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Georgia Football looks set with their head coach Kirby Smart

By Alistair Penny

AUBURN, AL - NOVEMBER 11: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs walks the field prior to facing the Auburn Tigers at Jordan Hare Stadium on November 11, 2017 in Auburn, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
AUBURN, AL - NOVEMBER 11: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs walks the field prior to facing the Auburn Tigers at Jordan Hare Stadium on November 11, 2017 in Auburn, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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Georgia Football goes into the SECCG this weekend while its two division rivals rebuild their coaching ranks. UGA looks set with Kirby Smart.

As Kirby Smart and his coaches spend this week prepping their team for the big game in Atlanta, Tennessee and Florida are in a completely different position. The SEC East has 3 ‘big’ programs and this season, two of them fired their coaches.

Florida swung and missed on Chip Kelly who instead decided to go to the West coast and UCLA. Instead they settled for their second choice, Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen. Mullen is a safe hire. He was offensive coordinator in Gainsville back under Urban Meyer and did a solid job with the Bulldogs.

It’s still too early to know how Mullen will fit in as a head coach at Florida, but at least the Gators have a coach. Tennessee have been flapping in the wind since John Gruden unsurprisingly turned them down. Since then, Mike Gundy and Jeff Brohm seem to have turned the job down as well. Right now, nobody seems to know who the Vols are going to hire.

That’s going to hit Tennessee hard on the recruiting trail. With the early singing period less than 3 weeks away, a lot of top prospects are going to be getting locked up soon. The Vols need someone to build their class. Mullen has been trying to stir the pot since he arrived and has apprentley targeted UGA commit Justin Fields as his main target for Florida.

I wouldn’t take that as a great sign from Mullen. Fields seems to be strongly committed to Georgia and is working alongside their coaches to build UGA’s class right now. Florida also have their own 5-star QB in Matt Corral right now. I can’t see Corral sticking around if he thinks his head coach is chasing another QB.

All of this makes Georgia feel even better about where they sit right now with Kirby. With an 11-1 record and momentum in recruiting, it’s clear that Smart is building something special in Athens. Players are going to graduate this year. Some might end up transferring to get playing time. Coaches are going to get poached by other teams for promotions.

But Kirby Smart looks like a guy who is in control right now. He’s going to go out and sign more players and bring in more young and hungry coaches. He’s built the culture and the blueprint for what he wants this program to be right now. While UGA’s 2 main rivals are still figuring things out, that should make Georgia fans feel pretty good about where this program is right now.

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