ATHENS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart was going viral on social media after the Bulldogs’ game against Mississippi State on Saturday night, and he didn’t even know it.
In the fourth quarter of Georgia’s 41-31 win at Sanford Stadium, a very frantic Smart was screaming and yelling and running down the Bulldogs’ sideline to reach defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann. In his rush to get in Schumann’s ear, he shoved Mississippi State quarterback Michael Van Buren, who had run out of bounds’ on UGA’s sideline and happened to cross into the Smart’s path as Van Buren made his way back to the field.
Afterward, Smart indicated he wasn’t entirely sure who he shoved.
“I think was going after Schumann,” Smart said. “I was trying to get Schumann’s attention. We were trying to change personnel. I think it was the play they came into our sideline, and I’m trying to get Schumann’s attention. But, no, I don’t really remember it.”
No officials saw it either, so no flags were thrown, and the play passed by without many in attendance noticing what happened in real time. But the moment was picked up by many watching on television, who dutifully recorded the moments on their phones and immediately circulated it on their personal feeds.
Van Buren indicated afterward he didn’t know what happened either.
“I’m not sure what that was,” the freshman quarterback said. “I was just trying to play my game.”
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