ATHENS, Ga. - His current team is unranked, while his former team remains No. 1, but Georgia defensive back Maurice Smith has no regrets as the midway mark of the college football season arrives.
Smith joined Kirby Smart's Bulldogs in August as a graduate transfer from Alabama, where he competed on Nick Saban teams that went 37-5 and captured two Southeastern Conference titles and last season's national championship.
"With the bonds that I've created now, I don't take it back at all," Smith said. "I think this is still the best decision, and I told Coach Smart that the other day. I still thank him and the coaching staff for giving me the opportunity to play.
"You can look at it both ways, coming from a national championship team to a team that's not winning, but honestly I don't look at that. I still think we have opportunities in the future to become a great team."
The Bulldogs got off to a shaky 3-0 start before losing 45-14 at Ole Miss and dropping a 34-31 thriller last Saturday against visiting Tennessee on a 43-yard touchdown pass as time expired. They fell out of the rankings Sunday and will try to work their way back in this weekend when they face South Carolina in a game that is still scheduled to be held in Columbia, though it could be moved from Saturday night to Sunday or even Monday because of Hurricane Matthew.
South Carolina announced Wednesday night that the game would take place in Williams-Brice Stadium and that the date would be determined today.
Smith, a 6-foot, 195-pounder from the Houston suburb of Sugar Land, had the advantage in August of being familiar with Smart and new Bulldogs defensive coordinator Mel Tucker, having played under them with the Crimson Tide. He has started all five games with Georgia and is coming off a career-best performance.
Against the Volunteers, Smith collected seven tackles, an interception and recovered an Alvin Kamara fumble he caused.
"It was definitely one of my best games," Smith said. "I was proud of myself, but at the end - honestly, we should have won. It hurt to have it happen like that. Honestly, I think we would have rather gotten blown out than to have to lose like that, but there were a lot of positives in the game, so we've just got to look forward."
Looking forward has meant preparing for two South Carolina quarterbacks, senior Perry Orth and freshman Brandon McIlwain. The Gamecocks rank last in the league in scoring offense, averaging 14.0 points per game, while the Bulldogs rank 13th in scoring defense (30.8) largely due to the past two weeks.
Though Alabama has continued to be Alabama, there is no looking back for Smith, who already has 23 tackles after compiling 15 in his final season with the Crimson Tide.
"His maturity and his focus are where he's made the most improvement," Smart said. "He really takes notes in meetings and is very professional about his daily work habits. He sets a good example for a lot of guys who don't know how to do that. He's a senior, so he's been through it before and played in a lot of games. That's helped him, too."
Said Smith: "Winning wasn't anywhere in my thought process. It was really about getting somewhere I felt comfortable and would have a chance to play and make a tremendous statement and help the team out."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.