Georgia’s Kirby Smart and Miami’s Mario Cristobal turned an awards banquet into a friendly roasting session, trading barbs about NIL deals and recent recruiting moves.
The two head coaches faced off at the ceremony for the Steve Spurrier First Year Coach Award at Spurrier’s Gridiron Grille. While the event honored Dan Mullen, Smart and Cristobal stole the show.
Both coaches worked under Nick Saban at Alabama and didn’t hold back when they got the microphone.
“It’s a great piece to watch what a player like Carson Beck can do with great coaching,” Cristobal said as cameras turned to Smart. Carson Beck transferred from Georgia to Miami last season and led the Hurricanes to a national title game appearance.
Kirby Smart took some friendly shots at Mario Cristobal for NIL, saying he wasn’t sure Mario should be sitting near UGA cornerback Ellis Robinson… but Cristobal has jokes too https://t.co/d2J1BQN19y pic.twitter.com/Sqb6ockg5V
— Jack Leo (@theleoreport) February 24, 2026
Smart fired back with a thumbs up after joking that Cristobal was sitting too close to Georgia cornerback Ellis Robinson. The comment brought quick laughs about tampering rules.
Cristobal wasn’t finished.
“If it wasn’t for all his years of pre-NIL, we wouldn’t have NIL right now,” he said. The crowd loved it.
He kept going, referencing Georgia’s SEC championship and 7-1 conference record. “We were 5-0 against the SEC. I don’t know what you were.”
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Cristobal also mentioned feeling at home in Gainesville. “Except last year at the Swamp, 41-17.”
Both Miami and Georgia made the College Football Playoff last season. The Bulldogs lost in the quarterfinals while the Hurricanes reached the championship game.
With both programs expected to compete for titles again, this exchange might just be the beginning.
