Coach Smart met with the media following a 38-10 win over Tennessee. His quotes are italicized. 

Opening Remarks: I'm really proud of our resiliency...You know the kids did a great job. They knew it would be a tough environment. They responded to a not so great start, and we continued to improve and get better. I can't say enough good things for our offensive staff and our offensive game planning. Our kids buy in each week to the plan, and they get better each week. All we're trying to do is find the best version of ourselves. Give the kids a lot of credit, they did the hard work and the heavy lifting. We've got to continue to get better. 

On The First Play of the Game: I talked to Schumann before the game and said, if they're going to score, let's just get it over with. We've consistently found a way to let teams score first and not have great first drives. We probably got a little bit aggressive there. We didn't fit a play right...It's simple. We didn't have a guy in the gap, and the secondary has to get the guy on the ground. Historically, Georgia does not give up explosive runs. We have a great secondary that leverages the ball...We take a lot of pride in that. If the ball breaks out, we're going to get it before they get 20, and that didn't happen. A lot of that has to do with their splits. But we didn't fit a gap right and give them credit. 

On Dillon Bell's Performance: Great competitor. His number was called, and he was ready. He made plays on back shoulder 50/50 balls. Made the great play that Bobo put together for him for the opportunity to run the toss pass. The runs after the catch were big. He stepped up big today, and we continue to have guys do that when other guys are down.

On 3-Straight Undefeated SEC Play Seasons: Yeah, I gotta go play Tech next week, that's my perspective. I've got a lot of respect for Brent, and I know how much this game means to him. I mean, there'll be a time to look back on that, and there'll be a time to celebrate that, but it's not right now. 

On Tate Ratledge's Injury: Tate banged knees. Felt like he might have been able to go back in. He kept trying to go but couldn't. No X-ray or no damage there. He told me he thinks he'll be able to play this week, so we'll see. 

On Rara Thomas' Injury: Rara's foot was bothering him. X-rays were negative. It wasn't an ankle sprain. It bothered him in warmups. It may be a foot sprain, which is what Kamari has been dealing with, but we don't really know because the X-rays were negative. That's the good news, but it's not an ankle. 

On Ladd McConkey's Injury Status: So Ladd got an ankle last week, and he didn't practice all week. We thought he'd be able to go, but he wasn't really able to go. He tried. He got out there in warmups and did some things, but he didn't practice all week. It happened in the game against Ole Miss. 

On the Keys to Sustaining a Program: A lot of work, man. A lot of buy-in. We spend a lot of time in the offseason building our roster. I'm not talking about portal kids or recruiting kids... I'm talking about taking what we got and making what we got better than what they got. Selling Marcus Rosemy that a crack on a block is more important than any catch he makes. If the kids believe in that, they do a great job. We got a lot of outside help. We contract to people that come in and help us. I really believe our culture is the difference. People will say it's the players...I just don't think it's just players. We got good players-really good players. But I think there's a lot to our culture that kids buy into. They stay level headed. They're not talking about the streak. Like I said, it's going to end, and we're going to start a new one. For right now, they just keep getting better. One thing I can control as a coach is how we sustain and how we retain. Our ability to sustain is incredible. I've got a great footprint to recruit from and an incredible administration. It's not easy, guys. It's hard to win. 

On if Beck Should Get Heisman Recognition: I don't lobby for those, guys, but it's easy to sit back and say look at what this guy has done. The worst thing for Beck, individually, is he plays with a good defense because it makes you not want to run it up. Some of these other guys got an opportunity to score 40 a game. With Carson Beck, I don't think we, as an offensive staff, think we have to score 40 a game. I don't think we have to. You're able to call the game differently as an offensive coordinator. I don't think he cares about that, but he is talented. He's smart and a better athlete than you think. 

On if it's Been Fun to Watch the Progression of This Team: It's fun tonight...it's fun tonight. It's work during the week, you know. It's not the stress of the streak or the stress of the wins. I mean, my wife and son sitting over there have to put up with me all week.  You get tighter, tighter, and tighter as the week goes. I'm not going into a game comfortable. That puts wear on you in terms of wanting to be at your best. But you've got to relax and know that you've done a good job. 

On Where He Saw the Defense Have Success Today: Good plan by Schumann and them. They've got some good receivers that have been injured. Josh's offense is around the fact that you can't go out there and cover guys on the perimeter, and they have good backs. They're not quite the team they were last year... I think he'd admit that. 

On What This Team is Elite At: Taking a punch. 

On How the Team Stayed Poised After Tennesee's Opening Drive: We got a lot of practice at it. I mean, seriously. I don't know how many times they've scored on the first drive, but it seems like every game. That doesn't bother us because we know we can fix it. They've got a lot of confidence when they jog off the sideline...It's like, take a deep breath; we'll get it fixed. The kids believe in that.

On Cross Training the OLine: I mean, with the injuries we've had, it's been great. Stacy has done a great job of cross-training those guys. We feel like  we got 3 tackles, 4 guards, and 2 centers. You've got to go into the season with that. When you don't, you can get in trouble. 

On Georgia Tech Coming For Georgia: Who wouldn't? They're all coming for us...That's what it is. We're not concerned with who's coming after us; we're concerned with who we're coming after. Our job is to get prepared for a hard-nosed team that knows everything about us. They got good coaches. It's not going to be the coaches that win the game...It's going to be the players. It's going to be a tough game. 

Photo Courtesy of Charles Jordan