Smart not afraid to call out players’ performance

Kirby Smart hasn’t shied away from publicly calling out his players.

Time and again, the Georgia head coach has offered blunt responses to specific questions on how an individual is performing behind closed doors. And no one has been immune to whatever his strategy with words could be considered – tough love, constructive criticism or motivation.

For instance, Smart was asked about the progress of freshman defensive tackle Julian Rochester, whose Week 1 status is still up in the air due to an arrest for possessing a BB gun on campus and criminal damage to property.

After complimenting Rochester’s response since his internal punishment, Smart offered a qualifier.

"He’s got to play with more consistency and effort, because not every day does he give the effort he needs to give," Smart said.

Another player who received the ire of Smart was freshman offensive lineman Ben Cleveland. A reporter asked about Cleveland’s development, to which Smart expressed disappointment over.

"Ben’s got to get better. I expect more out of Ben," Smart said. "Ben’s a guy who was out here in the spring. He got some practice in the spring. Now he’s here in the fall, I expect Ben to pick things up and play with more consistency. My expectations for Ben are to play with toughness and to play really hard. We don’t always get that out of him and he’s got to improve that."

It hasn’t been all doom and gloom in this department.

During the preseason, Smart did single out freshman defensive linemen Michail Carter, Tyler Clark and David Marshall, saying they’ve out-done the veterans with their effort.

Smart also complimented freshman cornerback Tyrique McGhee by saying he’s one of the "toughest" first-year players he’s been around, especially since he’s playing through an injury.

He’s complimented freshman running backs Elijah Holyfield and Brian Herrien, and recently went out of his way to praise offensive tackle Tyler Catalina, although he added he’s not ready to name a starting left tackle yet.

Then again, just about every freshman has received a verbal pat on the back.

When asked about players with expected to play a significant role, the responses have usually included a statement about needed improvement.

For instance, sophomore receiver Terry Godwin has been considered the top passing option on the roster.

By the way Smart describes it, Godwin’s anything but.

"To be honest, I’ve seen Terry up and down," Smart said. "I know the athlete Terry can be but Terry needs to get a little more consistency. I tell him that every day. He has to block with the same vigor he runs a route with. He has to practice starts and take-offs and all the little fundamentals just as hard when he’s getting the ball. That’s the part Terry’s gotta do."

Smart was similarly critical of his three scholarship quarterbacks – Greyson Lambert, Brice Ramsey and Jacob Eason – following last Saturday’s scrimmage.

Meeting with reporters earlier in the week, Smart was asked if there was anything else he could decipher after watching the practice film.

"I kept thinking I’d be able to come back and tell y’all more," Smart said. "There were still a couple of bone-headed decisions. That’s frustrating. It really didn’t lead us in any more direction with where we’re going."

Smart equally criticized sophomore defensive tackle Trent Thompson, who figures to be one of Georgia’s better defensive linemen up front.

"Well, I saw good and bad," Smart said. "I told Trent he’s got to improve his body language. Sometimes he looks like he’s not into it. But if you light a little fire under him, he makes some plays."

Through the media, Smart has sent messages to plenty of players. He won’t sugarcoat poor performances in practice and won’t hide from questions about players he’d like to see better effort out of.

But as outside linebacker Davin Bellamy said, the players have to be able to take a coach who’s going to be brutally honest at times.

"He just shoots it forward," Bellamy said. "You have no choice but to love a coach who’s going to keep it real with you."

This story was originally published August 18, 2016 at 7:08 PM with the headline "Smart not afraid to call out players’ performance."