Smart explained Pope’s, um, not smart actions, by starting with “What an idiot” and then explaining it as a friend of Pope who the player had not seen in a long time.
Still…
âWhat an idiotâ
Kirby Smart on the viral video of UGA player Jake Pope âcelebratingâ with a friend following the Ole Miss game on the field pic.twitter.com/JDRkCy4T7M
âI wanted to address the videos that have been put out after the Ole Miss game,â Pope posted on Twitter. âFirst and foremost I wanted to say sorry for the way it was taken out of perspective and has caused distractions/commotion for my teammates and coaches. This is not representative of who I am in any way. In no way, shape or form would I ever celebrate a loss in this program and anyone who knows me well knows that.
Georgia’s College Football Playoff hopes took a major hit on Saturday against Ole Miss as the Bulldogs dropped their second game of the season, putting them awfully close to “First Team Out” territory. So, with that in mind, you would expect every Georgia player to be demoralized as Ole Miss fans stormed the field at VaughtâHemingway Stadium.
Well, for one Georgia player, that wasn’t exactly the case.
Video hit social media after the game that showed Georgia safety Jake Pope jumping up and down in celebration while surrounded by Ole Miss fans. It was something you’d never expect to see from a college football player — no matter the team.
On Monday, head coach Kirby Smart was asked about the video, and he said that Pope was embarrassed, explaining it as Pope seeing his friends.
âWhat an idiotâ
Kirby Smart on the viral video of UGA player Jake Pope âcelebratingâ with a friend following the Ole Miss game on the field pic.twitter.com/JDRkCy4T7M
“What an idiot. What — I mean, just stupid. I didn’t see it until today, but he’s embarrassed by it, he’s upset about it. And that’s obviously a childhood friend of his … hadn’t seen him in forever. It’s not real smart, but to be honest with you, I don’t have time to waste energy on that.”
Pope learned the hard way that you kind of stand out in a crowd while wearing an opposing team’s uniform.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart did not mince words when he found out one of his players celebrated with an Ole Miss fan after Georgia’s loss
Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart had harsh words for Georgia safety Jake Pope, who celebrated with a childhood friend after Georgia lost to Ole Miss.
Pope, who transferred to Georgia from Alabama, primarily plays special teams. Pope has appeared in just three games this season and has not recorded any statistics.
âWhat an idiot. Just stupid,” Smart said on the video of Pope celebrating with an Ole Miss fan. “I didnât see it until today. Heâs embarrassed about it. Heâs upset about it. Thatâs obviously a childhood friend of his. They grew up and played with at Buford. Hadn’t seen him in forever. Just not real smart.”
âBut to be honest with I donât have time to waste energy on that,” continued Smart. “You know what Iâm saying. My focus is on Tennessee. Iâm not real worried on that.â
“I thought Carson played good,” said Kirby Smart after Georgia’s road loss to Ole Miss
Georgia Bulldogs senior quarterback Carson Beck took care of the ball better in Georgia’s 28-10 road loss to Ole Miss, but that was about it. Beck completed 20 of 31 passes for 186 yards and threw one interception, which was tipped. Beck was sacked five times and fumbled twice (one lost fumble) in Georgia’s rough 28-10 road loss to Ole Miss.
Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart thinks Carson Beck played pretty well given the circumstances. The Georgia offense was not explosive against Ole Miss and did not test the Rebels deep down the field often.
“I thought he came out gunning and throwing,” said Smart. “Carson (Beck) had his best week of practice. I thought Carson did some good things. He threw some play-action strikes. He stepped up and made some great third-down plays.”
Beck and Georgia moved the ball alright, but turnovers haunted Georgia once again. Beck did not receive much support as running back Nate Frazier fumbled twice and the UGA offensive line struggled.
“I thought Carson (Beck) played good, guys,” said Smart. “We put a lot on him, and heâs playing on the road with crowd noise. But man, he stands in that pocket and converted some third downs and made some really nice plays. I thought he threw the ball away a couple times tonight. It was really good. So Iâm not here to be critical of him.”
Georgia needs the best version of Carson Beck if UGA is going to beat Tennessee on Saturday.
Kirby Smart gives Ole Miss credit for beating Georgia and details what is next for UGA
The Georgia Bulldogs are 7-2 after losing to the Ole Miss Rebels, 28-10. Georgia missed several opportunities against Ole Miss, but was unable to get much going offensively.
What did Georgia coach Kirby Smart say after UGA’s loss to Ole Miss?
“A lot of credit to Ole Miss, great atmosphere,” Kirby Smart said. “They played a really good game, I thought Lane (Kiffin) had his team ready to play. We obviously struggled in a lot of areas. We had miscues, mistakes, penalties, things that are really hard to overcome, especially when you play a really good football team.”
Georgia finished the day with a few key dropped passes and three turnovers, including two fumbles. The Bulldogs beat themselves at times, but Ole Miss was clearly the better team.
“I told our team coming into this week, I felt like theyâre probably the most talented team that we have played,” said Smart. Georgia’s loss to Ole Miss is the Bulldogs’ first loss to a team other than Alabama since 2020.
“They outplayed us tonight, outcoached us, and did a great job,” said Smart. Georgia suffered its largest defeat since the 2019 SEC championship game against LSU.
Ole Miss outrushed Georgia, 134-59, and recorded five sacks, which is the most Georgia has allowed all season. Georgia’s offensive line is dealing with several injuries, and it hurt the Bulldogs against Ole Miss.
“When you get in a mode of I have to throw the ball, you can get in trouble in this league, especially on the road. And we had some drives there where we had to throw the ball. And we struggled to block Princely (Umanmielen) in obvious passing situations,” said Smart.
What’s next for Georgia?
“Itâs on to the next,” Smart told his team after the game. “I mean, welcome to the SEC, baby. … Weâve got a big game next week. Weâve got to go out, and weâve got to find a way to execute at a higher level.”
Why Georgia will beat a stacked Ole Miss team in a top 25 matchup this Saturday
The Georgia Bulldogs are slight road favorites against the No. 16 Ole Miss Rebels in Oxford, Mississippi. In this game, it will take all three phases for Georgia to pull out a victory.
Three reasons the Georgia Bulldogs will beat Ole Miss
ResiliencyÂ
Georgia has faced many road challenges this season. Early in the season Georgia played unranked Kentucky and was hit with haymakers all game. UGA struggled offensively, gaining only 262 total yards, but found a way to win.
Two weeks later, the Bulldogs went into Bryant-Denny Stadium against No. 11 Alabama and had their worst start in the Kirby Smart era. They fell behind 28-0 in the first quarter. Carson Beck showed his elite quarterback play. He threw for 339 yards and three touchdowns in the second half before losing.
The third test was when they went into Austin, Texas, where it was Georgia vs. The World. No. 5 Texas was called the new “sheriff” in the SEC by ESPN analyst Desmond Howard. Georgia’s defense honed in and created havoc in the backfield with seven sacks. Running back Trevor Etienne carried the load for three touchdowns. UGA overcame a controversial call, too.
In these three games, Georgia had its backs against the wall and responded with big performances. UGA knows it has a big challenge against Ole Miss, but that’s when the Dawgs have played their best this season.
Kirby Smart
John David Mercer-Imagn Images
Kirby Smart is the best coach in college football. Smart is an impressive 27-12 against ranked teams since he began coaching Georgia in 2016.
Smart has led Georgia back into the nation’s elite, and the Bulldogs are among the nation’s best over the past four years. Smart is arguably the best coach at preparation for his opponent now that Nick Saban has left college football. Smart has the coaching edge over Lane Kiffin.
Battle of the Trenches
Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images
The battle of the trenches is the most important matchup in this game. Ole Miss’ defensive line has sacked opposing quarterbacks 42 times, which is the best in the nation. Walter Nolen and Princely Umanmielen have revamped this Ole Miss defense to be among one of the best defensive line groups in America.
Luckily, the Bulldogs had guard Tate Ratledge back for the Florida game. Georgia’s offensive line will neutralize this Rebels’ defensive line to help create running lanes for the running backs and create time in the pocket for Carson Beck.
This Georgia defensive line has momentum and has totaled nine sacks in the past two games. It has far more NFL draft talent than Ole Miss’ offensive front.
Why Georgia football faces their biggest challenge defensively of the season against Ole Miss
The Ole Miss Rebels’ offense will be a significant challenge for the Georgia Bulldogs’ defense. This matchup for Georgia against Ole Miss has elements that the Bulldog defense have not seen this season. UGA has not seen an offense this explosive.
Here are three reasons why this offense can cause headaches for this Bulldog team.
Jaxson Dart
Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart poses a threat that the Bulldogs have not seen all season. Dart leads the nation with 3,210 passing yards. Dart still has the ability to leave the pocket and create a positive gain with his legs. Head coach Kirby Smart knows what is in front of his defense this Saturday.
“He’s playing at a really high level. He sees things well. I think he, Lane (Kiffin) and the offensive staff are further along. They know what they’re looking for. They know when you get in something, what beats that, and they know how to attack it. He’s just a proven winner, and he’s a fierce competitor. He’s hard to stop,” Smart said.
Dart’s elite play has propelled the Ole Miss passing offense to the top of the nation and Rebels have the second-best total offense at 555 yards per game. Much of that success is thanks to Dart, whose contributions have been crucial. If the Bulldogs hope to walk away with a win, then theyâll need to contain Dart and slow down the Rebels’ high-powered offense in Oxford this Saturday.
Receiver Core
Jordan Watkins #11 of the Ole Miss Rebels had a historic game against the Arkansas Razorbacks. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
Ole Miss receiver Tre Harris leads the charge for the Rebels with 987 yards, ranking third in the nation and first in the SEC. Harris is questionable to play with an injury.
Receiver Jordan Watkins stepped up in a big way last week against Arkansas, racking up 250 yards and scoring five touchdowns. Adding to the firepower, Antwane âJuiceâ Wells brings familiarity with Georgia from his time at South Carolina. This trio will challenge the UGA secondary all game long.
“They’ve got several draft pick receivers that are good players,” Smart said.
Having three options that can win in any situation is tough to cover especially with a home crowd that is waiting for a big play to happen.
Lane KiffinÂ
 (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
Lane Kiffin as averaged the sixth best total offense for the Rebels since arriving in Oxford in 2020. Kirby Smart knows the challenge that Kiffin brings as a play caller.
“He knows scheme. Lane (Kiffin) has been around a lot of football. His dad is one of the greatest defensive minds there ever was. He knows how to attack defenses probably at a higher rate than most offensive coordinators. He’s been experienced with that. He knows the difficulties that come with it,” Smart said.
Kiffin stands out as one of the most creative play-callers in college football, always looking to exploit matchups and put his team in the best position to succeed. Facing a potential College Football Playoff elimination, expect for Kiffin and Ole Miss to unleash his full playbook, using every trick and scheme to secure a critical win. Kiffin and Smart were on Alabama staff from 2014-2015, so they have a lot of familiarity.
Four-star junior wide receiver prospect Vance Spafford commits to Georgia
The Georgia Bulldogs have landed a commitment from four-star wide receiver Vance Spafford. Head coach Kirby Smart has been hearing about the lack of recruitment for the wide receiver position in these past recruiting classes. In the past five recruiting classes, Georgia has not had a commitment from a wide receiver inside of the top 100.
Spafford is ranked as the No. 65 recruit in the 2026 cycle, per 247Sports. The four-star is the No. 10 receiver in the nation and the No. 10 recruit in California.
Looking at Spafford’s sophomore year highlight tape, he possess great speed, natural hands, and the run after catch ability to take a 10 yard slant to the house. Spafford smashed all the single-season receiving records for California powerhouse Mission Viejo High School as a sophomore, catching 83 balls for 1,576 yards and 22 touchdowns.
Kirby Smart and company beat out Ole Miss, Oregon, and Nebraska to secure Spafford’s services. Spafford’s development in the next two years will be something to look out for before he steps foot on campus.
In Georgia’s next two recruiting classes, they now have two top-100 wide receiver commits in 2025 commit Tayln Taylor and new 2026 commit Vance Spafford. Spafford is a 5 foot-11, 170 pound prospect who is a four-star recruit across all recruiting services.
How did Kirby Smart, Lane Kiffin, Mario Cristobal, Curt Cignetti and other former Nick Saban assistant coaches do at their respective Power Four and G5 programs in Week 10? We take a look.
Several members of former Alabama football coach Nick Saban’s expansive coaching tree had a busy Saturday in Week 10 of the 2024 college football season this past weekend.
From as far south as Miami to as far north as Bloomington, Ind., Saban’s former Crimson Tide assistants had their teams involved in high-stakes conference games on the first Saturday of November.
Not all of the former Saban assistants were on their respective sidelines in Week 10. Among the coaches whose teams had bye weeks was Texas Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian, whose team is ranked No. 5 in this week’s US LBM Coaches Poll.
Mike Locksley and the Maryland Terrapins were also on a bye, as were Brent Key and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Bill O’Brien and the Boston College Eagles, and Butch Jones’ Arkansas State program.
Former Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain’s Central Michigan Chippewas didn’t play Saturday as CMU has three consecutive Tuesday night games coming up (MACtion!).
Lance Taylor’s first-place Western Michigan Broncos also didn’t play Saturday but will look to improve to 5-0 in MAC play Wednesday when they welcome Northern Illinois to Kalamazoo.
A week ago, Roll Tide Wire ranked every member of the Saban coaching tree by their schools’ season-to-date performances. This week, we’re taking a look at how each of those head coaches and their respective teams fared in Week 10 action.
Again, former Saban assistants whose teams were idle in Week 10 do not appear on this list. With that out of the way, here’s how every former Saban assistant and his team fared over the weekend.
Major Applewhite (South Alabama Jaguars)
Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Overall/Current Record at South Alabama: 4-5
Week 10 Game: Georgia Southern 34, South Alabama 30
2024 Salary: $825,000
South Alabama had a fourth-quarter collapse against a Georgia Southern team they had on the ropes in Mobile. The Eagles got two touchdown passes from JC French to erase a 30-14 deficit heading into the fourth quarter. With both teams at 3-1 in Sun Belt play entering the game, this was a huge missed opportunity for Applewhite and the Jaguars.
Billy Napier (Florida Gators)
Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
Overall Record at Florida: 14-18
2024 Record: 4-4
Week 10 Game: Georgia 34, Florida 20
2024 Salary: $7.3 million
It’s hard for me to be too upset about Napier and the Gators’ performance against a Georgia team that’s simply better than Florida. The Gators competed and didn’t allow themselves to be pushed around in a game many figured would be a blowout. If not for an injury to Florida starting quarterback DJ Lagway, we could be talking about this game in a whole new light.
Charles Huff (Marshall Thundering Herd)
Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports
Overall Record at Marshall: 27-20
2024 Record: 5-3
Week 10 Game: Marshall 28, UL Monroe 23
2024 Salary: $755,500
Huff and the Herd won their fourth game in their last five contests, getting two fourth-quarter touchdowns to hold off ULM to improve to 3-1 in Sun Belt play. Marshall is a half-game behind Georgia Southern in the Sun Belt East division. At 5-3 and scheduled to face a Southern Miss team that’s one of the worst in FBS for the second straight year, Huff is well in position to lead the Herd to a fourth straight bowl game in as many seasons as Marshall’s coach.
Kirby Smart (Georgia Bulldogs)
Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union
Overall Record at Georgia: 101-17
2024 Record: 6-1
Week 10 Game: Georgia 34, Florida 20
2024 Salary: $13,282,580
If we’re going by season-to-date rankings, Smart still tops our list at No. 1. The Bulldogs struggled for much of the afternoon against Florida in Jacksonville as Carson Beck threw three more interceptions to continue an alarming trend. He now has eight interceptions over his last three games.
Georgia has won all three of those contests in spite of Beck’s turnovers. While Beck looked much in the second half, questions still linger about his turnover ratio — and how much longer Smart can seemingly pin the blame on his receivers.
Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss Rebels)
Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images
Overall Record at Ole Miss: 40-17
2024 Record: 7-2
Week 10 Game: Ole Miss 63, Arkansas 31
2024 Salary: $9 million
During his appearance on “College GameDay” Saturday, Nick Saban predicted that Sam Pittman and the Arkansas Razorbacks would pull an upset over Ole Miss. “Not so fast, my friend.” Jaxson Dart threw for a school-record 515 yards, and his six touchdown passes in one game tied Eli Manning (in 2001) and Matt Corral (in 2020). Ole Miss had 694 yards of total offense in a complete domination of the Hogs.
Last week, we wrote that Kiffin hadn’t been able to win the big one yet in Year 5 with the Rebels. With the No. 2 ranked Georgia Bulldogs coming to Oxford this Saturday, Kiffin has a chance to change that and put Ole Miss squarely back into the College Football Playoff race.
Curt Cignetti (Indiana Hoosiers)
Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Overall/Current Record at Indiana: 8-0
Week 10 Game: Indiana 47, Michigan State 10
2024 Salary: $4.25 million
A week after hosting “College GameDay” for the first time, Cignetti and quarterback Kurtis Rourke led the Hoosiers to their first 9-0 start in program history with another offensive explosion on Saturday in East Lansing. The Hoosiers are averaging 49.0 points per game this season, and their fewest points scored in any one game was the 31 they put up against the Washington Huskies in Week 9 and their season opener against FIU.
The Hoosiers host the four-loss Michigan Wolverines in Bloomington in Week 11. If they can beat the reigning national champions, they’ll face a “Game of the Year of the Week” in Columbus matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes with major Big Ten championship and College Football Playoff implications on the line at “The Shoe.”
Mario Cristobal (Miami Hurricanes)
Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
Overall Record at Miami: 21-13
2024 Record: 9-0
Week 9 Game: Miami 53, Duke 31
2024 Salary: $7.7 million
Cristobal’s Hurricanes pulled away from former Miami coach Manny Diaz and the Duke Blue Devils with a 36-point second half explosion to erase a 21-17 halftime deficit. Miami recently passed Ole Miss for the national lead in average yards per game at 556.9. They’re also averaging 47.4 points per game with quarterback Cam Ward leading one of the nation’s most explosive offenses.
At 9-0, Miami is one of only five unbeaten teams in college football, joining Cignetti’s Hoosiers, the No. 1 ranked Oregon Ducks, BYU Cougars, and Army Black Knights. With Clemson suffering a stunning 33-21 loss to the Louisville Cardinals over the weekend, the ACC is officially Miami’s to lose. Their schedule takes them to Georgia Tech and former Saban assistant Brent Key in Week 11.
Kirby Smart discusses Carson Beck’s up-and-down performance against Florida
Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart directly addressed Carson Beck’s performance, defending his quarterback amid widespread criticism. While the whole college football world wanted to shun on Carson Beck’s performance against the Florida Gators where he put up 25-40 309 yards, 2 TD’s with 3 INT’s. Head Coach Kirby Smart had another perspective on things.
smart’s thoughts on beck settling back after the three interceptions
“Yeah, we talked about him for a while there when you weren’t in here, but I’ll be glad to talk about it again,” said Smart. “He continues to grow and mature. He’s not perfect. I think that he puts a lot of pressure on himself, and we got to to continue to help him. And the players around him have got to help him, because he’d probably have 12 or 13 completions in a row if the guys would get their signals and know what they’re supposed to do in the perimeter.”
Beck needs to get on the same page as his receivers before it is too late.
In the second half, Carson Beck looked like a completely different quarterback, showing the poise and confidence he displayed last year. He appeared fully locked in, reading the defense with precision and throwing for two touchdowns against just one interception. This was a sharp contrast to his first half, where he had zero touchdowns and two interceptions.
 Smart on how beck Can become more consistent
 (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
“Well, I mean, he did some really good things. There’s things that go unnoticed. What he can’t do is throw the ball late over the middle, and we’ve got to do a better job protecting him. He got hit one time and the ball went up in the air. ”
Five of Carson Beck’s last six interceptions have come on throws over the middle, where his attempts to force big plays have often backfired. These erratic throws have been costly, disrupting offensive rhythm and creating opportunities for opposing defenses.
However, with a strong second-half performance to build on, Beck now faces a critical test: carrying that momentum into two tough, back-to-back ranked matchups. Heâll first head to Oxford to take on No. 19 Ole Miss, followed by a home game in Athens against No. 7 Tennessee.
