It is difficult to carry on a conversation this time of the year without the topic turning to football.  There will be excitement building intently for the next four weeks, accompanied by a pall clouding the mood the last week or so.

College football fans can’t wait for the season to start.  However, practice can be a downer as the days accumulate.  Players will become tired of hitting one another, anxious to go live against personnel, wearing something other than red.  Tailgaters have gone over their checklists and the “can’t wait” emotions affect fans as much as it does the coaches and players.

Things are different now than yesteryear, even a few seasons ago.  That was when a player annually made $10,000, cost of attendance money which would be sneered at with today’s compensation scale in place. The aforementioned number amounted to $833 per month, a far cry from the old grant-in-aid laundry stipend of $10 a quarter.

All the issues that make headlines today will be forgotten once the season begins.  Georgia is one of the campuses where, under Kirby Smart, the talk of the town will always be about championship opportunity.   He has set an extraordinarily high standard.  

However, a season of promise is on the minds of those close to the program and the passionate fans who always believe in their favorite team.

With the students returning in the next few days there will be a change in the air.  Restaurant reservations will be a challenge, especially on the weekend.  A parking space will be scarce, and standing in line will be as commonplace as the heat and humidity.

But don’t you love it when everything is back in full swing?  The quiet, laid-back and easygoing atmosphere of the summer when it feels that Athens’s population drops by half or more is replaced with traffic, noise, and congestion, all affiliated with the energy of youth.

A few days ago, at ADD Drug lunch counter, one Andrew Smart was enjoying lunch, and I was overwhelmed when he stood up to leave.  He must have grown six inches since this time last year.  He now wears a size 15 shoe and is rearing to compete.

The guess is that with his growth spurt, he must replace his wardrobe monthly.   That is not such a bad thing in that a dozen t-shirts take care of his shopping needs as he prepares for the upcoming season where his every move will constantly be audited by the media.

Just a few months ago in the locker room at the Sugar Bowl, his heart was broken with Georgia losing to Ole Miss, which brought about tears.  You reflect on that and you realize that in that short period of time he is much more a man in a little more than a few months.

He is already showing signs of cogency and maturity as you might expect, given the parenting he gets from a busy and balanced upbringing from a head coach whose primary interests are family and coaching the Georgia football team. Add to that a mother, who was a competent athlete, whose influence goes well beyond the kitchen.   The osmosis factor alone in his life will enhance his development and provide exceptional opportunity.  It will be fun watching his progress.

With his appearance at the pre-season meeting of the Atlanta Touchdown Club recently, Kirby was his usual outstanding self—insightful, compellingly analytical, with a touch of humor, making you realize that he is an elite communicator who will likely transition into television like what we have seen with Nick Saban.  Hopefully later than sooner.

Kirby’s unflappable instincts and demeanor with the media are remarkable.  He cannot be buffaloed or entrapped.  He is candid, informative, perceptive, discerning, and penetrating.   His repartee is enjoyable and entertaining.  He has a style that is reminiscent of John Fitzgerld Kennedy, who could parry with the best of the Fourth Estate.

He is a coach who will research the modus operandi of other championship teams employed in their championship season as he did with the New Zealand All Blacks, who have won 23 international titles.  He and his staff spent weeks studying their historical winning percentage and leadership methods to avoid team complacency.  

There is never a time when he doesn’t slip in a compliment for his old coach, Nick Saban, which is a class act that reflects that he is grateful for anybody and anything that has influenced his success.   He will often sling a compliment to Andy Landers, who was his wife’s coach when she played for the Lady Dawg basketball team.

I have never been around a coach with more of the “right stuff” than the Bulldog head coach.