Georgia Football: Is Kirby Smart the new SEC coach killer?

Bye bye McElwain:

Smart already has his first scalp. That of his schools biggest rival, although McElwain may way have been to blame for his firing yesterday. That’s because as bad as Florida were on the field, his actions during the week seemed to be the real issue.

When McElwain claimed that his family and players had received death threats from fans, he made a big mistake. What may have seemed to him as a bit of bravado soon spiralled out of control. Not only did he insinuate that his own fanbase was kind of crazy, he also implied that his athletic administration wasn’t doing anything about it.

Every head coach relies on the support of the fans and the administration. In one statement, McElwain essentially destroyed his relationship with both. He also gave Florida ’cause’ to end their relationship. That’s not something to be sniffed at when a coach has a buyout of more than $12 million.

That being said, getting totally annihilated by Georgia probably expedited the firing. There’s no way the administration would have moved if Florida had upset the no.3 team in the country. They might have kept him around to finish the season if the game was close. Florida fans are genuinely worried right now about what Smart is building in Athens. They knew that McElwain wasn’t the answer so they’re going to hope whoever replaces him will be.