Kirby Smart has been a busy man this month, but he’s been a busy man with no regrets.
Smart was introduced as the new head football coach at Georgia on Dec. 7, and he spent a week recruiting for the Bulldogs. He also chose to remain as Alabama’s defensive coordinator as the Crimson Tide continue preparations for Michigan State in Thursday night’s national semifinal in the Cotton Bowl.
“The defensive linemen cornered me in a room and said if I didn’t stay that there would be an altercation – just kidding,” Smart said Tuesday during a Cotton Bowl news conference. “At the end of the day, it’s about these guys, and it wouldn’t be fair to them to coach them all season and go through what we’ve been through and then not coach them in this game. It was the right thing to do, and it’s still the right thing to do.
“I’m honored that they wanted me to do it and that I was allowed to do it.”
Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart runs drills with defensive players during practice for the NCAA college football Cotton Bowl, Monday, Dec. 21, 2015, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/ Butch Dill)Smart also thanked Georgia president Jere Moorhead and athletic director Greg McGarity, who welcomed the former Bulldogs safety back to Athens three weeks ago. That was just after the Crimson Tide earned a second consecutive Southeastern Conference championship with a 29-15 win over Florida.
Following that introduction, Smart pounded the pavement for prospects, getting the reaffirmation of five-star quarterback prospect Jacob Eason, before heading back to Tuscaloosa for the on-campus bowl practices.
Smart insists there have not been any mixed loyalties during this stretch.
“You’ve got to be in two modes,” he said. “Separating those two things has not been difficult.”
Alabama worked out for two hours Monday in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts. Players then visited the Children Medical Center in Dallas.
The Crimson Tide will practice for the final time today.
“Guys are really chomping at the bit and trying to get right to play in this game,” senior inside linebacker Reggie Ragland said. “The closer the game gets, guys are really ready to play. It’s been almost a month since we have played, so guys want to get those jitters out.”
When asked if Smart had been different in recent days, Ragland said, “If anything, he’s coaching harder. I know he’s on me a ton on the field.”
Smart said Atlanta Falcons first-year coach Dan Quinn has provided helpful advice during this transition. Quinn remained the defensive coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks through their run to the Super Bowl last winter until being introduced in Atlanta in early February.
It has been a “time-management challenge,” Smart said, but the immediate challenge is stopping Michigan State. The Spartans are led by quarterback Connor Cook, who has thrown for 2,921 yards with 24 touchdowns and only five interceptions, and the tailback punch of LJ Scott and Gerald Holmes that has 1,225 combined rushing yards.
“With any great team you play, you’ve got to take something away,” Smart said. “We’re not going to put a defense out there that Connor Cook hasn’t seen. At the end of the day, it’s not about tricking these guys. It’s about being fundamentally sound and physical, striking blockers and tackling people.
“We’re not going to make the game something it’s not.”
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.