ATHENS — Kirby Smart might want to keep a closer eye on Georgia warmups than usual after a curious question surfaced at the Charlotte football press conference this week.
Might there be some future 49ers players on the current Georgia roster getting eyed up by the opposing team?
First-year Charlotte coach Tim Albin said all the right things when asked about how his team expected to compete against No. 4 Georgia, which is a 43.5-point favorite in the 12:45 p.m. game at Sanford Stadium on Saturday.
“…. we’re going to battle for every inch,” Albin said. “We’re going to come off the football and trust our technique, trust our training and see where that gets us.”
But Charlotte (1-9), like every other program at this stage of the season, is also looking to acquire talent in recruiting and the transfer portal.
Smart noted on his coaches show, Bulldogs Live, that the 49ers program does have resources.
“They’ve got really good money and they’ve done a great job of bringing people along,” Smart said. “They’ve been through a couple of coaching changes.
“They have a new coaching staff that’s having to cut their teeth and figure out their best way to do things.”
So, Albin was asked at his press conference, “How much of an opportunity is this to maybe look at some of their players that aren’t playing as much, maybe warm ups and stuff, to maybe try to get some of their players to come to Charlotte?”
The 49ers coach smiled uncomfortably.
“I don’t have a crystal ball, that’s an interesting question, that’s probably out of my wheelhouse to comment on,” Albin said.
“We all know in this day and age in college football everybody is looking to make moves, but I’ll probably have other things on my mind in the pregame.”
Probably, but maybe not pregame or postgame, and truth be told, that’s happening everywhere.
Even Smart made reference to the transfer portal this week during his appearance on 92.9 The Game, revealing just how competitive college football has become in this era of NIL and free agency.
Smart, when asked his thoughts on the four coaches fired in the SEC in season, provided an honest answer.
“I don’t know that I have a lot of commentary on it, I don’t think about it much,” Smart said. “I think ‘How do I avoid being those guys, what can I do to make sure? Do they have any good players that would want to come to our place if they get a chance?”
Indeed, the seniors aren’t the only Georgia players that will be making their final appearance in Sanford Stadium.
The Bulldogs had 20 players enter the transfer portal last season, and Smart has said in the past it’s not necessarily a bad thing when some players realize they could have better opportunities elsewhere, as attrition frees up scholarship space.
But, first things first, Smart wants his Georgia football team to play to the standard in what might be its final home game of the season — there’s a chance UGA could host a first-round College Football Playoff game if it finishes ranked No. 5 to No. 8.
Smart, asked on his coach’s show about what fans should expect, did not hold back.
“Number one, expect to get there early and recognize these seniors,” Smart said. “Number two, hope that our guys come out and we have the focus and concentration and maturity to get after it and play to our standard because we’re going to get Charlotte’s best and they have to get our best shot.
“So those are the things I’m looking to see us do, with hopes we play to our standard that we are ascending to.”
As for Albin, he was ready to lay out the reasons why players might want to consider playing at Charlotte when asked about the television exposure his 49ers will get playing on the SEC Network against Georgia.
“We play in the best Group of 6 league, period, we’ve got four teams trying to get in the playoffs, and if it wasn’t for a couple of upsets, we’d probably have six,” Albin said of the American Athletic Conference. “You look at our bowl record last year (6-2), it’s one more reason why you’d want to choose to come to Charlotte University.
Albin mentioned the education Charlotte affords as a top-tier research institution, along with the surrounding areas.
“Hunting and fishing, you can get to the ocean, and playing in the best Group of 6 league, period and you’ve got the TV exposure,” Albin said. “We have some good momentum here as a football program.
“We’re laying the foundation from inside-out and I’m excited about the future.”
The next game in the future has an official kick off time of 12:47 p.m.
