When Kirby Smart took over as head coach at Georgia, he started recruiting with a bang. Smart’s first UGA pledge was former five-star safety Richard LeCounte III. LeCounte was rated the No. 25 overall recruit, No. 2 safety and No. 3 player in the state of Georgia on the 247Sports Composite.

There’s no doubting LeCounte’s talents, but Smart isn’t letting his first UGA pledge rest on those laurels. When discussing LeCounte’s move to right safety, taking over for Dominick Sanders, he showed the second-year player some tough love.

“He’s still growing. It’s going to be a growing process in the secondary.” Smart told reporters Thursday, per Dawgs247’s Jake Rowe. “Sometimes I think Richard really wants to be good. I don’t know if Richard knows what it takes to be good, like the demands it takes, the study it takes, the seriousness it takes. He’s a very talented young man but he’s got to meet the demands the position requires, which is come in, learn, make the calls, make the decisions. Sometimes I don’t know if he wants that responsibility on him. We certainly are counting on him and we are continuing to coach him until he gets it.”

It will be interesting to watch how LeCounte responds to having his work ethic and drive questioned by his head coach through the media. Everyone knows LeCounte has the talent, but Smart clearly wants to see some changes in approach and preparation.