Early kickoffs became a hot debate Monday when Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne and president Stuart R. Bell issued a statement complaining about noon start times. On Tuesday, Georgia coach Kirby Smart weighed in on the subject.
But Smart didn’t agree with his former employer:
Kirby Smart asked about noon kickoffs, said he likes having more time with his family, and more time to recruit on the back end: “Probably being able to go home and watch the night games with my kids and my wife is the big thing for me.”
— Seth Emerson (@SethWEmerson) September 10, 2019
It’s more common to see a football program complain about late start times because late games can sometimes present traveling issues for away teams going home after the game. Furthermore, there’s been a big debate about how late Pac-12 games start because most fans on the east coast are already sleep when the contests begin.
But a conversation about noon kickoff times like the SEC’s had the last few days has been new. Count Smart as one of the coaches that wishes to keep his noon starts.
Dave covers SEC football for Saturday Down South.
