Brett McMurphy calls out Kirby Smart for deleted birthday tweet about Rara Thomas
College football reporter Brett McMurphy called out Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart for a now-deleted tweet about wide receiver Rara Thomas for his birthday.
This comes just days after Thomas was arrested for felony cruelty to children and misdemeanor battery charges.
“Kirby’s account @KirbySmartUGA deleted Happy Birthday to RaRa Thomas about 10 minutes after posting,” McMurphy posted. “He must not want Thomas, arrested Friday for cruelty to children-family violence (2nd degree felony) & 2 misdemeanor counts of battery-family violence, to have a Happy Birthday.”
Following his arrest, Kirby Smart and the Georgia program suspended Rara Thomas indefinitely.
McMurphy wasn’t the only one who noticed the tweet from Smart. Others quickly made sure to reply to the post that quickly got deleted.
“Coach this is why you really need to start listening to my voicemails,” Three Year Letterman replied. Meanwhile, others posted, “Dear staffer running kirbys twitter, please delete this,” and that “This needs to come down!”
The post about Thomas’ birthday wasn’t necessarily on purpose. Instead, Smart’s account is likely set to automatically post on Georgia players’ birthdays as a way to celebrate them, which means that it was probably pre-scheduled. If not, then an intern of some kind handles social media. That’s something that McMurphy initially acknowledged.
“Kirby’s Twitter wishes each player Happy Birthday,” McMurphy wrote in a quote tweet on Smart’s deleted post. “Awkward timing for Thomas, arrested Friday for cruelty to children-family violence, a 2nd degree felony & 2 misdemeanor counts of battery-family violence. He’s been suspended indefinitely.”
In total, Thomas was charged with two counts of battery, both misdemeanors, and one count of second-degree cruelty to children, a felony. All three of those charges also carry a “family violence” distinction.
In 2023 while playing for Georgia Rara Thomas caught 23 passes for 383 yards and a touchdown. That was his first season at Georgia after previously playing two seasons for the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Kirby Smart on how players can be ‘fined’ for actions
Amid a rash of legal issues within the Georgia program, often for driving-related charges, Kirby Smart explained how the team handles suspensions and how the NIL Collective can even hand out a sort of fine to players.
“Our Classic City Collective for over a year has been substantially fining guys for those things,” Smart said, via Dawgs HQ. “That’s not something that’s new. That’s something that’s been ongoing outside of my jurisdiction that they decided to implement and have done for a considerable amount.”