Here's what Kirby Smart had to say on the Paul Finebaum Show

Of all the hand-wringing regarding the immediate future of college football this fall, one of the bigger questions continues to be how long teams would need to get ready.

With no spring practice and no organized strength and conditioning sessions, preparing for the season has been made even more difficult. Pundits and coaches alike have been left to ponder the answer, although it’s still unclear how long it will be before COVID-19 no longer remains a part of our everyday lives.

During Thursday’s edition of the Paul Finebaum Show, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart was asked that very question.

"That's a big debate. In Ron Courson, we've got one of the best in the business as far as athletic trainers go. He's done it for a long time, but I don't think it's good to speculate,” Smart said. “I really look at it this way; if you're looking toward the end of the season at the beginning of the season, you're probably going to come across some pitfalls.”

Instead, Smart hopes fans of all schools will commit to doing one thing: listening to those in charge when it comes to protecting themselves and their community from the ongoing pandemic.

Do that, and the chances for having a season improve.

“I don't think anybody should be really thinking about that right now. If we could put all our energy into washing our hands and the social distancing, we would do a lot better for ourselves than speculating on some of those things,” Smart said. “We just don't know the answer to so many things right now. The best thing we can do is batten down the hatches so we can have a season."

Smart said he continues to plan on the season being played.

Although schools are currently limited to two hours of video conferencing, Georgia’s coach said recent tweaks by the NCAA at least enabled the Bulldogs to put in some field work before spring drills were set to begin.

"Look, college football has changed so much. Fifteen, 20 years ago we didn't have meetings leading up to spring practice,” Smarts said. “The NCAA changed things to where you can walk through and do football, actual accountable time towards football before it starts. So, we were able to get some walkthroughs in and get some things done that you didn't do back in the older times and older days.”

Still, nothing beats actual practice, and Smart admitted to Finebaum he was bothered that some schools were able to get at least some spring practice in before the plug was pulled.

"I think if everybody didn't have it, it probably wouldn't bother me as bad. We've got a new offensive coordinator (Todd Monken) and a new quarterback coming in, whoever it's going to be, and to not get those practices, boy, that's tough,” Smart said. “In the grand scheme of things, that's not a lot. I certainly think some young players, some mid-year guys that maybe came in thinking they were going to get a leg up on people, that may not be as big of a leg at all. Because they weren't able to have those practices. If you were fortunate enough to have spring practice early, like some programs do, I certainly think that helps. To get 10 more practices in is huge."

…Smart admitted that being relegated to online video meetings through Zoom has taken some getting used to.

“It’s unique. If you’re not ready to embrace a challenge—this is the ultimate "get comfortable being uncomfortable." When coaches have to go onto virtual networks like Zoom, it’s not always good for guys that aren’t as young as these players,” Smart said. “I’ve found that most of our young guys are much more compatible with dealing with computers than some of the older guys are. So it’s been an experience. We do staff meetings by Zoom. I know NFL teams we’ve talked are doing the same thing, and we’re able to do Zoom meetings with our players. What’s amazing is how easy it is for them, but how complicated it is for us.”