Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart deserves to win the SEC Coach of the Year award because while they are 11-0 and looking to make a playoff run, the Bulldogs have overcome a lot to get where they are.
Yes, there are plenty of other coaches who have done a tremendous job this year and have a case for coach of the year, but what Smart has done and gotten his team to do outweighs all of the others.
Smart has done more with less after losing some of his biggest playmakers. No one would have guessed the Dawgs would be 11-0 if someone told them they would lose JT Daniels at the beginning of the season, Stetson Bennett would lead the way, and their two leading wideouts would be freshmen. Other things happened, but you get this point here.
No one had that on their 2021 season bingo card, and you cannot convince me otherwise.
Kirby Smart deserves to be SEC Coach of the Year because of his player development.
Sure, the Dawgs have one of the best defenses in the country, and their offense is emerging as a lethal weapon, but if you break down some of the biggest playmakers and how they ranked out of high school, it would be impressive to see.
I said Kirby should be SEC COY (although several have a case). No. 1 objection is his teams are loaded because of recruiting. I don't have heart to tell them Jordan Davis was ranked 424th in nation. Here are the leading receivers in order followed by Stetson with national ranking pic.twitter.com/YLyHzQWDC7
— Dr. SEC (@thedrsec) November 22, 2021
Yeah, the Dawgs best nose tackle wasn’t supposed to be a Heisman Trophy hopeful.
The tweet says it all about what Georgia has found success with this season. All those five stars on offense have helped some if they weren’t injured. Others haven’t played up to their potential, and yet here, Georgia is 11-0.
Smart and his staff continue to develop players out of the transfer portal like Derion Kendrick and others. Regardless of rating, the Dawgs have done more with less.
Leading the pack is a former walk-on, turned JUCO and now scholarship quarterback Stetson Bennett as he continues to surprise people each week. Todd Monken and Smart love the Mailman and how hard he works, and when he proved himself, now look at him.
Bennett has the No.3 QBR in the SEC, and he is a top contender in most of the SEC quarterback statistics. He has proven himself, and all because of a coaching decision.
Smart has made some questionable choices in the past, but he has been really methodical about his choices this year. He has gotten his staff to get the most out of kids who should take a little while to develop to ensure the Dawgs stayed the course and kept their goals alive.
His ability to pull this level of dedication out of his players is also something to note because not everyone can do that. Smart is a special head coach with all the intangibles to be a great one, and we’re just seeing the beginning of it.
Not to mention the epic recruiting this staff is doing should also be a consideration because they are dominating that element of college football as well.
Yes, there are plenty of four and five stars on the team, but in an area hit most by adversity, Smart and his staff took some risks, which continue to pay off.
Smart deserves to win SEC Coach of the Year for this season alone as the Dawgs have dominated all year. Now with the last few games on their way, Smart will lead his team to glory, or they will fall short again. However, this year feels like it’s going to be the Dawgs’ year finally.