Kirby Smart has coached against 3 Florida head coaches during his Georgia tenure. He’s seen Gator teams that finished as strong as 11-2 and as low as 4-7. Ahead of the rivalry showdown in Jacksonville, Smart was asked for his thoughts on how Billy Napier’s rebuild project is going in Gainesville.

Smart was complimentary of the way Napier has built his roster and established Florida’s brand of football.

“I think they’ve recruited well. We recruit against them, they’ve recruited well, recruit hard,” Smart told reporters. “They have good schemes, good coaches. They have great facilities and a great organization. When you have that recipe, it’s just a matter of time. You build it through hard work and discipline. You can see that in his players. You can see those guys playing with toughness and discipline. Their brand of football is very respectable.”

Smart’s recruiting comments will be warmly received by Gator Nation. Florida’s recruiting under Dan Mullen, particularly in head-to-head battles with Georgia, led to many Gator fans losing patience with the former head coach. Mullen and Smart’s contrasting comments about recruiting after Georgia’s 2021 blowout win over UF drew national attention.

In Napier’s second season, Smart sees a lot of similarities in the Cocktail Party rivals, which does not come as a surprise considering they were assistants on Nick Saban’s Alabama staff.

“They have a lot of the same, similar schemes, defensively and offensively, to what we do, things you believe in,” Smart said of Florida. “I’ve got a lot of respect for Billy and the job he’s done. I have no doubt that Billy’s going to do a great job.”

Smart won Round 1 against Napier 42-20 last year. Saturday’s game is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.