Kirby Smart featured on College Football 26 cover

Georgia football’s Pro Day on Wednesday went about as expected. Countless NFL representatives flocked to Athens to watch many elite Bulldogs put on a show. But there was one thing missing.

Kirby Smart.

Yes, the head coach of these future pro Bulldogs was nowhere to be found during one of the most important workouts of these players lives.

Smart let the media know on Tuesday that he wasn’t going to be at their Pro Day, but he failed to give a reason. No media member followed up asking why he would be absent, likely because Smart shared this news in a way that made it known to not ask another question.

But late Wednesday night, Georgia fans finally found out why Smart wasn’t at Pro Day on Wednesday.

Kirby Smart featured on College Football 26 cover

Arguably the most exciting part of the 2024 offseason was when the new college football video game was released. EA Sports hadn’t released a new version in over a decade, but that changed last summer with the release of College Football 25.

The game, as one would expect, was an instant hit. So much so that it looks like a new version will be coming out later this year. And the Deluxe Edition cover was just leaked by On3’s Hayes Fawcett, and Smart was front and center (kind of) on the cover.

Smart can be seen in the front left of the picture with Georgia’s mascot directly behind him. He is also one of the few head coaches featured in this picture, along with Ohio State’s Ryan Day and Penn State’s James Franklin. There looks like there could be a few more coaches in the back of the picture as well, but the image is unfortunately too blurry to recognize them.

But out of all the reasons for Smart to miss Georgia’s Pro Day, this is one that no one could have predicted. However, it is a fantastic reason at the end of the day as it is a great way to showcase UGA’s program while also celebrating all the success Smart has found at Georgia.