Official announcement of NCAA Coach of the Year award

Sonny Smart, Father of Georgia Coach Kirby Smart, Dies After Fall During Sugar Bowl Trip

Jan 4, 2025, 04:59 PM

Sonny Smart, the father of Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart and a former high school football coach in Georgia and Alabama, died early Saturday following complications from hip surgery in New Orleans, the university announced. Smart, a proud alumnus of Samford University and Samford Football, fractured his hip after falling while walking on December 31 in New Orleans, where he was attending the Sugar Bowl. He underwent surgery but succumbed to complications. Sonny Smart greatly influenced his son's coaching style, with Kirby once remarking, 'I know people probably don't think a high school coach could steer the way you run a college program like Georgia's. But that's only because they don't know my dad and saw how he ran our high school teams.'