That’s not how he would do it.

“AJC.com Atlanta Falcons beat writer D. Orlando Ledbetter” has some serious advice for Kirby Smart.

“I think there’s a problem at Georgia, I think some of these kids are coming out too early…”

“I don’t know how they (Georgia) are handling this, assistant coaches or the agents, but they are over-gassing these guys up and not giving them good reads on where they will go in the NFL Draft,”Ledbetter said.

“This is the second year in a row the Bulldogs could have kept some of that talent and made a run at a national title again, as opposed to guys going up to Carolina as a practice squad player (Holyfield),” he said. “I don’t know if the kids don’t like school, don’t want to study, or what the situation is, but they have to figure out a way …to keep some of their talent that’s leaving early than they should be.”

Sure.  And while they’re at it, maybe the coaches can figure out a way for these kids to avoid underage drinking, smoking weed or losing control of their tempers in public.  Easy peasy!

I think we’ll have to settle for Kirby’s good sense.

“It is a trend, and I think it will continue to be a trend in college football for every team to deal with, and every team deals with it differently,” Smart said last March. “Our answer is to make sure we have good players in our program so that we’re not having to play true freshmen, but because of the way it is, you’re going to have a young team all the time, there’s not a lot you can do.”

Smart said every case is indeed different.

“Some of that stuff is out of your control, how well does a kid play as a junior, what kind of grades does he get, what kind of choices does he have to make for his family, so everybody is in a different situation and you manage every one differently,” he said.

“You just do the best job you can to handle it, and then you move on, and that’s what we do.”

And you wonder why Smart gets curt with the media sometimes.

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Blind sidin’

Here are the spring contenders for one key open spot, offensive left tackle:

Jamaree Salyer (junior): He was the nation’s No. 10 offensive guard in the 2018 class but thus far he has played most of his significant snaps at right tackle. It’s probably inaccurate to say that he has looked natural at that spot, but he has performed pretty well considering that he lacks some of the ideal measureables. He has adequate length and is a good athlete with the appropriate competitive spirit. He’s definitely capable of being a more-than-serviceable option at right tackle but we don’t see him as a great fit on the left side.

Owen Condon (redshirt sophomore): Injuries have plagued the 6-foot-7 315 pound lineman thus far. He was coming off an ACL injury in his first season with the program but drew praise from Smart for his work in the weight room. Those Friday lifts when he didn’t make the travel roster made a difference. He was banged up quite a bit last season and we never really saw what he had to offer. He’s kind of the forgotten man at tackle right now.

Warren McClendon (redshirt freshman): The Brunswick native enrolled last January and we quickly started hearing some buzz about his natural strength. He’s long and athletic but he has a really powerful lower half that gives him the ability to slide inside if he’s needed there.

Xavier Truss (redshirt freshman): If you were to draw up the ideal offensive tackle, it would look a lot like Truss. He’s 6-foot-7 and tips the scales at around 320 pounds. He has really good feet and his senior film shows that he can use his hands well. We’ve heard quite a bit already about his athleticism and for now, we have him as the favorite to win the starting left tackle job.

I have no idea who winds up manning the spot come September.  There’s both plenty of talent to choose from, as well as question marks.  Plus, a new evaluator in the form of Matt Luke.

I will say that I have a feeling come September, 2021, the correct answer may be Broderick Jones, but that’s a subject for another day.  In the meantime, what’s your feeling about who’s gonna be protecting Jamie Newman’s back side?

Genius

Somehow, this story doesn’t surprise me.

One day last summer, an LSU staffer came into Ed Orgeron’s office to ask if the recruits then on campus for a visit were allowed to watch practice. What practice? We don’t hold practice over the summer, Orgeron said.

The practice was being run by the players, he was told. As it turns out, quarterback Joe Burrow had issued an alert to his teammates: practice in the morning. To a man, the roster that would run through an unbeaten, championship-winning season showed up.

Is Coach O’s overnight raging success a matter of being a master delegator, or simply a guy who was in the right place at the right time?  I suspect we’ll find out something about that real soon.