Kirby Smart dishes on multiple transfers, reveals former players regret leaving program

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart has been able to weather the storm and sustain success amid the recent evolution of college football. Highlighted by the rise of NIL and the transfer portal which have changed the game of recruiting and as a result changed the entire college football landscape.

Through it all Smart still boasts a a 42-2 record in the past three seasons with two national championship wins. But he will continue to be tested on and off the field as college football continues to grow and change.

Smart joined SEC Network’s Paul Finebaum last week at the Regions Tradition Pro-Am in Birmingham, and given college football’s current circumstances, was asked what he would change about college football.

“An opportunity to leave twice within a year,” Smart said. “I think we’re gonna look back on that 10 years from now and say that the people that had multiple transfers are probably not going to be successful academically. And I think going to look back and say, ‘Was that a good thing that I left twice?'”

“I mean most of the kids we check in with that leave our place, they always say they regretted it. Well, if you leave a place twice, what did you actually accomplish? And that’s probably the toughest thing for me is that.”

The transfer portal allows players to come and go from programs in an unprecedented way, as some student-athletes make stops at two to three different programs before their college careers are all said and done. And given their ages, impulsive decisions that could come with regret regarding their athletic and academic futures are likely understated in the current conversations surrounding college athletics.

NIL now works hand in hand with the transfer portal, becoming a crucial piece in recruiting. But the two together have begun to spark a culture in college football that results in fewer players sticking it out with one program according to Smart.

“I think NIL in it of itself is a long time coming and players deserve a piece of this and we want that. But we also want them and everybody to understand that it’s okay to grind it out where you are, to fight through tough times,” Smart added.

“I mean we have example after example at our place of people who didn’t start, and they were frustrated. In the third year they started, and in their fourth year, they were top three-round draft pick. That’s a pretty good career, I think that’s good,” Smart said. “And if players can make money while they do that off their name, image, and likeness that’s a good thing.”

There’s no doubt that NIL and the transfer portal are not perfect and are still in the midst of the early stages. But hopefully, the repercussions of its infancy are not immensely detrimental to the student-athletes as themselves, coaches, and college football’s decision-makers look to continue navigating through uncharted waters.