Georgia head coach Kirby Smart spoke publicly for the first time on the deaths of Devin Willock and Chandler LeCroy, telling Mark Schablach of ESPN that his program does not have a culture problem.
“Absolutely not, and I’d say we’re far from it,” Smart said. “Do we have perfect young men, young women, and players? Not necessarily, but I promise out this, that’s the intent, for us to grow these guys and get them better. I feel really good about the culture of this program.”
Smart revealed what he was feeling when get got word following the tragic accident on Jan. 15.
He called it one of the worst days of his life.
“Heartache. I got a call at 3 or so in the morning and went immediately to the emergency room where one of the toughest moments I’ve ever experienced as a coach and a leader was to see the pain in the faces of the players who had joined up at the emergency room that morning,” Smart said. “I remember the ER doctor telling me the news, and it was one of the most painful experiences of my life.”
In the days and weeks that have followed, many have questioned Smart’s policies regarding the fraternization between players and staff.
“There’s nothing that we would change. No policy that we have caused this accident,” Smart said. “It’s a very unfortunate, tragic accident.”
Smart said it was not LeCroy’s job to get the players home.
“Absolutely not,” Smart said.
Smart was also asked about the recent warrants given to Jalen Carter on charges of reckless driving and drag gracing.
Although the ongoing investigation prohibits Smart from offering details, he did acknowledge knowing Carter was at the scene of the accident.
“Parts of the ongoing investigation I’m not allowed to talk about, but he was at the scene,” Smart said. “Obviously, from the people at the emergency room and people we saw, we knew that he had been questioned and talked to, but we found out about the arrest warrants like everybody else.”
Smart said he and the football program continue to cooperate with investigators.
“We’ll do everything they ask. I think there’s a misperception out there that we may know more than other people, or there’s a misperception that we’re trying to hide something,” Smart said. “We’re searching for information, too, and we don’t get all that information, so we are cooperating with authorities and giving them all the information we can.”
Smart said he was never made aware of a recent incident with Carter when the projected first-round pick was stopped for speeding earlier this year.
He did, however, reveal that the dangers of drag racing were addressed with players over the summer.
“We had a situation this summer where we brought in Athens Clarke-County police, UGA police. The local news in Atlanta was covering street racing and drag racing, it’s all over the TV,” Smart said. “We wanted to educate our players. We constantly remind our guys about it. The person behind the wheel is the one who makes the decision, what they do with the car, not the car itself.”
