During his presser conference Saturday morning, Kirby Smart talked about offensive coordinator Jim Chaney’s first year and his team’s offensive philosophy.
“I have always had a lot of respect for the work Jim has done. I think you look at his career as a whole — you see the places and the job he has done. He has been in some interesting situations from Arkansas, heavy run, to Tennessee — one year we played them and could not slow them down from throwing it because they had a guy who could throw it and pretty good wideouts. So, he has been very versatile in his past. He was not able to do that last year. We were not in a position to be that. We were in a transition and it was tough. I think he will be the first to admit that we did not live up to the expectations we wanted last year. That is not the standard we expect at Georgia. He recognizes that. We acknowledge that. We have to do a good job of analyzing why was it that way, why wasn’t it the way we wanted, what are we going to do about it. That is what we are worried about now. We are not worried about last year at all. We are worried about what is going to happen now moving forward — what is the growth of Jacob Eason? What is the growth of Jake Fromm? The wide out position, the offensive line position, getting more girth and getting bigger and more physical. So, that part of it, at least with the sheer numbers, absolutely not. Not where we need to be. I think we all acknowledge that.”
On offensive philosophy:
“The first thing you look for in the offense is balance. If you cannot run the ball in critical situations in a game, you are usually not going to win the game. Does that mean you need to lead the SEC in rushing? No. Not necessarily, but that means you better be able to run it when you have to — you have to be able to run it fourth and inches, third and one, goal line situations and the red area. If you cannot run the ball in the red area, you are going to get beat. You have to be able to run the ball some in the red area. At the end of the game, you have to be able to run the clock out. In 33 percent of our SEC games, you are going to have to be able to run the ball, so that toughness and that mentality has to be there. But we all know that the spread element that has taken over college football, being able to make looser plays and make it harder on defenses to defend is much better. Between those two things you want to have balance. You want to get your football players the football. Who are the best guys with the ball in their hands? Who are the best blockers in space to get those guys the ball? In our world, we talk all the time about must-run situational football versus first, second down, out in the open field. How can I get my playmakers the ball? I think when you do that it makes your more productive and you do score more.”
Kirby Smart Interview – August 5, 2017
Uploaded by Bulldawg Illustrated on 2017-08-05.