College Football is Changing, but Kirby Smart Isn't Altering Georgia's Core
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ATHENS - College football has changed a lot, and money is the root cause of that, but UGA Football at its core appears to be the same.
The implementation of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) rights and the transfer portal in collegiate athletics at about the same time has made the landscape of college football a lot different. There is more roster turnover and players are often following the money- at least more publicly than before.
Kirby Smart and Georgia are playing the NIL and transfer portal game as it is a big reality in the sport right now, but according to him, the Dawgs are still focusing on developing high school players.
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“We pride ourselves on retention, stability. The foundation of this program is built through high school programs and bringing good kids into the program that can become good football players,” Smart said.
Smart often brings up a player’s character when he discusses recruiting people into the program. He wants young men who care about football and care about the University of Georgia. He has said it over and over.
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That exudes through current and former players. Kamari Lassiter and Javon Bullard chose to play one last game with their teammates in the 2023 Orange Bowl instead of getting ready for the NFL Draft earlier. Jordan Davis became an icon. Stetson Bennett never quit, even when the fans and coaches quit on him.
Starting middle linebacker CJ Allen was asked about the money aspect last week.
“Just keep the main thing the main thing. When I was 7 years old I wasn’t getting paid to play,” Allen said.
That is exactly the attitude that Smart is looking for in his players. That attitude has waned across the sport.
Even if Smart wants to focus on bringing in high school talent, which Georgia certainly still does, the transfer portal is very much an aspect and he has dipped into it. Georgia brought in six transfer players in the most recent cycle, most notably wide receivers Zachariah Branch and Noah Thomas.
Georgia led college football in dropped passes and lost a couple of players to the NFL at that spot. It was a position of need this offseason, and Smart did his best to fill that void.
When he was asked about what those players bring to the table, he focused on their character.
“Both of those guys are high-caliber athletes, but they're high-caliber people. I've enjoyed working with them. The Branch brothers have been a great kind of injection into our off-season energy and workouts,” Smart said. “They love working out. Their father trains guys. They love training. The culture and work ethic that it requires to be successful here, they jump right in and done a great job of that. Noah (Thomas) has, too. He's played in the SEC. He's been successful. So, you know, we've still got to go out and do it on the field, but I'm excited about who they are.”
It seems that the rules to play for Georgia are the same, even if you are coming from another program.
Insiders have given Dawg Post an idea of what certain players have been offered in NIL packages in their recruitment to Georgia. Few exceptions are made in terms of offering players giant piles of money, even if that player is a 5-star.
There were reports earlier in the offseason that Smart is one of the “niftiest” NIL spenders in college football. Georgia is still high on the list in terms of the NIL budget, although not at the top. The Dawgs are not handing out millions to individuals the way some other programs are.
On3 has an NIL valuation list, where they rank college athletes based off of how much NIL money they are roughly earning/valued at. There is not a single Georgia football player in the top 100 of that list.
Former Bulldog quarterback Carson Beck is high on that list. So is Texas quarterback Arch Manning and many other college football stars.
NIL money does not necessarily come from the school. The recent legislation is going to change that. College football keeps changing. What does not seem to be changing are the core values of what Smart wants his football program to be.