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Kirby Smart still has vision for expanded Georgia football footprint

On3 imageby:Wes Blankenship•08/26/22
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Mackenzie Miles/UGA Sports Communications

Kirby Smart typically projects a staunch air of realism when he speaks. Like his mentor, Nick Saban, he doesn’t like to speak in hypotheticals.

But sometimes, a guy’s gotta dream.

And the Georgia football head coach still has a vision for where his program can go. Both in the metaphorical, accomplishment-driven sense (he really wants to end Georgia’s five-year SEC Championship drought)…

… and in a literal, land expansion sense.

If Kirby Smart has his way, Georgia’s football facility footprint will continue its crawl across the land near Lumpkin Street.

This time, he wants more space for practice.

Yes, even with the House of Payne. Yes, even with two outdoor football fields.

If you know what that little parcel of land looks like, you may be wondering, ‘Where in the heck are they going to go now?’

My ears perked up as I drove myself and my daughter home from an errand last night

She wanted to listen to Wheels on the Bus, but I had to get some work done, unfortunately.

“Sorry babe. Gotta listen to the Bulldogs’ head coach, Kirby Smart, on ‘Bulldogs Live,‘” I said.

By now, she’s learned that our household listens to a lot of ‘Coach Kirby.’

She wants to be a Bulldog for Halloween.

I’m nothing if not an influencer.

When I heard Smart tell Georgia Bulldogs radio announcer Scott Howard that he still has visions for how the facilities can grow – even after Georgia’s most recent $80-million project – I can’t say it surprised me.

“One of the toughest [facility-related issues] for us here is the field space,” Smart said.

“We’re not able to operate on side-by-side fields. Right now we’re the only team in the SEC that has that. It makes it tough when you try to transition and practice outside.”

What does ‘side-by-side’ football practice fields entail?

Well, it means that the Spec Towns track and field facilities will need to take a hike someplace else. Speculatively, there’s room down Milledge, near the soccer facilities.

Track and Field head coach Caryl Smith-Gilbert appears to be a good sport about any potential relocation projects, per the Athens Banner-Herald’s Marc Weiszer.

Athletics Director Josh Brooks has the entire athletic program hummin’ along.

But everyone knows that football is the money maker around here.

And the wheels on this bus continue to go round and round, all through the town of the defending 2021 National Football champions.

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