Uploaded December 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Georgia head football coach Kirby Smart is the 2022 Terry College Alumni Awards & Gala Honorary Co-Chair. In January, he led his alma mater to a victory in the College Football Playoff National Championship, Georgia’s first football championship since 1980.
A former Bulldog assistant coach and Alabama defensive coordinator, Smart took over the Bulldog program in 2016 to stellar results. His teams are constantly in the national championship hunt, won the SEC Championship 2017, and appeared in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game that same season. During his time at Georgia, he has been named SEC Coach of the Year twice as well as national and regional coach of the year, and his recruiting classes have ranked consistently in the top three nationally.
He came to Georgia from Alabama, where during his nine-year tenure the Crimson Tide won three BCS National Championships, one College Football Playoff national title, and was ranked in the nation’s final top 10 eight years in a row. He was named the 2012 AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year and the 2009 Broyles Award winner as college football’s top assistant coach. Before joining Alabama, Smart spent the 2006 season as safeties coach with the NFL’s Miami Dolphins and six years on the collegiate level as an assistant coach for Georgia, LSU, Florida State and Valdosta State.
As a player, Smart was a four-year letterman at defensive back, where he was a First-Team All-SEC pick as a senior. He finished his career with 13 interceptions, a mark that still ranks sixth in UGA annals. A four-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll, Smart received his bachelor’s degree in finance from Georgia in 1998 and his master’s in physical education from Florida State in 2003.
Georgia head football coach Kirby Smart is the 2022 Terry College Alumni Awards & Gala Honorary Co-Chair. In January, he led his alma mater to a victory in the College Football Playoff National Championship, Georgia’s first football championship since 1980.
A former Bulldog assistant coach and Alabama defensive coordinator, Smart took over the Bulldog program in 2016 to stellar results. His teams are constantly in the national championship hunt, won the SEC Championship 2017, and appeared in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game that same season. During his time at Georgia, he has been named SEC Coach of the Year twice as well as national and regional coach of the year, and his recruiting classes have ranked consistently in the top three nationally.
He came to Georgia from Alabama, where during his nine-year tenure the Crimson Tide won three BCS National Championships, one College Football Playoff national title, and was ranked in the nation’s final top 10 eight years in a row. He was named the 2012 AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year and the 2009 Broyles Award winner as college football’s top assistant coach. Before joining Alabama, Smart spent the 2006 season as safeties coach with the NFL’s Miami Dolphins and six years on the collegiate level as an assistant coach for Georgia, LSU, Florida State and Valdosta State.
As a player, Smart was a four-year letterman at defensive back, where he was a First-Team All-SEC pick as a senior. He finished his career with 13 interceptions, a mark that still ranks sixth in UGA annals. A four-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll, Smart received his bachelor’s degree in finance from Georgia in 1998 and his master’s in physical education from Florida State in 2003.
