Expectations for a first-year Head Coach in the SEC

The excitement surrounding Kirby Smart’s first season at the reigns of his former team and alma mater is growing everyday. While Mark Richt provided stability to the program, he was unable to consistently win the SEC East with highly talented teams. The expectations at a program like UGA is extremely high, and the only job security is conference titles or national championships. Richt couldn’t win enough job security and the straw that broke the camel's back came when Alabama’s former defensive coordinator interviewed for the South Carolina head coaching vacancy. Athletic Director Greg McGarity would have lost his job had Kirby Smart moved to Columbia, South Carolina and coached against the Bulldogs for years to come. He had to make the tough decision to relieve Richt of his duties and jumpstart the Smart era in Athens.

The expectations are high for Coach Smart, even in just his first year, and they will continue to get higher every year. The former all-SEC safety for the Dawgs has built a strong coaching resume working under some great college football coaches - Bobby Bowden (2002-2003), Mark Richt (2005) and Nick Saban (2004, 2006-2015). He has contributed to conference titles and national championships and now it’s his turn to lead conference and national championship teams. But don’t expect it to happen his first year. Of current SEC head coaches only Les Miles, Gus Malzahn and Jim McElwain won the SEC East and West; and only Gus Malzahn won the conference title game and advanced as far as the BCS National Championship Game.

Not only does Smart have to deal with the difficulties that come with the territory of adjusting to the head coach role, but he might also be dealing with the rollercoaster ride that comes with the territory of starting a freshman quarterback in the SEC. Incoming freshman Jacob Eason has been dubbed the savior of the program before he’s ever taken a snap against an opponent Between the Hedges. The last quarterback to start a game as a true freshman was Matt Stafford, who Jacob Eason has drawn several comparisons to. Although Stafford would wind up the number one overall pick in the NFL Draft, it took him a handful of weeks to adjust. In his first SEC game against South Carolina coming off the bench for an injured Joe Tereshinski, Stafford went just 8 of 19 for 171 yards along with three interceptions. Even after home losses against Tennessee and Vanderbilt, Coach Richt made Stafford the starter the rest of the season - and Stafford’s true skill set shined from that point forward, beating Mississippi State with SEC Freshman of the Week honors, upsetting fifth-ranked Auburn, and throwing the game-winning touchdown against no. 16 Georgia Tech. Should Eason become the starter this season, Georgia fans shouldn’t expect an SEC championship. Since the SEC introduced it’s current format in 1992, no true freshman has ever hoisted the trophy in the Georgia Dome, and the last 13 champions have been juniors or seniors. But if there’s a silver lining in the history of the SEC Championship games, the last non-junior/senior to win was the former Dawg sophomore David Greene.

On top of all these factors, Coach Smart also has the added pressure of coaching at his alma mater. Only four SEC coaches have won a national championship at their alma mater - Shug Jordan at Auburn in 1957, Bear Bryant multiple times at Alabama, Steve Spurrier at Florida in 1996 and Phillip Fulmer at Tennessee in 1998. It took Fulmer six years to get to the big game, Spurrier seven years, Bryant four years and Jordan seven years. Unless the improbable happens, the Dawgs will have to wait for their first national championship since Herschel carried the way to the 1980 Championship. And the last SEC Coach to take over at his alma mater was Joker Phillips at Kentucky was fired three years after being hired, Coach Phillips might not be a fair comparison to Coach Smart because of the differences in tradition and facilities, but the pressure is undoubtedly present.