Though often times forgotten by college football fans, Kirby Smart was once employed by the LSU Tigers. Now, as the school in Baton Rouge moved on from Brian Kelly, the Georgia Bulldogs head coach told a story from his time in the Bayou State.
Smart has enough on his plate in Georgia to be worrying about LSU. However, the 49-year-old delivered a sincere statement about the Tigers, as Kelly was fired after a 5-3 (2-3 SEC) start to the 2025 NCAA season.
“It’s the world we live in. There’s so much built around the Playoffs, everything’s boom or bust. I don’t know enough about this situation, but I know there are high expectations,” Smart said during his weekly press conference per Michael W. Bratton.
“I coached at LSU, guy once told me, ‘That office you are in. That’s not your office. You are borrowing it’. I knew right then, if you didn’t win, you wouldn’t be there long.”
Smart’s time with LSU
Smart coached at Louisiana State University during the 2004 NCAA season, serving as defensive backs coach under head coach Nick Saban. It didn’t take long before several users all over social media guessed it was Saban who told Smart the phrase he’s now reminisced after Kelly’s firing.
During his lone year in Baton Rouge, Smart enjoyed a great season with the Tigers. LSU finished the 2004 college football regular season with a 9-2 record. However, the school in the Creole State fell in the Capital One Bowl to the No. 11 Iowa Hawkeyes.
Eyes on the prize
While Smart reminisced about his time with the Tigers, his Dawgs must get back to work as they come off a bye week in the NCAA. Up next, the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs (6-1, 4-1 in league play) will take on the Florida Gators at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville.
To close out the 2025 season, Georgia will face the following opponents in college football: the Mississippi State Bulldogs (on the road), Texas Longhorns (at home), Charlotte 49ers (home), and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (Mercedes-Benz Stadium).