Champ Bailey Reveals a Compelling Story About Kirby Smart as Teammates at Georgia

Champ Bailey revealed a compelling story about Kirby Smart when they were teammates at Georgia.

The Georgia Bulldogs have had some legendary players filter through the football program in its history. Their head football coach, Kirby Smart, has become one of them and Smart played with another during his time in Athens as Champ Bailey and Smart played with one another from 1996-1998.

In an interview with 680 The Fan, Bailey went on to tell a story from his playing days at Georgia and how Smart has always been an intense coach, even before he stopped playing the game.

"When we played, [Smart] was always that guy in the meeting just telling us how much we are doing wrong, telling us what to do, you know from a coverage standpoint," Bailey said. "You know he was my safety. So as a corner, we communicate with the safeties more than anybody. Whether it's getting us lined up right, anticipating, movement or whatever it may be he was that guy that got us lined up. So when we are in meetings, I mean he was, to be frank, he was an a--hole. I'm sorry but that's who he was. So you can see a little bit of that on the sidelines. I don't know if y'all pay attention to him but he is a little much."

Bailey went on to say that Smart's intensity and bluntness comes from a good place, and that his players recognize that.

"But when you really peel back what he is saying and what he is doing and where he is coming from, the dude just loves football," Bailey continued. "He loves to win. So you can't frown upon that. I don't care how he delivers the message. You just know where it's coming from and I mean he's a winner..... Not everybody is built for Kirby. That's why they recruit the way they do. They get certain players that just want to play ball and be great at it. That's why most of the guys that leave, they go be successful pros because the main thing for them is being a great football player so they want that knowledge, they welcome that coaching."

Smart has certainly shown how intense he can be as a coach both during practice and on game days. Sometimes it may come across as a bit much but it also is one of the many reasons why he is the coach he has become. It comes from loving the game of football.