Georgia officially names Bama's Kirby Smart new head coach
ATLANTA (AP) Georgia hired Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart as its new head coach on Sunday, hoping he can accomplish what been routine for the Crimson Tide but eluded Mark Richt during his 15 years between the hedges:
Win a national championship.
Smart was formally approved as Richt's successor during a meeting by the Georgia athletic association executive committee. Several media outlets reported that Smart would be the choice just days after Georgia announced it was parting ways with Richt, who won two Southeastern Conference titles and nearly 75 percent of his games in Athens but fell out of favor with many top boosters because of a perception that his team's underachieved.
Richt has since taken a job as Miami's coach - like Smart, returning to his alma mater.
Smart played at Georgia in the 1990s and has been Nick Saban's defensive coordinator at Alabama since 2008. The new coach turns 40 on Dec. 23 and was widely regarded as one of the top assistants in the country.
When Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity decided to make a change, it was clear that Smart was his top choice all along.
Smart is expected to remain at Alabama through the College Football Playoff, though Saban would surely carve out time for him to handle some of his new duties at Georgia, such as recruiting and putting together a staff.
Bryan McClendon, who was Richt's assistant head coach and also works with the receivers, will serve as Georgia's interim head coach during the bowl game. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt, as well as all other assistant coaches, are also sticking with the Bulldogs at least through the bowl, to be announced later Sunday.
No. 2 Alabama won its second straight SEC title on Saturday night in Atlanta, beating Florida 29-15. The Tide, which won three national titles the last six years, was selected to the four-team playoff field and will meet Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl semifinal on New Year's Eve.
The winner of that game will play in the national championship game on Jan. 11, which means Smart could be more than a month away from taking over full-time as Georgia's coach.
Smart headed straight to Athens after the SEC championship game and was interviewed Sunday morning by university President Jere Morehead, the final step before the athletic association ratified McGarity's choice.
The new coach will be formally introduced at a news conference in Athens on Monday.
''It was critical to identify a person who would focus on a specific, defined process of developing championship football teams on and off the playing field,'' McGarity said in a statement. ''Someone who understands the true meaning of a student-athlete by actually experiencing it himself. Someone who competed at the highest levels on the playing field, was mentored by some of the very best in the game, and understood the specific ingredients necessary to excel at the highest levels of college athletics.''
Smart played defensive back at Georgia and finished his career with 13 interceptions, the fourth-most in school history. He led the Bulldogs with six picks in 1997 and five in 1998, graduating with a degree in finance. He added a master's degree from Florida State in 2003.
''It's an honor and privilege to return home to the University of Georgia and my home state,'' Smart said. ''I'm deeply appreciative of the faith President Morehead, Greg McGarity, and the athletic board executive committee have demonstrated in asking me to lead one of the truly great college football programs in the country.''
Smart agreed to a six-year contract that will pay him at least $3.75 million a year, with a base salary of $400,000 and $3.35 million from apparel deals, television and radio appearances, and other endorsements.
He also could earn performance bonuses of up to $1.6 million if the Bulldogs win a national championship. In addition, the deal includes such perks as $1,800 a month to purchase or lease up to two cars and up to $5,000 a year to cover insurance on the vehicles. If Smart took another job, he would owe the university anywhere from the full value of his deal in the first year to just the current base salary should he depart in Year 6.
In his statement, Smart made a special point to mention Saban, who choked up a bit when talking about his coordinator's impending departure before the SEC championship game.
''I have been fortunate to spend 11 seasons with him as my mentor and have learned a tremendous amount from him as a coach and teacher,'' Smart said. ''I'm honored and excited for the opportunity at Georgia and promise high energy, effort every day, and hard work every minute on the part of all our coaches, staff and student-athletes.''
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Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/paul-newberry .
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AP College Football website: www.collegefootball.ap.org
