Georgia coach Kirby Smart isn’t spending much time entertaining the latest transfer-eligibility circus around college football.
At his Tuesday media session, Smart was asked about several topics, including the current mess around whether pro players can return to college. The broader issue, as the source material put it, is part of a “clown show,” and Smart’s attention, at least publicly, remains elsewhere. He also made it clear he’s not looking for bounce-back transfers.
The bigger news from Smart’s comments came from the practice field and from a few players drawing his praise. Smart explained why Georgia uses a microphone during practice, saying it solved a simple problem: getting his voice across the field without ending up hoarse or with a headache.
“I start thinking about that [the public can hear him talking on the microphone], but by about period three, I haven’t thought about that anymore. There was no inspiration for it.
It came from my voice, and I couldn’t get across what I wanted to say without being hoarse every day or having a headache. It was a better solution to a communication problem that I couldn’t get to the other end of the field with my voice.
That thing [microphone] would. Personally, I think it’s overrated because some of the players can’t even hear it.
Some players have headphones in, and they listen to the dots. A lot of times it’s for organization purposes when we change drills and things like that.”
Smart also discussed how Quintavius Johnson has settled in. He said the adjustment is part of the deal for any player arriving in Athens, where the competition is bigger, faster and older. But Smart pointed to Johnson’s background as a Wildcat quarterback and, even more notably, a MIKE linebacker.
“We like the fact that he was a Wildcat quarterback, but probably the most intriguing thing is he played ‘MIKE’ linebacker. He came at seven-on-seven, and he was an inside linebacker that dropped and played coverage in space.
Most kids that have the spatial awareness to play off the ball don’t struggle to move on the ball. They might struggle with the physicality, but they don’t struggle with the instincts, knowledge and ability to communicate to make plays and adjustments.
That was the case with him. He was able to pick it up really well, and he’s got the size to go with it.”
Another newcomer, Isaiah Canion, has also made a strong impression in camp. Smart said Canion has blended in smoothly, helped by being around familiar faces and having a feel for what it means to be a Georgia player.
“He’s come in and blended really well. I think he was comfortable in the room because of the players on the team and having guys he played high school with and played against all his life.
Just the general Georgia consensus of being a Georgia player, he’s been around it. He’s worked really hard.
He’s relatively quiet, but he plays physical. He plays hard.
He plays tough. He’s not afraid to go down and make hard blocks and dig people out, but he’s also got speed and athleticism to be a weapon on the perimeter.
He’s had a really good, quiet camp. I’m very pleased with what he’s brought to our team.
Great kid.”
Smart also took time to talk about Nick Chubb, and his praise was wide-ranging. He called Chubb “an incredible person and leader” and said the respect around him came from more than just production on the field.
“He’s just an incredible person and leader. I think it was more respect than it was necessarily growth.
I got two years with him. His demeanor and the way he went about things and bought into what we were demanding; it was two very tough years for him.
One was a bounce back from a significant injury year where we made things really hard and tough in the program, and he never questioned any of those things. I don’t know that without he and Sony [Michel] that we would get the same buy-in that they had.
Just when you talk about human beings and respect for where they come from, family, name on the back of your jersey; he has tremendous respect from this organization for what he stands for and what he’s done for his hometown and this university. He’s been an incredible ambassador.
To look at what he’s gone through, with those two injuries, I don’t think you can find many people that come back from those two significant injuries.”
With Week 0 on Saturday, the wait for real football is almost over.
In Other News...
Georgia Has A QB Battle Fans May Be Watching Longer Than Expected
With Stetson Bennett getting more practice reps than rookie Ty Simpson in the Los Angeles Rams backup quarterback competition, Georgia fans have another familiar name tied to a quarterback battle, even if it is happening far from Athens. Kirby Smart also confirmed there is still a fight for the No. 2 job behind starter Gunner Stockton, and it sounds like this one may not be settled quickly.
That matters because Georgia has been through enough quarterback drama over the years to know how long a seemingly simple depth-chart decision can linger. Smart indicated the backup race could stretch into the regular season, giving the Bulldogs one more moving part to monitor as they sort out the early part of the year, while former defensive back JaCorey Thomas is trying to gain another year of eligibility elsewhere after the SEC said NFL players will not be allowed back into college football. [Read more 🡒]
Stetson Bennett Just Put Real Pressure On The Rams Backup Battle
Sean McVay has put Stetson Bennett in position to stick with the Rams for another season, announcing that the former Georgia quarterback has made Los Angeles final 53-man roster for 2026. The move keeps Bennett in a quarterback room that already has Matthew Stafford entrenched as the starter, while also setting up a familiar kind of competition behind him as the Rams sort through their depth chart.
Ty Simpson is the new wrinkle in that picture, with the rookie joining Bennett in the fight for the backup job. Bennetts presence is no longer in question for now, but the bigger issue sits beyond this season, since his contract expires afterward and his long-term future with the Rams is still unsettled. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Fans Need To See The SECs New Line On Comebacks
The SEC has drawn a harder line on athletes who flirt with the pro route and then hope to come back, announcing a new policy that bars players who declare for the NBA, WNBA or NFL drafts, or sign with those leagues, from returning to college teams within the conference. It is a broader stance than the Big Tens similar rule, which only covers football, and it leaves baseball and Olympic sports out of the equation, but for programs in the SEC it adds another layer to the decision-making for players weighing whether to test the waters.
A Louisiana court recently gave 33 athletes a temporary path back into college sports with a restraining order, including former SEC players such as DaeQuan Wright, but the catch is significant for league loyalists. If those athletes return, it would have to be outside the SEC, which makes the conferences new stance especially relevant for Georgia fans tracking roster turnover and the growing uncertainty around players who might want a second chance in college. [Read more 🡒]