Georgia AD Greg McGarity clarifies comments on Vanderbilt game postponement
By SDS Staff
Published:
Greg McGarity raised eyebrows with his comments venting about the postponement of the Georgia-Vanderbilt game.
The UGA athletic director, who is leaving his post at the end of the year, didn’t shy away from saying he was frustrated and angry with the situation, emphasizing that the Bulldogs have handled COVID well:
“I don’t take things personal, but when our institution suffers, it upsets me greatly,” McGarity told reporters.
“When something affects our school, it’s extremely frustrating.”
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“They should be angry, and we’re angry, too,” McGarity said.
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“It’s just so frustrating when you have coaches and players and support staff that make significant sacrifices to stay safe, and they do so, and then they have no competitive benefit other than their health.
“We have shown the ability to stay healthy by being disciplined and following the advice from Coach (Kirby) Smart and (Head trainer) Ron Courson. We are an example of what can be done with discipline and a desire to play college football.”
Vanderbilt athletic director Candice Storey Lee later released a statement on Twitter that appeared to be a response to McGarity’s comments, noting she is “as competitive as anyone”:
“I’m as competitive as anyone and we were all looking forward to getting back on the field to face Georgia. We will never compromise the health and safety of our student-athletes. We are already preparing for Tennessee and look forward to wrapping up the regular season at Georgia.”
Later Friday, McGarity clarified he wasn’t frustrated with Vanderbilt or the Commodores AD.
“It centers around the entire situation,” McGarity told Jake Rowe of 247Sports. “It was not a shot at Vandy. I totally understand their dilemma. They’ve got a mix of COVID, they’ve got a mix of opt-outs, they’ve got a mix of injuries, so it was never meant to take a dig at them. But the frustration comes to a point when we’ve been essentially COVID-free all fall and the sacrifices that these young men and the coaches have made to stay safe and stay healthy, just hasn’t been consistent across the college landscape. And that’s the frustrating thing.”
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
