Georgia Bulldogs head football coach Kirby Smart was spotted courtside taking in a college basketball game just days after his season ended and his father unexpectedly passed away.
Smart was on hand to watch Georgia’s basketball team take on the No. 6 ranked Kentucky Wildcats at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Georgia on Tuesday evening.
It comes just three days after Smart’s father, Sonny, passed away due to complications from surgery.
Sonny was in New Orleans ahead of Georgia’s Sugar Bowl matchup against Notre Dame when he fell and broke his hip.
After undergoing surgery to fix the issue, he died on Saturday morning surrounded by family. His passing led to prayers and condolences from across the sports world and the state of Georgia.
‘Awful news this morning hearing about the passing of Sonny Smart . I’ve known Kirby for 25 years and always enjoyed my interactions with his dad,’ South Carolina head football coach Shane Beamer wrote on social media.
Georgia football coach Kirby Smart (center) alongside his wife Mary Beth and son Andrew watch on at a Georgia Bulldogs basketball game against sixth-ranked Kentucky on Tuesday
Kirby Smart’s father, Sonny (right), died after suffering complications from hip surgery
Smart, his siblings and his mother were at Sonny’s side when he died early Saturday morning
‘I’m still recovering from the beat down Coach [Sonny] Smart & my dad [legendary Virginia Tech football coach Frank Beamer] gave Kirby and I on the golf course in a “friendly” July 4 Father-Son match years ago.
‘My heart hurts for the Smart family and we’re sending prayers to all of them -God Bless them all.’
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey also paid tribute to Smart with a statement on X. ‘Sonny Smart touched many people in his life and we are saddened to learn of his passing,’ he wrote.
‘I had the privilege to visit with Sonny many times and enjoyed every conversation. Our sympathies go out to Kirby Smart and his family and to all who knew his dad.’
Smart Sr.’s impact on Georgia football was illustrated by the words of the state’s governor, Brian P. Kemp, who said his family were ‘heartbroken’ by the loss.
Kemp called him ‘an incredible father and husband and a great coach in his own right,’ adding: ‘Sonny embodied the values and strength that we should all wish to have.’
According to AL.com, Sonny was a native of Columbia, Alabama, and a high school football coach in Georgia.
He reportedly posted an overall record of 90-78-1 while coaching at Bainbridge High and Rabun County High. Before that, he coached at Alabama’s Holtville High School and played college football at Samford University, per ESPN.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey (right) was among those to pay tribute to Smart
‘Samford Football extends its heartfelt condolences and prayers to the Smart family on the passing of Sonny Smart,’ a statement said.
‘Sonny played center for the Bulldogs and was a proud alumnus of our university.’
Kirby was joined by his wife, Mary Beth, and his son, Andrew, to watch the game on Tuesday night.
They were treated to an upset as the unranked Bulldogs knocked off sixth-ranked Kentucky 82-69. Asa Newell led Georgia with 17 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
Georgia now moves to 13-2 on the season and is 1-1 in conference play. They next take on 17th-ranked Oklahoma at home on Saturday.
Smart, on the other hand, is at the end of his season after Georgia’s football team fell to Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl. It was Georgia’s third College Football Playoff appearance in four seasons.
Since taking over his alma mater in 2016, Kirby Smart has never had a losing season at Georgia. In all but his first season, UGA has finished each season in the top-ten of the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll.