Kirby Smart wants to see how quarterbacks handle havoc in Georgia spring game: 'We're going to come after 'em'

All eyes will be on the quarterbacks at the Georgia spring game this afternoon. And right before the start, head coach Kirby Smart spoke with ESPN’s Alyssa Lang about what he wants to see.

Smart said the plan is to let the quarterbacks play and throw the ball around a bit. And in turn, he’s also going to have defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann dial up the defense.

“Let ’em play. We want to find out what they can do in tough situations so we’re going to bring pressures at ’em, we’re going to come after ’em. We’re going to let those guys play and we’re going to throw it around a little bit,” Smart said.

Three quarterbacks — Brock Vandagriff, Carson Beck and Gunner Stockton — are in an open competition for the Georgia quarterback job. Vandagriff took the first offensive series of the spring game and led a quick touchdown drive, with a long strike to Brock Bowers highlighting the drive.

Lang inquired about the defense, which for the second-straight year is replacing a cadre of players off to the NFL Draft. Smart is hoping to see them fly around and create some chaos to challenge the quarterbacks.

“Well you’re always looking for havoc and turnovers, no explosives. But I want to see them run to the ball, play with a little bit of passion and energy,” Smart said.

As for the day itself and being back playing in front of home fans in Athens? Smart was fired up.

“It’s awesome. It’s a great day, great atmosphere, great weather. Should be a little hot, I like it!” Smart said.

Smart recently shared what he’s watching for in his quarterbacks as the competition progresses. From his perspective, avoiding mistakes and “eliminating losing the game” is key.

“You’ve got to make good decisions. Use your rules. Take your coaching. And then not make mistakes. That’s ultimately what a quarterback does. It’s not just making plays, it’s not making mistakes. And eliminating losing the game is the first objective,” Smart said on 680TheFan in Athens.

Within the structure of the offense, Smart is most concerned with how well the quarterbacks are processing.

The quarterback who can best handle taking in the information of the offensive play call, what the defense is showing, and then mix in whatever rules and checks that are embedded in the offense is the one that will get Georgia where it needs to go.

Yeah, it’s an accumulation of processing information and making decisions. Not necessarily just growth, it’s decision making. Did you make the right decision on this play? Did you get us in the right protection? Did you put your eyes in the right place? Did you process the information that you got? Both what coach [Mike] Bobo gave and then also what coach [Glenn] Schumann gave you because he’s giving you a defense, so you’ve got to process a lot of information,” Smart said.