Kirby Smart heaps praise on Sedrick Van Pran: 'Little bit of an asshole, I have respect for him'
Head coach Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs got a massive win in the Orange Bowl after Florida State. For one Bulldog, Sedrick Van Pran, it was his 44th consecutive start on the offensive line.
After the game, Smart heaped praise on Van Pran for how difficult that is to do and what he has meant to Georgia during his time there.
“Yeah, that’s hard to do,” Kirby Smart said. “I mean, 44th start is incredible in this league, the amount of physicality on the offensive and defensive lines in our league is brutal and he’s stayed healthy. He’s competed.”
Beyond just his ability to stay healthy, one of the most important things that Smart says Van Pran has brought to Georgia is his leadership.
“Probably one of the best leaders I’ve ever been around. He got the most votes for captain, but not as many as some of our other years. We’ve had guys really get an outlandish number of votes, Azeez [Ojulari] and Nakobe [Dean]. What was amazing was how consistent Sed has been as a leader. He doesn’t really care what you think about him. He’ll say anything he wants to the team, and he doesn’t care what anybody in that room thinks about him,” Smart said.
“That’s kind of the way the center has got to be. Got to be a little bit of an asshole, and he’s not afraid to do that.”
To prove his point, Kirby Smart even shared a story of how Sedrick Van Pran has led the Bulldogs’ offensive line.
“I have respect for them. Coach [Mike] Bobo texted me and said, whatever night it was, either Tuesday or Wednesday, and he’s like Sed has got the O-line down here watching film with Stacy not here, not during meeting times. Like not even during meeting time he’s got them down there watching tape as a group. That’s just unheard of in this day and age.”
After a fantastic college career, Sedrick Van Pran is moving on and will be taking a shot at the NFL. That starts with the Senior Bowl, which he’s already accepted an invite to attend.
Kirby Smart lauds Georgia seniors for leading Orange Bowl rout
Beyond just Sedrick Van Pran, Kirby Smart praised all of his seniors for the Orange Bowl win and getting to 50 wins during their careers.
“And make no mistake about it, this senior class drove this team to excellence. They didn’t let ’em slack off in practice. They made ’em work. A lot of the juniors said, ‘I want to come finish what I started. I want to walk off the field a winner.’ And they care about the University of Georgia and they care about each other, so I love ’em,” Smart said.
“Well, you know, I know this: We’ve got a really good football in a system that doesn’t allow everybody an opportunity to play for it. This group right here did everything we asked for ’em all year, they competed their tail off and they came out and won an Orange Bowl, which is special. These guys have won seven bowl games in a row, so it’s incredible what they’ve done. Great leadership and great fanbase.”