Turbulent Georgia football offseason makes Kirby Smart’s favorite time of year the most important

By Mike Griffith, DawgNation

March 14, 2023 at 10:19 am EDT

Kirby Smart (UGA Sports Comm) Georgia head coach Kirby Smart speaks at the 2022 SEC media days at the College Football Hall of Fame, Atlanta Georgia , July 20, 2022. (Jimmie Mitchell/SEC) (Jimmie Miitchell)

By Mike Griffith, DawgNation

March 14, 2023 at 10:19 am EDT

ATHENS —The “G” on the helmet remains the same, but the next time Georgia football takes the field it will have a new identity.

Coach Kirby Smart has called the spring football session his favorite time of year as he gets extended time to help build and shape the Bulldogs into the best version of themselves.

“Spring practice is, ‘let’s figure out who we are,’ " Smart said entering last spring. “I like the fact that you have one practice and you have a day off to teach, and then you have another practice and you have another day off to teach.”

Last year’s team proved a fast study, pulling off arguably the most impressive rebuild in college football history by going 15-0 and winning another national championship after losing an NFL-record 15 players in the NFL Draft.