"He coaches the coaches hard": Fran Brown reveals Kirby Smart's insane work ethic behind the scenes that make Georgia unstoppable

Kirby Smart has established himself as one of the finest coaches in college football since he was hired by Georgia in 2016. He has compiled a 105-19 overall record, including 62-11 in Southeastern Conference play, across nine seasons. Smart has led the Bulldogs to two national titles.

Syracuse coach Fran Brown worked under Smart for two seasons as a defensive backs coach. On Thursday, Brown spilled the beans on Smart's work ethic.

"Every day counts, like, every day, coach Smart treated every day like that was the most important day, and don't look forward to nothing else," Brown said (22:49), via "Next Up with Adam Breneman." "And that's kind of like how I go, but man, I don't know a practice that he didn't take serious.

"Like, I don't know a walk that didn't count. Like, I mean, he had this crazy way, I just couldn't stop hearing my name with a microphone. Like, we on the microphone, like, 'Fran, what the f**k are they doing man?' That's all you heard all day."

Brown added how intense Kirby Smart was.

"Like, dang, and I went in there knowing, because he would tell me, 'I don't need you to be soft if I'm coming at you,' I'm like, 'Coach, I don't care what you say to me, like growing up, you know how many times my mom called me a dumb motherf***er? I thought that was my name.' So I was like, 'Coach, I'm good.'

"Because he coaches the coaches hard. He coaches the coaches and he's intense about it. And he coaches you to see how much your players want to play for you, or where they'll be at, to see why you're building those relationships and things that you're doing, and you're just held accountable all the time."

Brown was hired as Georgia's defensive backs coach in February 2022. He was part of Smart's coaching staff when the Bulldogs won the national title in 2023.

In November 2023, Syracuse hired Brown as its coach, leading the program to a 10-3 (5-2 ACC) record in his first year.

Kirby Smart has not named Georgia's QB1 for 2025 season

NCAA Football: Georgia Bulldogs HC Kirby Smart - Source: Imagn

Kirby Smart has not confirmed who Georgia's QB1 would be for the 2025 season. Gunner Stockton and Ryan Puglisi are likely to compete for the starting role this offseason.

The Bulldogs will need to find a suitable successor to Carson Beck, who transferred to Miami in January.

Georgia reached the College Football Playoff last season, but lost to Notre Dame in the quarterfinals.