Kirby Smart Press Conference Prior to Kentucky
Kirby Smart Press Conference Prior to Kentucky
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00:00 out and asked about doing that. We've been all on board, obviously letting our
00:04 players participate. My grandfather had Parkinson's and I can remember as a
00:09 child him going through that experience. So it's touched everybody's lives in
00:14 some way, shape, or form. So anything we can do to give back to that, it's during
00:18 our off week, so we're gonna fill up that bowling alley with everybody we can and
00:22 then the people that can't come, you can tune in on Dog Nation and you can also
00:25 give. So that's an opportunity to give back to a greater cause. So I certainly
00:29 appreciate Coach Rick taking the time to do that. So with that I also want to
00:35 mention this week's game against Kentucky, which obviously is a huge game
00:39 at night. The team's gonna be wearing the green decals, the helmet stickers, calling
00:44 attention to Mental Health Week, which is going on this week.
00:48 We're in partnership with Helensky's Hope and Student-Athlete
00:52 Mental Health. Health has become a huge issue and we deal with it day in and day
00:57 out with our players and certainly think it's more prevalent now than it's ever
01:01 been before. So we'll acknowledge that with those decals. They'll be part of the
01:05 uniform Saturday night. So with that, I'm opening up questions. Looking forward to
01:11 playing a really physical Stoops team. Every time we play these guys, they're
01:15 physical. When Coach Rick is here, it was physical. Kentucky-Georgia is just a
01:19 physical, physical football game because they brand their football behind that
01:23 and so do we. So I got a lot of respect for Coach Stoops and the program he's
01:27 built and the job they've done.
01:31 Coach, I think you mentioned it after the game, but just to have zero pre-snap
01:36 penalties on the road in an environment like that, apart from just pumping crowd
01:39 noise in during the week, what all goes into having success like that on the
01:42 road? Well, composure is a big part of it. I thought we would have some and we
01:46 simulated having some and getting backed up and not letting it spiral. So I
01:50 thought Coach Bobo and his offensive staff did an incredible job. You take a
01:54 quarterback who's never played on the road and start at Auburn and not have
01:59 procedural penalties, you had good organization, you had good substitution
02:03 patterns, you had a good snap count variation, changing tempos. I thought
02:11 they did a good job managing that, but that's not the issue now. I'm worried
02:16 about Kentucky now and they got a really good defense.
02:19 Kirby over here to your left, how about their offense? What did Davis do when he saw
02:24 280 yards and three touchdowns? How much of that was him and how much of that was
02:27 his offensive line? It's both. I mean, he's an exceptional back. As good a back as
02:31 I've seen in a long time. This guy's smooth, explosive, he pass protects really
02:36 well, he protects the ball. He's aggressive in the way he runs. It
02:40 reminds me of Swift. He's just a little bigger, but he has a lot of the same
02:46 cuts. One cut runner and they do a tremendous job now blocking for him. So
02:51 it's not all him. I mean, he has a run game. I mean, it seems like Kentucky's
02:56 always had a back, right? They had Benny or whatever and he was unbelievable. Then
03:00 they had a kid from Georgia the last couple years. Their backs run really
03:03 physical, but they are committed to running the ball and they do a great job
03:08 at the point of attack. With that Kentucky defense, what stands out the
03:13 most about how they attack and how they've been successful so far this year?
03:16 The variation they run, the defense they run is very unique. You don't play a lot
03:23 of teams just like them. They have a lot of overhangs, what I call depth in
03:27 the defense. They have people at the second level all over the place, so
03:30 there's not a lot of free yards out there. They make you earn everything you
03:34 get. They're massive up front. They have big people. They play 3-4 and 4-3.
03:39 The teams that play odd front, as they call it, they do a really good job
03:43 of stopping the run game. These guys are really good at stopping the run. They're
03:47 really physical and they have a really good scheme. It's not easy to
03:51 mimic. Kirby, to your left, you referenced Carson starting his first SEC road game.
03:57 There was always going to be sort of an unknown factor about him until he got
04:00 through the season. What have you learned about him that maybe you didn't know
04:04 before? Most quarterbacks that start for the first time, you maybe don't
04:09 know enough. I feel like I had this relationship and I knew Carson. I don't
04:14 feel like I've learned a lot because I knew a lot. He'd been in the system. He
04:20 had played and he had not played in that environment. I'm not trying to exchange
04:23 experience, but I'd been around the kid. He'd been in the program. He'd been in
04:27 the offense. I'd seen him have good days on third down against our defense, have
04:31 bad days. I'd seen him make good decisions with the ball. He's really
04:35 efficient. I guess the only thing I've learned is that he does have natural
04:40 composure. I already thought that because that's the way he practices, but he
04:46 doesn't get flustered very easily. Kirby, how would you describe your team's
04:51 offensive identity and how much has that been affected by the running backs
04:54 availability week to week? Yeah, the offensive identity is do what it takes. I
04:59 mean, that's essentially what it always comes down to, right? You'd love to have
05:01 this defined that we're just gonna bully you and run it through you. Nobody really
05:05 does that. I don't know anybody that just does it. Now, Kentucky did it the last
05:09 week against Florida, but they haven't done it every single game that way.
05:11 They've done it different ways. I don't think that any team has a... if you have
05:15 one identity, then that's what they're probably gonna try to stop. I think
05:17 Kentucky's balance. When you look at the explosives right now in our league, they
05:21 are like the only team that has... I think they have the exact same number of
05:25 explosive runs as they have explosive passes. So they have this balance. Going
05:30 back to us, I think our identity has been, you know, we've been up and down in the
05:33 red area. We've been breathing good on third down. We got a lot of things that
05:37 we can work on, but as far as whether it's about the backs or not, we don't
05:43 cry over what we don't have. You figure out what you got and you figure out what
05:47 you got, what they can do. So I'm not gonna sit up here and complain about
05:50 with the health or safety or how many backs we've got. That's not what we worry
05:55 about what we do have, not what we don't. Kirby on the run defense, I know that
06:00 QB run was so much of what Auburn was effective at, so it may not be
06:03 applicable this week or in some weeks, but how much of a concern is it what
06:07 they were able to do on the edges and how much do you all need to work to get
06:10 better at that? Well, we gotta do a better job. I actually felt better after I went
06:14 and watched the tape. I think I was riding home on the bus in a state of
06:17 depression about our ability to stop the run and you sometimes as a coach, and my
06:22 dad always said it, it's never as good as it seems and it's never as bad as it
06:26 seems. So when I got up and actually watched it, we struck blockers and played
06:30 the run well at times. We didn't fit some plays well that they did and give them
06:34 credit and we probably didn't work some of those plays enough out of the
06:39 formations they did it. They did a nice job scheming that up, so we got to do a
06:42 better job of that. Make no mistake about it, but we have good run defenders. Coach,
06:49 I've heard you allude to Carson being extremely calm and did that carry over
06:55 at all to the rest of the team? Did you feel a sense of calm on the road this
06:59 week? I did feel a sense of calm, but I don't know if it came from him. I mean, it
07:03 came from the game plan. The game plan when you go into a place like that, like
07:06 Coach Rick mentions, it's not easy there. Nobody understands that. I can't explain
07:12 it. I've been there at LSU, I've been there at Alabama, I've been here as a
07:15 player, been there as an assistant coach. It's hard. It's just hard. It's hard on
07:20 the road in the SEC and it was hard Saturday and the composure remained
07:25 throughout the team and that was part of the game plan. Kirby, early in camp you
07:31 let us all know that you had the defensive front wise, you didn't
07:36 have as many disruptors as you've had in the past. How is that coming along and
07:41 then also how good a bowler are you? Oh man, let me answer that first. I don't have to
07:48 put the little things on, the guardrails. If he puts those on, I'm taking that belt
07:51 home. I can assure you that, but I don't get to do those. My son Andrew
07:56 always wants to put those up because it just provides an easy way to success, but
08:01 I'll probably practice up some before it if I get some free time so I don't
08:05 embarrass myself. I know coach Rick can bowl because I've heard stories
08:13 about scores, but you know it's funny as our players started going bowling when
08:17 Nick and Sonny and those guys were here, they would have a bowling group that played and
08:21 did it all the time. Our players like to go on recruiting events and ask the
08:24 players to come back to the Letterman's event. They like bowling over golf, so more
08:28 and more people enjoy it and I know they'll be excited about it. As far as
08:31 the defensive line part, I've never felt like we had a lot of the
08:36 same defensive linemen this year that we had last year outside of
08:39 Galen who didn't play most of the year. We've got plenty of
08:43 D-linemen good enough to do things and execute, just don't have disruptive
08:47 people. You have to find other ways to do things defensively to try to get
08:50 people negative plays. You got Ladd and Kendall back on Saturday, but from a
08:57 health standpoint, how much of it is still monitoring them and working their
09:01 way back up to 100%? Yeah, just that. I mean we're really trying to get them in
09:06 shape now because we feel like they're healthy. It's a matter of, okay, can they
09:11 get in shape without wearing down their legs? You don't really get in shape in
09:14 season. You're either in shape or you're not and those guys haven't had a
09:17 chance to have the stamina and practice, so we try to do it other ways.
09:21 Non-weight bearing, underwater running, you do all the things you can do, but
09:24 we're trying to get them healthy and get them to the game and maybe get them some
09:27 more snaps. Kirby, I asked Tate earlier, when you look at Kentucky defensive line, you
09:33 see big number zero, you kind of get a Jordan Davis vibes when you look at him.
09:37 Yeah, extremely athletic for a large man. They do more with him probably than we
09:42 did with Jordan. They don't play him at the zero nose. They move him out to the
09:44 five technique, the four eye. They dropped him against Florida in the interception
09:48 play. I mean it's unique as you'll see a human being 6'6", 350 dropping and they
09:53 mix it up with the guy. He's a talented player. We recruited him here. He's gotten
09:57 better. He's a kind of a wrecking ball in there. You know, he knocks people back.
10:02 Kirby, when we talked to Tate a few minutes ago, he was frustrated with the run
10:06 blocking for himself and really the whole offensive line. What are you seeing
10:09 just with the run blocking so far and the ways they need to improve going
10:12 forward? You got to help them. You got to help them a lot of ways. Look, there's
10:16 nobody, there's nobody, you can't tell me an offensive line right now that you say
10:20 oh man, they're just moving people and they're mashing people. Defensive linemen
10:23 have leverage. They strike out of their hips. They come out. You got to find ways
10:27 to get double teams. You got to find ways to run it on perimeter. Running the ball
10:31 on the SEC is the hardest thing to do and Kentucky just did an unbelievable job of
10:36 doing it. But outside of that performance, it's just not easy and I can't pinpoint
10:41 one thing that we can do better, but there's a lot of things we got to do
10:44 better and that's not a, that's not just an offensive line job. You know, there's
10:50 perimeter blocks, there's tight ends blocks, there's getting in the right run
10:54 play and there's the running back reads where they got to do the right thing to
10:57 this shared responsibility and starting with me.
10:59 Realize coaches is a little bit of a sensitive subject, but Ray Davis can
11:06 comes out of the transfer portal. You guys knew you were a little bit light in
11:09 the running back. Did did he ever, did you guys ever have a discussion about Ray
11:14 Davis or any other backs because of your situation at running back this year? Not
11:19 really. I don't remember anything on race. Somebody said something to me
11:22 about that. He might have expressed interest in. I never knew that. I never
11:26 talked to Ray. I never had any conversations with him. And and to be
11:28 honest with you, we were in a situation where we had some backs coming back. We
11:31 felt really good about Brents and Kendall Dajon and the guys we had and
11:35 the guys we had coming back. So I mean, you're always looking for a better
11:37 player, but we weren't actively pursuing anyone. And like I've told you before,
11:42 most of these kids, when they go in the portal, they probably have an idea where
11:46 they're going.
11:48 Going back to the film from Saturday, when you're looking at it on the bus,
11:51 you see things you like, things you don't. Give me give me your evaluation
11:55 of your guard play from this past Saturday.
11:57 Um, depends on what front they were in. Right. I mean, they have different
12:02 fronts. I mean, you have a covered guard and you have an uncovered guard. We had
12:07 some some mistakes in there and a couple past pros.
12:10 We had some good plays. I mean, the Auburn's defense line played extremely
12:15 hard, like every one of them will. They got to play really good pad level and
12:20 leverage and didn't give up movement, which every one of them will. So I think
12:24 across the board, offensive line and our defensive line both have to play
12:29 better. And that's essentially my assessment.
12:32 Kirby, you talked about the exceptional job Carson did first start on the road.
12:37 Talk a little bit about Peyton and those massive kicks he made and sort of what
12:42 the last month has been like for him and to come up big like that. Yeah, a lot
12:47 of confidence in Peyton. I think he he is wired the right way. He was a
12:51 baseball player. He pitched when you have these kids that did multiple
12:54 sports and they've had pressure on him in other environments. I'm a big
12:58 believer in having to sit on that mountain, throw strikes. I've been out
13:02 there and know how hard it is to do it. So he's having to do that kicking in
13:05 front of 93,000 people, and that's not easy. And he's a true freshman. But he
13:10 did a nice job going through his process, breathing, handling things
13:14 well. And, you know, I told him he's got 10 people out there with him, and
13:18 he's got another 74 in the locker room that love him regardless of whether he
13:21 makes it or not. It's unconditional love. And he has to know that and be
13:25 able to relax and kick and was very proud of him the way he handled it.
13:28 What does it look like for Roderick Robinson to get back on Saturday? He's
13:34 still dealing with an ankle injury, so we'll see how he goes this week.
13:38 Every smile was just named SEC defensive player of the week. Where has
13:41 he grown the most?
13:42 Um, probably in his leadership. He's been an incredible athlete, and he came
13:47 in as a really good space player. He's gotten tougher. He's grown as a blitzer,
13:53 and he's a he's a quality leader. He's not afraid to confront guys when
13:58 they're not doing things right, which, you know, you learn to appreciate as
14:01 you coach longer the guys that hold people to a standard, so I don't have
14:04 to.
14:07 Yeah, just having watched the tape, how would you assess how your inside
14:10 linebacker group as a whole played and maybe how not having a true disruptor
14:14 type in that defensive line maybe impacts that position this year?
14:17 Yeah, I don't think that the defensive line impacts the inside linebacker
14:22 position, but not having a disruptor because if you have people that strike
14:25 blocks and occupy blocks, then it frees the linebackers up. Sometimes the
14:28 disruptors worse for an inside backer because the offensive lines free. But
14:32 you know, it's hot and cold. We've played good for a while. We've had a
14:36 few bust a few middle bust. We miskeyed a few things they did. They did a nice
14:41 job of quarterback run misdirection. I mean, that's what people do now in
14:45 football. They pull a guy here, take a guy here and you got to figure out
14:49 which way the play is going. So we did that well some and we didn't do that
14:53 well some so we gotta do a better job.
14:54 Kirby, uh, concerning lad. Um, how did he come out of game at the game
15:00 Saturday? I'd like how did he feel after and is that a situation with that
15:04 injury? I know that there was, you know, he was fine and then he wasn't that he
15:07 couldn't go. Is that one of those things where you're kind of holding your
15:09 breath a little bit week to week, you know, for him to, you know, just hoping
15:13 that doesn't crop back up? Or do you guys kind of feel like you maybe have
15:15 it under control a little bit now? Yeah, no clue. I mean, we don't we don't know
15:19 if it's we don't know if it's gonna come back. I don't know. I just I know
15:22 that the medical advice we got was to shut him down. We did that. Um, he feels
15:27 like he's in. He's recovered. He feels good. He had to progress last week to
15:30 the point of full speed didn't bother him. Um, so I was pleased with that
15:36 part of it. He, uh, he wants to be out there. The biggest thing now for him is
15:39 the conditioning level and all
15:40 you took Lawson Lucky and Pierce Berlin on the road with you last week. Could
15:45 they have played? Could they have played? Yeah, they could have played.
15:48 Uh,
15:49 well, if they're better than Oscar and Brock, I mean, I don't know what you
15:54 want us to do. Y'all take Brock Bowers out. But when I'm in anybody voting on
15:57 that, I mean, you know that then you're not a coach. So, uh, but yeah,
16:03 they're they're they're they're cleared. They're not where they need to be
16:07 physically and mentally to play. S. E. C. Play. They're trying to get there.
16:12 But I mean, guys, this is a grown man sport to put a true freshman out there
16:17 just because you guys had him as a four or five star. It doesn't mean he's
16:20 ready. I mean, there this is physical out there and it's grown man football.
16:25 When you watch what's going on out there and those guys are they're
16:28 getting better. They're getting closer. But you know, you don't How many
16:32 freshmen did we play the other day? I don't know. A kicker, a linebacker.
16:36 Okay, I can't think of many others.
16:39 Kirby, the end of the first half. Could you elaborate on that third one and
16:44 fourth and one? I know they I think they were lined up in pistol in both of
16:47 those. Did you anticipate that? And can you talk about the plays your guys
16:51 made? I mean, a lot's been made about the yards rushed for, but that that
16:54 run defense stop there seemed pretty pivotal at that moment is a big moment.
16:59 We do an intensive study every week on short yards. Goal line plays. I think
17:03 they're deciding games more often because teams are going for it more
17:05 often. Um, and what I've learned, I watch a real every week that is every
17:10 third and one in the SEC and every fourth and one in the SEC. It is hard
17:14 to get a yard. You guys all think, well, you gotta be 100%. Go watch that
17:19 real. Go watch that real and see how hard it is to get a yard. You know,
17:24 talk about the guards. Talk about the offensive line not getting pushed. Go
17:28 watch every team in our league on third and one and fourth and one. It is hard
17:32 to get a yard because people are defending those down distances different
17:36 than they ever have. I mean, they're just treating them different. So I was
17:40 proud of our defense for stopping them in those. It probably had a little bit
17:42 to do with us had a little bit to do with them. They didn't get a great, uh,
17:46 front they wanted. They didn't. They had a little trouble with exchange on
17:49 one of those, and Chaz got some knock back and we cleaned it up. Well, but
17:54 I don't want to be in third and one and fourth and one to be honest with you.
17:56 Take two more questions. Coach, we obviously all know how good Bowers is
18:01 with the ball in his hands, but I fight every week. I see him 12 yards down
18:05 field, Barry and so like you just talk about how good of a blocker he's
18:07 become throughout his career. Yeah, most underrated part of his game. Just
18:11 just turn off the catches and go watch this dude block because he, uh, he
18:15 tries to he tries to put him in the ground. He has a extreme amount of
18:20 power, um, in his core and his, uh, he centers. He gets his feet on people
18:25 and runs his feet, and he's a really powerful weapon as a blocker to
18:29 you talked about being physically and mentally prepared with a tight end
18:34 group. Osterdahl makes a big mistake. How important was his composure and
18:37 his bounce back from that moment? Oh, it's everything. I mean, it's like I
18:40 said, it's not Oscars fumble. It's our team and our team. Whenever there was
18:44 74 men on a mission, and we're gonna be there for each other no matter what
18:47 happened, and we weren't gonna win the game without Oscar the rest of the way.
18:50 So we got to protect the ball to get where we want to go, but we got to love
18:54 each other regardless. Um, I want to thank again, Coach Rick and Miss
18:57 Catherine for being here and all they've done for the Athens community
19:00 and what they're doing with this event should make a lot of people proud of
19:06 UGA and what it stands for. So thanks again. Go dogs.
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