp and Smart may have turned UGA down when they called last year in regard to the DC job. Muschamp didn’t go to Florida to accept the DC job, he accepted the HC job. If you can’t see the difference in the two opportunities, my earlier description of you isn’t harsh enough. Who cares if Smart joins Muschamp? I know i don’t, UGA’s and Bama’s defenses were very similar in numbers last year. So before everyone thinks that Smart can out coach TG, please look at the facts. Smart should have had another great defense this year and didn’t. It was TG first season, give him a couple more before we say he sucks. I think Richt has a decent record against the Great Nick Saben, i think it is 3-2. Auburn went from 5-7 to 13-0, i don’t see any reason we can’t make a similar move next year.
Dawgaholic30286
December 13th, 2010
8:31 pm
The recipie for disaster has been concocted in Gainsesville, Fl. if Kirby Smart and the ex=defesive coach from Texas team up………..one can only wish……..this might be the tipping point for UGA against UF.
Lakedawg
December 13th, 2010
8:51 pm
It is refreshing to see some sensible Dawg fans 0711 and Dawgoholic30286 write something with some knowledge of Georgia program. All bashers of CMR will be in hiding after Dawgs go 11-1 in regular season winning East. Write it down.
Preston
December 13th, 2010
8:52 pm
I think Smart will fight off temptation once more to see if the job in Athens opens up in the next year or two. His stock has a much better chance of staying high if he stays with a strong Alabama instead of a rebuilding UF. Friends are friends, but business is business.
Nobody wants to coach at Georgia
December 13th, 2010
9:09 pm
Nobody !!
Hurt Kurbstreit
December 13th, 2010
9:14 pm
I don’t think it would be smart of Kirby to make a latteral move to UF when he already has it going on at Alabama. He has been bringing in a lot of good recruits to Ala. His next move needs to be a head coaches job. Wait a couple of years and maybe the Georgia job opens up.
KimZ'spackage
December 13th, 2010
9:17 pm
Nobody?
Well, Richt and Bobo do. They are a great bargan for the price! HAHAHAH not rally but what would it cost the Dawgs to get a GOOD Coach and OC?
Crumpy wants action tonight
December 13th, 2010
9:33 pm
Georgia grad leads Florida to victory over Florida……. Wow times are tough in Athens.