After a 12–2 season and a Sugar Bowl run, Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs didn’t have a very reliable arsenal at wide-outs apart from Zachariah Branch. No Bulldogs wideout had more than 360 yards except for Branch. With many players heading to the NFL, Smart went out and brought in one of the most promising prospects, Isaiah Canion, from Georgia Tech. However, Kirby Smart’s only regret is that he should have brought him in sooner when he had the chance.

On February 10, Kirby Smart admitted one of his biggest recruiting blunders at the wide receiver position.

“We got a receiver [Isiah Canion] that we probably should have gotten out of high school. But we didn’t,” Kirby Smart said to Jeff Dantzler of Glory. “He went to a rival school, and he got better. He got developed. We think he’s really talented. We’re excited as hell about Canion, and he’s going to be a good player.”

Despite being the No. 194 overall recruit in the 2024 class and a standout from Warner Robins High, UGA never offered Canion out of high school. He initially committed to Notre Dame before flipping to Georgia Tech.

The Bulldogs didn’t mess around this time. As soon as Canion hit the transfer portal on the first week of January, Georgia moved fast to make him feel coveted. By January 8, the 6-foot-4 wideout officially committed to the Dawgs. Smart isn’t shy about his past misses, saying he’s “excited as hell” to finally have Canion, especially since he’s already friends and (high-school teammates) with current Bulldogs like Isaiah Gibson and Rasean Dinkins.

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Canion isn’t the only one Smart has second-guessed himself on; he also recently targeted edge rusher Amaris Williams in the portal after regretting not having his “violent” pass-rushing style on the team sooner.

This is one of the certified moves for Georgia’s offense because they’re losing a lot of star power. With big names like Zachariah Branch and Colbie Young heading to the NFL, the receiver room was looking a bit empty. Canion’s expected to step right into that “X” receiver role and give Gunner Stockton a reliable deep threat.

His numbers from 2025 might not reflect his full talent since Georgia Tech and Haynes King love to run the football. As a sophomore in 2025, he led Georgia Tech with 33 catches for 480 yards and 4 touchdowns. He even caught Kirby’s eye during their head-to-head matchup last November, where he hauled in 4 passes for 56 yards against the Georgia defense.

Smart pointed out that while they missed him the first time, he actually got better and more developed by playing elsewhere first.

The bottom line is that Kirby Smart is clearly over the “what ifs” and focused on 2026. By snagging the only wide receiver they took from the portal this cycle, the coaching staff is betting big on Canion’s talent and fit. It’s a classic case of a hometown kid finally making his way back to Athens, and Dawg fans are ready to see what he can do in the red and black.

With Canion on board, Kirby Smart also accomplished his 2026 offseason goal.

Kirby Smart’s biggest off-season challenge: Retention

Retaining players during the offseason is hard for any college football team. Many players think about transferring to other schools for more playing time or better opportunities elsewhere. Kirby Smart wanted to stop that from happening at Georgia. During the transfer portal period, 14 Georgia players left the team. However, out of the 27 players Georgia recruited in the 2025 class, only one decided to transfer.

Kirby Smart explained how important it was to keep players on the team: “We had a goal of keeping the players on our roster that we could, and we went through agents, players, parents, and meeting after meeting after meeting after meeting to try to retain our roster, which I think we won that battle. We were able to keep a lot of players we wanted to keep here.

We’ve got the best retention rate among playoff teams. We’ve got the best retention rate in the SEC, so our guys want to be here, and we have to learn to want to be here.”

By keeping most of his starters and adding some new talent, Kirby Smart was able to build a mix of experience and fresh energy on the team.

Georgia also added new players like Dante Dowdell, Amaris Williams, Jae Lamar, Isiah Canion, Ja’Marley Riddle, and Khalil Barnes. Running backs Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens, as well as players like Raylen Wilson, Lawson Luckie, and Gabe Harris, said they will return next season. With these returning and new players, Georgia has a strong team and a good chance to go further in the postseason, even after losing to Ole Miss in the quarterfinals.