Kirby Smart Hires Two Former Bulldogs To Join Coaching Staff
After his historic National Championship, Kirby Smart soon lost a few staff members to the coaching carousel this offseason. Well, the Bulldogs head coach has already started to fill those positions, bringing two former Georgia players back to Athens.
It was announced on Friday that former Georgia quarterback Mike Bobo was returning to Athens as an analyst. The former Colorado State head coach returned to the SEC in 2020 to work under former South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp. He then served as the Auburn offensive coordinator under Brian Harsin in 2021, but was let go following the season finale. There are numerous teams across the country that could've used the expertise of Bobo, but the former Dawg decided to head home. Bobo worked at Georgia previously, first as the QBs coach from 2001 to 2006 and then as the OC from 2007 through 2014.
There's also another reason this works out for Mike: his son Drew signed as an offensive lineman in the 2022 recruiting class.
Having Bobo on staff will help the Bulldogs in 2022, especially on the offensive side of the ball.
Speaking of offense, Kirby Smart has also found his new wide receivers coach to replace Cortez Hankton, who left for LSU. The Bulldogs have hired former player and coach Bryan McClendon, who previously coached wide receivers at Georgia during the 2015 season. He served as the interim coach for the 2016 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl after Mark Richt was let go.
Palmer Thombs of DawgsHQ was first to report the McClendon hire.
McClendon spent the 2021 season at Oregon, working as the passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach for Mario Cristobal. Bryan actually followed Cristobal to Miami and was named the co-offensive coordinator, but decided to head home to Athens when offered a job there. McClendon is one of the best recruiters in the country for his position, leaving Cristobal looking for a replacement at Miami.
But this is fantastic news for the Bulldogs staff and team, especially since they lost Jermaine Burton and George Pickens recently. It will be up to Bryan to coach up a young group of receivers, as well as the returning talent. He will also be reunited with Will Muschamp, who currently serves as the co-defensive coordinator. McClendon served as the offensive coordinator under Muschamp at South Carolina for the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Overall, these are two nice additions to Kirby Smart's staff, especially with McClendon on the recruiting trail. Now, Mike Bobo will have the opportunity to help out with an offense that has to replace some key contributors in 2022.
Kirby Smart continues to build for another championship, on and off the field.
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