It’s not a secret that Kirby Smart and Georgia Bulldogs had a lackluster season. However, still many would argue that it’s simply not true, and Georgia did well with their standards. But it’s not the Georgia team that won the national championship 3 years ago and had almost 15 players selected in the NFL draft. And we can argue all day whether Kirby Smart is doing well. There’s one area we all will agree he has been a bit clumsy. So what’s that exactly?

Well, the Bulldogs, like other teams, are preparing for the postseason antics. That will see players being retained, the transfer portal being overused, and coaches getting on that recruitment bandwagon. But it seems Kirby Smart has failed to capitalize on one crucial aspect of it. And, i.e. keeping his best players around.

If Branden Gall of 440 Sports is to be believed, Georgia Bulldogs is doing just that. “You supplement through the portal, and then you pay your veterans to stick around, and I think that’s what Texas is going to try to do this year. Georgia decided not to with Carson Beck. They said no, we’re not going to pay that guy to stay around. That’s a choice, so um, we’ll see“.  For context the senior QB Carson Beck, who was around for 4 years with Georgia and had been the starter for the past 2 seasons. He recently decided to transfer to the Miami Hurricanes. So, will his departure change anything?

Carson Beck had left with an average season on his back. His stats may look decent, with 64% pass completions and 3,485 yards gained in total. But we can’t forget his iffy form throughout the season. Interceptions, bad plays- however, it didn’t help Beck that the WR room was not as talented as some other programs. Carson still had one year on cards to play at the college level before going into the draft. But why did Georgia gamble on not retaining him?

The answer may not be as straightforward as it may look. On the surface, it will look like Georgia has another potentially good quarterback in Gunner Stockton, who is a sophomore, and because of that, maybe Georgia will cope. But that’s still a gamble, and it’s a big one. Because, for one, we still haven’t seen the best of Stockton yet. Yes, he did have some good performances against the likes of Notre Dame and Texas Longhorns, but the boy still needs a lot to prove. And that’s putting a bit much pressure on a Quarterback who hasn’t been a regular till now. Well, who knows, he may well prove all of us wrong.

Moving on, on the other front, it seems Texas Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian is playing his cards right at the moment, and Kirby could benefit from a bit of inspiration. For starters, Texas had a very good season this year, even in the Buckeyes playoff game where they lost, they fought back as hard as they could. Furthermore, post-season, their retentions and transfers are well thought out. Arch Manning, the well-touted playcalling prodigy, has been retained by the Longhorns. And, with the potential departure of Quinn Evers for the NFL Draft, it is very well expected that Manning will be having the reins now.

What do transfer and recruitment for Longhorns and Bulldogs look like?

It seems Steve Sarkisian is having a busy postseason. It is widely reported that the Bulldogs head coach is gearing up for elite recruitment for the 2026 class. Amongst the potential prospects is the runningback KJ Edwards, who is ranked 3rd ranked player in Texas by On3. But how are things looking at Kirby Smart’s camp?

Well, Kirby Smart is in a bit of a self-created conundrum right now with players leaving his camp left, right, and centre. For context, almost 36 players in Georgia have entered the transfer portal since last December, with major names like Rara Thomas (WR) and Michael Jackson III (WR). With several key players leaving, it will seem very logical that Kirby Smart should plan for the reinforcements as soon as possible.