Let’s play the hits. We had plenty of juice from Day One of SEC Media Days yesterday. Today, we had the two coaches waxing poetic about the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry. South Carolina feels like Rodney Dangerfield heading into the 2026 season. And Vanderbilt is trying to prove that there is more to the ‘Dores than just Diego. Let’s take a look at the best of day two of Talkin’ Season at SEC Media Days.
Day Two of SEC Media Days Juicy One-Liners
Kirby Smart, Head Coach, Georgia Bulldogs
“The more you question them, the more it helps me motivate them.”
No Respect Part One. Rodney Dangerfield was a comedic legend in the 1970s and 1980s. He was always looking for respect. The Georgia Bulldogs are the opposite of Dangerfield. They are back-to-back SEC Champions. That used to mean something in this country. But with an expanded playoff and two Bulldog Sugar Bowl exits, those SEC Championships don’t seem to mean as much anymore.
The Bulldogs enter 2026 as one of the early favorites to win the SEC and compete for a national championship (and apparently some respect). Sure, they don’t have Arch at QB or Lane as their head coach, but Gunner Stockton and the Dawgs are nothing to shake a finger at. Smart will use whatever slight, real or imagined, to motivate his teams. Smart is an epic motivator; we love the clips of him sharing with his team how he really feels about their practicing abilities. This is the same team that claimed the media picked them to go 7-5 in their championship run in 2021.
The question on Tuesday centered on Georgia’s perceived lack of threat at the receiver position. They did not use the Portal, as they did in years past, to reinforce the position. The questions were valid, but we think that means Smart has the media and SEC right where he wants them.
Shane Beamer, Head Coach, South Carolina Gamecocks
“Everybody thinks we suck.”
Shane Beamer didn’t want to talk about the second-half collapse in College Station last year or much of what transpired in 2025. After finishing 2024 just missing the CFB Playoff at 9-3, the bottom fell out in 2025, with the Gamecocks finishing 4-8 and just 1-7 in conference play. Failing to hold a 30-3 first-half lead over the Aggies epitomized Carolina’s season.
So, like Smart, Beamer channeled his best Dangerfield. Sure, he was poking a little fun by claiming “everyone thinks we suck,” but Beamer is also looking to motivate his team. Beamer realizes he cannot afford a repeat of 2025 if he still hopes to be the coach in 2027.
Beamer and the Gamecocks will have plenty of talent on offense to turn the tables. Kendall Briles comes in to try to ignite LaNorris Sellers and Nyck Harbor on offense. Dylan Stewart also spurred overtures from across the SEC to return to Columbia to bring a little more respect back to Williams-Brice.
Alex Golesh, Head Coach, Auburn Tigers
“I don’t set goals…I set standards.”
Auburn fans don’t need or want to hear about goals. The Plains have a proud football program that has been stuck on the poor end of mediocrity. Auburn has not won more than six games since 2019 and enters the 2026 season trying to end a record four-season losing streak. That fodder is what helps make SEC Shorts sing every Monday. It is not the standard that The Plains hold for their football program.
That is a big reason why Hugh Freeze was given an all-expenses trip to the golf course last season, and the Tigers brought in Alex Goelsch from South Florida. Golesh is a veer-and-shoot disciple (think Briles, Kiffin, and Huepel). Auburn fans hope that he, along with some of his best transfers from USF, can help thaw the Auburn offense. Quarterback Byrum Brown, wide receiver Keshaun Singleton, and tight end Jonathan Echols lead an impressive crew of former Bulls that followed Goelsh to Auburn. Time will tell if they can help to establish the new standard.
One question on the standard: Goelsh comes to Auburn after just one nine-win season last year at USF, after back-to-back seven-win campaigns. Sure, it could work. But there is reason to be skeptical. Instead, we are going to wait to see if this year the change will do Auburn good.
Clark Lea, Head Coach, Vanderbilt Commodores
“Last season was not an arrival; it was simply another step in the climb.”
Vanderbilt won nine games last year. They had a Heisman finalist. Diego-mania gripped college football. The big question for 2026 and for Clark Lea and Vandy is, what’s next? Are they more than just the sideshow that was Diego Pavia?
Lea has had uneven results at Vanderbilt before Pavia’s arrival, posting two two-win seasons and a five-win season. There is reason to be optimistic in Nashville. Vandy made plenty of noise on NSD this year when they flipped one of the top, and former Georgia quarterback commits in Jared Curtis.
Of course, it wasn’t just Pavia. Jerry Kill and Tim Beck’s arrival in Nashville also helped to turn around the ‘Dores. Let’s see if 2025 was a step for Lea or just a blip on the radar of a sinking ship.
Main Image: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
