Kirby Smart Talks About Georgia Football Uniforms: One Liked, One Disliked
Kirby Smart usually doesn’t spend much time discussing the intricacies of Georgia football uniforms, but he made an exception this week. Smart revealed one of his favorite combinations of UGA uniforms as he appeared on what’s known as “Radio Row” at the SEC Media Day at the Grand Hyatt in downtown Nashville.
Appearing on Atlanta’s 680 The Fan alongside Chuck Oliver, Smart delved into the topic of the 2020 retro uniforms worn by Georgia on Tuesday.
“You might be referring to the Arkansas Classics in the Covid year, where we did the reverse 40 years,” Smart said as Oliver began the uniform discussion. “I don’t know if we’ll wear those uniforms again or not, but that was a tough game, a game that Stetson (Bennett) got in.”
Indeed, Bennett saved the day against the Razorbacks in the 2020 season opener, coming in to replace starter D’Wan Mathis in the second half. The Bulldogs were leading 7-5 at halftime, but Bennett started everything in the second half, leading to a 37-10 victory, showcasing the talents he would demonstrate over the next three seasons, completing 20 of 29 passes for 211 yards, including 2 touchdown passes.
It became a memorable moment for Georgia, and it turns out the head coach approves of that look.
“I like that combination as well,” Smart said, referring to the return of Georgia’s 1980 national championship football team’s uniforms, coached by the legendary College Football Hall of Famer Vince Dooley. “It’s an homage to them, that’s why we do it, I think to honor the 40 years.”
“That uniform is still in existence, it’s still here. I’ve never cared much about uniforms. I’ll say this, when recruits come in and want to wear all kinds of different uniforms, that’s truly one of my favorite uniforms, red pants, white stripes, and a white shirt.”
Smart went on to reveal to DawgNation right after that there was a uniform combination he wore in a Florida game that he didn’t like – red jerseys and black pants, describing them as “ugly”.
Former Georgia coach Jim Donnan remembered some players requesting to wear black pants with red jerseys in the 1998 game against Florida.
Donnan said, “I can understand why Kirby doesn’t like them, I really don’t either. We didn’t have a good game in them.”
Donnan explained the origin of this idea came from the Bulldogs’ 33-6 victory over Wisconsin in the 1997 Outback Bowl when Georgia wore black pants with white jerseys.
“It was a psychological thing, because we warmed up in regular pants and then put the black pants on before the game, and the kids went crazy. We talked about it all year, about how we would wear black pants again in 1998.”
Safely put, Georgia might never wear black pants with red jerseys as long as Smart is the head coach.
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