Have sticker shock after seeing Kirby Smart's new contract? Don't. He's worth it
Think about this.
The No. 2 team in the SEC East was Kentucky last year. It was considered a moral victory for the Cats (by some) that they scored multiple touchdowns against Georgia’s historically dominant defense — the second came on the game’s final play — in what was ultimately a 30-13 loss.
On Wednesday at SEC Media Days, Kentucky coach Mark Stoops was asked about the significance of that late drive and how it could potentially bridge the gap between the Cats and Dawgs.
“How do you gain on Georgia? I can’t answer that,” he said. “I just saw Kirby up there, I could maybe try to whack his knees out or something, knock him out for a minute.”
That’s how much better Smart is than the rest of his own division.
In the past 5 seasons, Smart is 27-2 against the SEC East. His trip to a conference championship — in what’s essentially a play-in game for the College Football Playoff — is like clockwork.
So yeah, you better believe he was gonna get that historic contract.
On Thursday, we found out from multiple reports that Smart’s new contract is 10 years, $112.5 million, making him the highest-paid coach in the sport. Timing is everything. Fresh off winning Georgia’s first national title in 41 years, it wasn’t a surprise that he got a new rich contract. His tenure in Athens would be deemed a success if it ended tomorrow.
(Go figure that a sudden retirement was actually on the table for Smart, who said he considered stepping down before the 2021 season.)
If you’re flabbergasted to see Smart’s new deal, that’s understandable. Just know that it’s not quite as stunning as you might think, especially for a coach who has elevated Georgia’s standard unlike any coach before him. Lincoln Riley just reportedly got a similar 10-year, $110 million deal to leave Oklahoma for USC, and he never won a Playoff game.
In fact, look at all of these new coaches who signed 10-year contracts in the past year despite the fact that they’ve never won a Playoff game:
- Lincoln Riley, USC
- Brian Kelly, LSU
- James Franklin, Penn State
- Mel Tucker, Michigan State
- Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M
You’d take Smart over all of those guys, right, Georgia fans? Obviously, especially considering that Smart is 1 of just 4 active head coaches with a Playoff win.
You can be frustrated with Smart’s quarterback decisions while also acknowledging that posting 5 consecutive top-7 seasons puts him on the podium for any list of “best coaches in America.”
According to Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks, Smart is “the best football coach in America.” That’s what Brooks said as he celebrated Georgia’s championship in front of tens of thousands of fans on a frigid day at Sanford Stadium. Clearly, Brooks put his money where his mouth is. Well, he put Georgia’s money where his mouth is.
This new contract doesn’t necessarily mean Smart is about to make the Dawgs the team of the 2020s decade. But if you were betting on one particular team to do that, wouldn’t it be Georgia, Alabama or Ohio State?
It’s fitting that those 3 teams are the obvious favorites to win the 2022 title. Georgia just watched 15 players get picked in the NFL Draft, yet it still finds itself in that position. That’s Smart. That’s having someone who recruited and developed talent as relentlessly as anyone in the sport, including Nick Saban.
Yes, getting over the hump against Saban absolutely impacted that contract. In fact, Smart probably had about $20-30 million at stake heading into the Playoff. There’s no way he would’ve been in that $100 million club if this team had lost 2 consecutive games to end the season, including one to an inferior Michigan team.
But that didn’t happen. Smart instead delivered a finish for the ages, and one that wouldn’t have been possible if he had listened to anyone but himself when it came to sticking with Stetson Bennett IV. Smart didn’t stumble into a title — he earned it.
He earned that contract, too. It wasn’t that long ago that some wondered if Smart was worth the $3.75 million annually he received as a first-time head coach in 2016. Even the most optimistic Smart supporter wouldn’t have predicted that Smart would ink a $112.5 million contract just 6 years after a season with home losses to Vandy, Georgia Tech and Tennessee.
(File that in the ever-growing “Year 1 doesn’t matter as much as everyone thinks it does” folder.)
Smart flipped the script in a way reminiscent of Saban after his rough Year 1 at Alabama. Compare their Years 2-6:
Yeah, Saban has Smart beat. That’s why the former is the G.O.A.T.
But the overall record, SEC record, division titles and top-10 finishes are nearly identical. As long as you’re not the team that can’t beat a top-5 opponent like Notre Dame or Oklahoma, that’s about as good as it gets.
Smart delivered on his promise to take Georgia to that next level, and it’s not debatable. Any comparison to Mark Richt is in the rearview mirror.
We’re not really trying to figure out Smart anymore. You don’t have a 5-year stretch like that without knowing how to build and reload a program. The only thing we’re left to figure out about Smart is whether he’s going to be one of the top 3 coaches of the last 30 years. It’s certainly on the table.
That’s why he’s being paid what he is. In the haves and have-nots, Smart left no doubt which group Georgia falls in.
It probably took some getting used to seeing the words “national champions” attached to Georgia’s name. It’ll take some getting used to when we see a 9-figure contract attached to Smart’s name.
But fear not, Georgia fans. Your guy is worth every penny.
UNDERPAID!
Maybe Kirby won’t quit now.
It can be renegotiated after the next NC.
Um… what was the purpose of all these words? Who are you trying to convince? You write to Georgia fans as if we don’t already believe that Smart is worth every penny.
You should have wrote this to the butthurt ‘turds, hillbillies, Gumps, Barners, and Cawks who’ve been telling Dawgs that Smart is Richt 2.0 or overrated or “house of cards,” etc.
Just… a weird column, dude.
Corch. Bless your eitty bitty heart. You are a special boy.
Hush, Gump. People with far more intelligence than you could ever hope to posses are speaking.
Corch. Im’a gonna say a prayer for you boy. You have a blessed day son.
TN beat you in rushing SEC vs SEC and in passing, and yet, let’s pay him this much without ever doing anything that has proven to prevent at least one blowout loss post season every year..LOL. That is way overrated. For a guy that is yapping about caps at media day for the NIL. Kirby is going to turn your recruiting into junk if he keeps speaking like he’s the poster boy for Anti-NIL talk. “Come to UGA where we believe you should be capped, make less money at UGA”. lol Let’s see how well that goes over! lol.
Yes, weird column dude..lol
“frustrated with the QB decisions”. Nope. Not at all.
You should be. SB only attempted 285 passes for the season..lol. That is not going to get it done in an SEC East that is improving and building back from the rona. It’s not going to win going up against elite offenses on elite teams. It hasn’t since Kirby has been there. All you did was certify that your offense isn’t going to change and paid millions to keep it the same.. Your NFL potential talent is still riding the bench.
11.25M is only around 6.9 to 7.3M take home after taxes…poor guy
Georgia has state income tax too correct?
Yep
around 5%.
Yes, but GA is not an expensive state to live in.
I highly doubt you know what its like to live here in Georgia. Considering what the average house in my neighborhood cost you wouldnt say that.
Not gonna say he’s not worth it, but with the uncertainty of NIL, the recruiting landscape could change quickly.
swamp79, I see your point. Like how a team that went 4-4 SEC last year, all the sudden signs the top-rated class in history. It was NIL, no doubt.
But Kirby has already proven himself as an ace recruiter as well as one of the best for developing talent. UGA clearly has the money to keep up – look at Kirby’s contract as well as OC Monken – one of the highest paid OC’s – facilities, etc.
Some of these schools who buy the talent will fail to develop that talent and will fall short of expectations. After that, those players will go to where the money is, as well as a better chance of development and championships.
So far, there’s nothing to suggest that UGA won’t be able to provide all of that.
Georgia will not be sorry. Smart knows how to win and deserves every penny. I dont think you will find anyone that will disagree.
Haven’t seen you on Discord in awhile.
The problem with comparing Smart & Saban’s first 6 years, is that in Saban’s first 6 at Alabama, he did not have to compete against arguably the greatest Head Coach of all time.
Junkyard, I thought the same thing.
Meyer was a good challenge for a short time. Same for Miles, but there was no coach who had the talent and went head to head with Saban every year he was there. Saban has been there for Kirby since day one.
I think we’re in for a great late season rivalry between Smart and Saban for as long as Saban stays in the game.
I predict UGA will be in more close games and more losses if their coach doesn’t stop talking about caps for NIL recruits. Your going to see your recruiting fall if that does not stop. Other teams will be coming up in recruiting. Like TN, SC, UK and others. Your passing game will determine a lot going forward and Monk has no idea what he’s doing against elite offensive teams.
your hatred for uga is comical. i get it must hurt ut is such garbage, but maybe try and be objective now and again.
Also Saban had plenty of head-coaching experience before he got to Alabama. We should be comparing his first years coaching to Smart’s.
Ole Kirby might be motivated to not quit now!!
“making him the highest-paid coach in the sport…”
The only motivation I see coming is the Gump boosters having to renegotiate with the GOAT…
Humper. Everybody got to eat.
I wonder what the buyout is. You know Bammer will drive a Brinks truck to Athens when Nick retires.
The only way Kirby leaves UGa for Gumptown is if UGa doesn’t match the Bammer offer when and if that time comes
LOL. How sad are FU ‘turds that their only hope of getting over on Georgia in the next 15-20 years is that 0.000000001% chance that Kirby would even consider leaving beautiful Athens, GA, the Classic City, and his frakking alma mater for Gumpville, AL.
Never said that, but you know as well as I do that Bammer will try to poach Kirby.
How sad it may be that you are on the hook for $12 million a year and aren’t guaranteed to win another natty. Who knows how the complexion of the college game changes over the next half decade with expansion, NIL, and the portal?
“How sad it may be that you are on the hook for $12 million a year and aren’t guaranteed to win another natty.”
uh? $10M is now the going rate for a perceived top-tier coach. name another school guaranteed to win a champ in the referenced next half-decade? cks and uga are as good of a bet as any, with exception to saban and bama.
Phil
The turds have forked out about $20,000,000.00 in recent years paying HCs to leave town.
The only school you can even attempt to razz about bad expenditures is Tennessee, maybe
Phil
UF has guaranteed 80% of a $51,800,000.00 contract to a coach who is yet to crack the top-20 in recruiting.
Matter of fact it appears the biggest recruiting winner from Napier’s hire is Miami …
Kirby is 3-6 in SEC championship games, and most of those years he had no competition in the east. One NC. Can of hard to say he is worth that much money. And if Bama had not had both it’s star receivers and both corner backs injured, he would not have won the NC.
Meant 2-4
try again. he’s 1-3 in sec champ games, but 2-4 in actual champ games. maybe the competition has been down, but uf still finished top 15 in three of the five years since this run by cks started
LOL. Yes, because winning a national title is as easy as breathing that Kirby is “underachieving” because he’s “only” won a one of them. In his first six years of being a head coach, ever.
How many national titles did Saban win in his first six years as a head coach? How about Bobby Bowden? What about Spurrier? How many did he win in his first six years as a head coach? Corch? Dabo?
You people are ridiculously stupid.
Corch. You Jawga fans are right in the middle of your one year dynasty. Enjoy it boy!!
Mike, it’s pretty obvious you know nothing about what constitutes anyone’s worth to a business. Coach Smart’s program generated $134M in revenue last year with $48M in expenses. He’s underpaid.
exclamation point
You do realize that uga had more of injuries to key players last year than Bama, right? But you never heard any excuses from UGA. I guess “next man up” doesn’t apply to Bama.
Why aren’t you comparing Saban’s first years as a head coach?
Because that would be intellectually honest instead of clickbait b.s., and would show just how good Kirby has been in his first six years of being a head coach.
We can’t have that.
Because it’s not an apples to apples comparison. Saban coached at Toledo and Michigan State, not a SEC power in UGA.
THE TURF!!!
Who Tuscaloosa was the execuse capital of college football
What’s the zip code for IfButExceptloosa AL?
i think the chart included in the article is appropriate. and as a uga fan and considering that saban carries just as big of a stick today as he did back then, the chart speaks very favorably to cks’ success to date.
“You’d take Smart over all of those guys, right, Georgia fans?”
I’d take Kirby over any coach on earth.
Meanwhile, the typical university in a land overflowing with worthless degrees only spends 33% of its money on education. Worth every penny?
I’d give him an extension but not this big. Just two or three short years ago, UGA with 48th in offense. For me, that number has to be top ten at least three years in a row with no questions about the offense. There are still questions, big ones. Can Kirby improve the offense and do it in a year after the biggest departure of talent he’s ever seen at UGA? Can he go one season in the post season without at least one blowout loss? He’s a very good D minded coach and NIL is changing football like we’ve never seen. I think first you have to be a coach that is for NIL. You can’t be one that wants it capped. That means during Media day your not talking about caps and blah blah blah. If this is the mountain saban wants to go down on, let him. But going forward UGA has to be more of an offensive minded schools or they will continue losing in the post season, when they make it to the post season. There is no answer to elite football on elite teams other than elite offense itself. Overpaid at this time in my opinion but could be worth is if UGA improves the offense to something that drums up excitement for it and its good enough to compete or beat the LSU 2019’s, and Bama 2020’s. Because no offense, even UGA’s great D’s could do nothing against those kid of offenses.
“continue losing in the postseason”…. lmao what? you have the worst takes