Kirby Smart Has Incredibly Weak Reaction To Georgia's Crime Issues
Kirby Smart didn't exactly draw a line in the sand when pressed on criminal issues within his program.
Bulldogs player Daniel Harris was arrested last week after allegedly driving 106 miles per hour in a 65 mph zone in Athens.
It's just the latest incident in a long string of incidents under Smart's watch, including the deaths of staff member Chandler LeCroy and player Devin Willock in a high-speed crash.
The Bulldogs have had at least 20 more driving-related issues since the horrific tragedy in early 2023, according to ESPN. His players simply can't stop getting arrested, and Smart's explanation is less than stellar.
Kirby Smart gets weak on driving issues within his program.
The leader of the Bulldogs addressed the constant stream of arrests related to driving incidents, and didn't go hard on his players.
He said the following on the topic, according to On3.com:
"Because we continue to have guys make poor decisions, you know? It’s very unfortunate. I know that our staff, myself, continue to drive home the sensitive nature of it. It’s certainly a deadly speed when you’re talking about the speed that he was traveling at. You want kids to grow up. You want to treat them like your own kids. You want them to grow up and make good decisions and learn from others’ mistakes. Yeah, we have guys share and we obviously continue to talk to them, but it hasn’t stopped them. So find a way to do it."
That's an unbelievably weak response to a situation, believe it or not, Kirby Smart has complete and total control over.
He might not have control over the moment a person speeds, but he does have absolute control over how it's handled internally. He's a college football coach in the SEC. He's as close to a dictator as you can be in America.
Want the problem to end? Start suspending players, and not just for one game over an alleged drunk driving situation. Start hitting players with four-game suspension. Go to six games if that doesn't work, and continue to escalate from there.
Players will learn real quick that there are consequences not just from the criminal justice system, but also from the team if they're forced to watch from the sidelines. Again, two people died during the course of Georgia's driving issues. This isn't a minor issue. Yet, it continues to happen even after the death of two people within the program.
Kirby Smart can give people all the coach speak he wants, but at the end of the day, he's simply choosing to be weak. Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.