Should Georgia Expect to Play of SEC Title Immediately
Kirby Smart was not brought in to replace Mark Richt to win games, he was brought in to win championships. Is it unrealistic to expect him to do so in his first season?
Georgia coaches don’t get a mulligan, especially ones who come into the job after the program has won 10 games in each of the previous two years. I hope — and expect — Kirby Smart is aware of that. The days of building for the future are long gone, especially in the win-or-hit-the-road reality that is SEC football. Georgia is no exception.
The 2016 Bulldogs squad is widely assumed to be a top-25 team. Simply put, Smart and his new staff don’t have any excuses not to compete for at least a division title. Not because the SEC East is a dumpster fire — which it is — and not because Smart is the next great coach — no one knows the answer to that just yet. The reason Smart doesn’t get a pass is because expectations have been reset after the firing of Mark Richt. Athletic dirctor Greg McGarity has set the precedent that failing to win the SEC East isn’t good enough. Period. Graduation rates, ethics, 10-win seasons and fan-approval ratings don’t matter if the team isn’t producing championships, divisional or otherwise.
Richt is no longer in Athens because Missouri (twice) and Florida played for the past three SEC Championships. The bar has been chiseled — in stone — for Smart to be in Atlanta this December. Anything less is a failure.
Here’s why that’s not an unrealistic expectation...To read the remainder of this article, click here.
This article originally published at www.GridironNow.com.
The 2016 Bulldogs squad is widely assumed to be a top-25 team. Simply put, Smart and his new staff don’t have any excuses not to compete for at least a division title. Not because the SEC East is a dumpster fire — which it is — and not because Smart is the next great coach — no one knows the answer to that just yet. The reason Smart doesn’t get a pass is because expectations have been reset after the firing of Mark Richt. Athletic dirctor Greg McGarity has set the precedent that failing to win the SEC East isn’t good enough. Period. Graduation rates, ethics, 10-win seasons and fan-approval ratings don’t matter if the team isn’t producing championships, divisional or otherwise.
Richt is no longer in Athens because Missouri (twice) and Florida played for the past three SEC Championships. The bar has been chiseled — in stone — for Smart to be in Atlanta this December. Anything less is a failure.
Here’s why that’s not an unrealistic expectation...To read the remainder of this article, click here.
This article originally published at www.GridironNow.com.