UGA’s Loran Smith injured in car crash in France

By CHIP TOWERS

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

University of Georgia sports personality Loran Smith was injured in a serious car crash in France earlier this week and had to cut short a trip that was to have included his annual attendance at the British Open golf tournament.

georgiabulldogs.com Loran Smith needed 12 stitches to close a gash in the top of his head, broke two ribs and had a concussion as a result of a car crash in France.

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Smith, most famous for providing sideline reports from radio broadcasts of the Bulldogs’ football games, was the passenger a vehicle that left the roadway in Rodez, France, about 11:30 p.m. Sunday night. The Peugeot driven by Smith’s friend, Francois Pelou, rolled several times before coming to a rest on the driver’s side in the middle of a cornfield.

“Appropriate for a country boy from Johnson County,” Smith quipped.

Smith needed 12 stitches to close a gash in the top of his head, broke two ribs and had a concussion. After spending Sunday night in a French hospital, Smith flew to Atlanta on Wednesday and was at home in Athens when reached Friday morning.

“I’m sore as hell, but I’m going to be OK,” he said. “If I hadn’t had my seat belt on, we might all be at a funeral today.”

Smith, a leukemia survivor, is co-host of Georgia’s Tailgate Show and sideline color announcer for game broadcasts. The former UGA student and track and field athlete also is editor of the game programs for football and has authored 11 books on Georgia sports and several others on other topics.

Smith said he and Pelou, a retired journalist, were driving home from dinner at Pelou’s girlfriend’s house.

“He said he fell asleep or dozed off,” Smith said. “All I know is all of the sudden we were crashing, rolling over I don’t how many times. When I came to, we were upside down and I couldn’t open the door. I ended up climbing into the back seat and crawling out a broken window.”

Pelou was shaken but otherwise uninjured, Smith said.