While on ESPN’s Championship Drive podcast, Kirby Smart had a few things to say about his new team’s mindset that weren’t exactly flattering.
“I don’t think our players realize how hard they have to work to be great,” Smart said. “I think pushing them to do that and pushing them harder and making them realize they can do more is a big part of our job as coaches. They’ve got to understand they can work harder than they’re currently working and they can take more reps and they can do the reps the right way at a high rate.
“Obviously, we’ve got to improve the overall talent level and depth, but more important than that, it’s gonna be whether or not these guys push through the ceiling and go through what they think they can and take the roof off it and go work a little bit harder. We start up June 1 with our entire team. It’s important to have good summer workouts and meet the demands of the program.”
So much to wonder about in those two paragraphs. I sure would love for someone to ask Rocker and Sherrer to compare and contrast the approach of the coaching staffs in 2016 and 2015, except Smart doesn’t allow the assistant coaches to speak with the media. Maybe some of the players will be asked about it at SEC Media Days, but I doubt they’d say much in response. I guess we’ll have to wait and see what shows up on the field to get any idea.
Get The Picture 
“it’s gonna be whether or not these guys push through the ceiling and go through what they think they can and take the roof off”
The opportunity is nowhere to blow the lid off the Program
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This year’s mat drills?
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Good see the Country Club is being shut down.
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I think it’s less Country Club and more One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest institution. From punt safe, to towel boy, to our DB hand signals, to directional kicks, to Jay Rome using a small hoe to move a sand pile, to Bauta’s start in jax, to the parable of the 2 farmers, things achieved a level of weirdness only Al Yankovic could appreciate.
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That about sums it up for me.
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So y’all don’t like winning 10 games?
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Wow. Such a smart comment. I really never thought about it like that. Thanks for setting me straight.
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“So y’all don’t like winning 10 games?”
No, we hate losing 2-3 games a year in the most inexplicable manner possible. I think that was W. Cobb’s point.
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Can’t hurt to start the de-recruiting early….
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No one said changing the culture would be easy. Kirby had plenty of time to pick Pruitt’s brain when they were sharing an office; I’m sure he was aware of what he was getting into. Doesn’t mean it’s not going to be tough though. Good is the enemy of great.
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I don’t imagine Kirby and Pruitt spent much time talking about what happened in Athens. If I were Pruitt, I wouldn’t be interested in the discussion. If I were Kirby, I would put a 40-50% BS discount on anything Pruitt said.
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” I guess we’ll have to wait and see what shows up on the field to get any idea.”
You can end every post between now and the day after the UNC game with that, and you’d never go wrong.
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It’s always amusing to me that some head coaches don’t allow asst. coaches to speak to the media, but no administration would ever allow a head coach to keep all players from speaking to the media. Deep down, they all know who pays the bills…
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just sounds like excuse making to me.
If it doesnt go well he can just continue to blame the players. He wasnt the problem, the players didnt work hard enough, there wasnt enough good players on the team, players didnt execute.
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I didn’t read it that way. He expects a different mentality. I hope he gets it. Seems like every time he has said something like this it is followed with “Our job as coaches…” I don’t think that is shirking responsibility.
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Agree, Kirby comes across as being brutally honest to me.
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Agreed.
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Sorry, but that’s pretty dumb. Was Dooley making excuses when he praised opposing teams? Good coaches know how to light a fire under their players. Teenagers usually respond more to challenges than to praise.
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These guys won 10 games last two years missing some important cogs, plus playing with limited QB ability.
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We beat no one with a pulse.
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Clemson and Auburn ’14 definitely had pulses. I’ll give it to you for ’15.
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10 games. Wins over South Carolina, SEC East 2-timechamp Missouri, Auburn, Tech, Penn State. I wish we could learn to enjoy the wins when we get them, they might be hard to come by this year.
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The hate is swelling in you now. Give in to your anger!
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Classic lowering expectations talk…
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You pass out before you die…which gives me time to render CPR and call 911, so quitters over there winners back on the line…
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I don’t know what to think. One day, it seems Kirby thinks he’s been dealt a great hand and can win now. The next day, it seems like he’s already hedging his bets, so he doesn’t blow every bit of capital in year 1 as the team struggles. I want to see a team that competes hard every week but may not win every week.
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I dont really care about how hard a team competes, give me that team that wins every week.
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I agree, but if we’re going to lose a game or two, I expect that we’re going play hard. Like I wouldn’t have had a problem losing to Alabama last year, but I had a problem with the effort and composure in the loss. Compare that to 2012, we lost to Bama in the Dome, but it wasn’t due to lack of effort or composure. The team fought like mad for 60 minutes and Bama made one more play than we did.
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Why should we be worse this year, than last? I’m not saying that we should win it all, but I don’t expect any/much drop off. If you don’t think any of the past coaching staffs through the years worked the players butts off, you are kidding yourselves. There was no country clubs with any of the past coaches, we just have new coaches who do things differently. What we have is a new staff that will require some different things for them to do. I’m sure some things are more demanding and some other items are not as much. It’s just different, just like when someone gets a new boss, it’s different, exciting and the sky is the limit. Hopefully, it’s the things that will allow us to win more games. We have never had a problem with talent, so hopefully, the things we do different this time, will help us win a few more games to get over the hump! Some time change is a good thing and only time will tell. Go Dawgs!!
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We have lots of question marks that can’t possibly be answered until we suit up and play a game – really 3 or 4 games to get any real clue – but you have to like that CKS is not planning to just manage. That’s as good as Dawg pron gets this time of year.
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Kirby Smart doesn’t have time for this shit…
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I can’t imagine a K Smart coached team will have any players performing shoulder bump tackles, or hugs on the sidelines(unless we are lifting trophies) or roster management issues – so yes, I think the country club mentality that existed previously is dead and gone.
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If they don’t eat their meat, they can’t have any cake
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nor have your punt returner operating under standard orders to fair catch
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Yep, this sounds exactly like the kind of stuff Richt said when coming in.
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I’m reading run of the mill coach speak, but I feel like most of you are not only hearing him say “Anything bad that happens for the next 3-4 seasons is Mark Richt’s fault,” but ya’ll are totally drinking that Kool Aide. Ask Sony what he thinks. https://www.dawgnation.com/football/culture-change-not-yet-say-georgia-players
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Reminds me of one of CMR’s first public appearances when he was asked to rate the roster he inherited from Donnan relative to FSU’s roster with FSU being a 10. He said 7 or 8. Dooley got in the car with him and said that the correct answer was 4. You gotta under promise and over-perform.
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A good observation I read on another site is that Kirby is inheriting a lot of young players that he’s depending on this year. That might have a little something to do with it as well.
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Same old, same old coach talk at a new school. Go see the quotes from other new coaches. Same thing. Old way sucks, new way is wonderful. It it tanks, I warned you. Etc., Etc.,
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We will see how good a coach he is this year. We already know he is and will be a good recruiter. Can he adapt his coaching style to win with less talent than he has had at Alabama for the last 8 years. That will determine if he is just a great recruiter but an average coach.
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Jeff Sentell needs a map strikes again: https://www.dawgnation.com/football/recruiting/hard-working-4-star-defender-georgia-is-getting-it-done-right-now
Athens is 120 miles closer to Cordele and the journalist says its 30 or you know about the same.
Is he stupid or is this on purpose? He (or somebody) corrected it last time and a week later he’s righting that Tuscaloosa is right down the street from South Georgia. Wtf?
Senator: do something!
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google maps is your friend, friend.
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He rote that? (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)
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Somewhere in Miami Richt is making a similar statement. I wish both coaches success with this message and hope that their new situation helps them get the message across.
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