"A lot of schools and coaches don't want to do": Kirby Smart opens up on unique trait of Georgia that develop standout athletes

Kirby Smart loves to maintain high standards. The culture in Georgia has been clear: establish new benchmarks and accomplish tasks at the highest level. When coaching the players and molding young athletes out of high school, one of the unique aspects that Smart loves to follow is coaching “hard.”

It is often filled with harsh criticisms and blunt reality checks, which the Bulldogs coach believes is the stepping stone to success. While speaking to Josh Pate on Monday for a sit-down interview, Smart mentioned the importance of this tradition.

The two-time National Championship-winning coach likes to follow old-school methods. With the changing landscape of college football, he feels student athletes are often distracted and delusional. It's essential to bring them back to reality. [Timestamp - 0:20]

“It's a decision they have to make. I mean, the choice when you came here was I chose hard. I chose getting coached in constructive criticism,” Smart said to Pate on the show.

“It's good for you to do constructive criticism. It's good for you to develop, and a lot of schools and coaches don't want to do that. So we still do it here. We do it hard. And most of our good players, like you mentioned, they embrace that. They want that. Brock Bowers comes and says, How can I get better? Show me another way.

"It's the same way for Devonte Wyatt or Javon Bullock. They want to they want to be coached. They want you to teach them how to do it. And I don't know that the masses, the large numbers, of the culture we're doing now, these kids don't they want to be coached hard so they can make a decision what they want to be,” he added.

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Kirby Smart reveals social media influencing players' mindset

Georgia Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart talks with players during an NCAA Football game. (Credits: IMAGN)

Kirby Smart highlighted how, over the years, the mentality of high school athletes coming to college has changed due to the unnecessary media hype around them. They feel entitled, which indirectly hinders their progress.To break this barrier, the veteran coach mentioned devising a strategy by scheduling student meetups with Georgia's star-studded alumni, like Brock Bowers. The approach also involves Smart personally interacting with freshmen and constantly connecting with them over phone calls.

The best way to develop new athletes is to help them mimic what has already been done. And Kirby Smart claims to be doing precisely that with his unique methods.