Quinton and I both said numerous times throughout this search that we thought it was unlikely that Kirby Smart would come here. Not because of any mythical rift between Richt and Smart, but because it just made more sense for him to stay in Tuscaloosa. That's why, I don't have an issue with his decision to stay at Alabama.
What I most certainly do have an issue with is the way this was handled by Kirby. The job had been open since Dec. 2nd, and Kirby has known since at least Dec. 15th that Georgia was interested...if he was interested. That's the magic phrase in all of this.
UGA started the search process with Bud Foster and John Chavis because (A) they are more qualified for the job than Kirby, and (B) Kirby would be tied up until at least Jan. 7th. When the Foster and Chavis deals never materialized, Richt made his pitch to Kirby because he had reason to believe Kirby was legitimately receptive to the pitch.
If Kirby wanted to stay in Tuscaloosa, that would've been fine by everyone. He could've quietly and respectfully told Richt to move ahead with his search without him. There was positively no reason to wait 3-4 days to make up his mind when he had a month to ponder this scenario. Making Richt wait weakened the search process and took more shine off the position.
Bear Bryant was famously asked why he left Texas A&M for Alabama, and he responded, "Mama Called." Well, mama called, and as T. Kyle King said, "Kirby hung up." Georgia needed Kirby because of the timing and because of the prior rejects, and we went out on a limb for him. We were willing to make a 34 year old guy with only one year of defensive coordinator experience the third highest paid assistant in the country. In that scenario, you don't make us wait for almost four days to make up your mind.
So it's not the decision that pisses me off. It's the process and timing.
I respect his decision to stay with Saban. Professionally, I think it was the right move for him. It's lower risk, and as close to a frictionless path to a head coaching gig as you can find in college football. But he should also respect the anger and backlash that UGA boosters feel towards the way he handled this.
It's not just business when it's your alma mater. Not if you ever want to come back.
Where do we go from here?
The search was never about hiring Kirby Smart. The search was about finding someone better than Willie Martinez. That's the minimum threshold for success. And as I've stated before, the process from our end worries me less than the outcome. We can still hire someone terrific. Particularly, if we're willing to offer another viable candidate as much as $790,000 over three to four years.
Kirby wasn't Richt's soul mate for this job. There's more than one person that will work. We just need to move quickly to find them.
By the way....can we please stop with the "Damon won't pay anyone good" meme. The offer that UGA made to Kirby given his resume was wildly out of step with the broader marketplace. It was an incredibly generous offer.
Oh...and one last thought. Maybe it's Todd Grantham now. Maybe not. But what has Todd Grantham ever done to make you or I think he's the answer except have Pollack and Donnan throw out his name often enough to have Anthony Dasher start calling his agent?
If it's him, I'll be open minded, but I don't get the love.
PWD
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