Georgia is coming off an upset loss to Ole Miss this past weekend, but that's not the biggest headline. The Bulldogs' 28-10 loss has been superseded by a Georgia player celebrating with a childhood friend and current Ole Miss student following the upset.
Redshirt sophomore defensive back Jake Pope was shown celebrating, or at least it looks like he's celebrating, with a childhood friend who is now a student at Ole Miss. Kirby Smart responded to the video on Monday by calling Pope an "idiot" and saying that his actions were "just stupid" ahead of Georgia's matchup with Tennessee.
"What an idiot. Just stupid," Smart said. "I didn't see it until today. He's embarrassed about it. He's upset about it. That's obviously a childhood friend of his, they grew up and played with at Buford. Hadn't seen him in forever. Just not real smart. But to be honest, I don't have time to waste energy on that. You know what I'm saying? My focus is on Tennessee. I'm not real worried on that."
Kirby Smart responds to viral video of Jake Pope postgame at Ole Miss with childhood friend:
— On3 (@On3sports) November 11, 2024
“What an idiot. Just stupid... But to be honest with you, I don’t really have time to waste on that. My focus is on Tennessee.”
(via @DawgsHQ) https://t.co/xbAU1MZejg https://t.co/c25PU1BUeV
Pope apologized on social media for his actions, while Kirby seems ready to move on to Tennessee and not focus anymore on this dramatic end to a bad weekend for the Bulldogs.
Tennessee fans immediately started calling out Smart for his comments on Pope for calling him an "idiot" for his actions but brushing off the several arrests for speeding and racing throughout the Georgia football program.
Kirby Smart talking about players getting arrested vs Kirby Smart talking about one of his players seeing a childhood friend after a game pic.twitter.com/oOrhrUj4O1
— zach ragan (@zachTNT) November 11, 2024
It will likely be another intense week ahead of a massive matchup between the Bulldogs and the Vols. Between drama in the Georgia locker room and a possible College Football Playoff elimination game for the loser on Saturday, it's a big week for both programs.
Tennessee and Georgia will play at 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday night on ABC in a game that could determine one or both teams' fates in the SEC Championship race and the College Football Playoff.