Kirby Smart emphasizes need for consistency from transfer safeties in Spring practice

As Georgia gears up for another run at the College Football Playoff, one of the biggest storylines out of Athens this spring is how the Bulldogs will replace the experience and leadership lost in the secondary, particularly at safety.

With Malaki Starks and Dan Jackson both preparing for the NFL Draft after multiple years anchoring the back end of Georgia’s defense, head coach Kirby Smart isn’t mincing words about the steep challenge ahead for newcomers like Jaden Harris and Adrian Maddox.

Smart was candid in his assessment when asked about what he’s seen from the transfer safeties so far in spring practice.

“Flashes. But flashes don’t win games, consistency does,” Smart said. “We’re looking for some more consistency out of those positions. I mean, y’all tell me how many snaps we lost. I don’t know, 2,000? I mean we probably took a thousand snaps last year on defense, and if we took a thousand snaps, Malaki and Dan took a thousand each—that’s 2,000. I mean I know KJ [Bolden] played a good bit, but there’s a lot of snaps missing out there. These guys are coming into a defensive system that requires heavy communication. And we’re not going to let the offense dictate to us, so we have a lot of things we do to create an advantage when an offense does something, and you gotta be able to communicate to do that.”

It’s a reminder that while talent is essential, mastering Georgia’s defensive scheme demands more than just athleticism. Harris and Maddox, both promising additions from the portal, are competing in a system that thrives on precision and cohesion. With a playbook built around complex adjustments and disguise, communication is key. Right now, system veterans KJ Bolden, Joenel Aguero, and JaCorey Thomas are all ahead of Harris and Maddox in terms of having command of the defense and being able to articulate it.

Though the potential is there, Smart is challenging his new safeties to take the next step toward consistency, leadership, and dependability. That development can’t come soon enough for a defense that has been the backbone of Georgia’s championship runs.