Kirby Smart no longer has to worry about his mentor and nemesis in Tuscaloosa

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Kirby Smart no longer has to worry about his mentor and nemesis in Tuscaloosa. Deep down, the Georgia coach might be a little relieved that Nick Saban is now wearing a microphone at the broadcast table and no longer a headset on the sideline.

Just don't expect Smart to come right out and say it.

To deflect multiple versions of the same question: Essentially, what will it be like to face an Alabama team not coached by Saban? – Smart was completely focused on that two powerful programs which will meet on Saturday evening at Saban Field in Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“No, I don’t expect it to be weird,” Smart said Monday. “That’s just the normal course of events.”

Nevertheless, there is no avoiding the big problem of a rivalry that has largely determined the course of the Southeastern Conference for almost a decade.

Saban is no longer part of it – other than his duties as an analyst for ESPN's “College GameDay,” which will take place in Tuscaloosa as the No. 2 Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0 SEC) take on the No. 4 Crimson Tide (3-0, 0-0).

Smart said he was glad Saban – who retired in January After winning a record seven national titles, six of which were for the Alabama program, he appears to be appreciating life after coaching.

“I’m thrilled that he’s getting the opportunity to do what he wants to do and be with who he wants to be with in his family and enjoy that,” Smart said. “I’m really glad he’s still a part of college football because he makes college football better.”

These two coaches – one now retired, the other in the prime of his career – will forever be linked.

Smart was on Saban's staff for more than a decade, soaking up every bit of wisdom he could glean from perhaps the greatest coach in college football history.

After the 2015 season Smart left Tuscaloosa to take over the good-but-not-quite-great program at his alma mater and quickly take the Bulldogs to the next level.

You know, the top spot in the conference for Saban's Crimson Tide.

Georgia captured the SEC crown in Smart's second season, only to be defeated in the national title game of Alabama in an overtime thriller.

Saban beat his former assistant three more times — twice with the championship on the line, once more in a regular season — before Smart finally broke through a 33:18 win in the national championship game at the end of the 2021 season.

That was the first of two straight national titles for Smart's Bulldogs, propelling them to the top of the college football hierarchy, but it was Saban who delivered the final salvo to his former student.

After Georgia went 12-0 through the 2023 regular season and appeared to be on its way to an unprecedented third straight title in the poll era, Alabama prevailed a 27:24 surprise in the SEC Championship Game – a result that knocked the Dawgs out of the four-team playoffs.

It was a loss that still hurts among the hedgerows.

“We definitely have a chip on our shoulder,” admitted receiver Arian Smith.

Smart, who has brought a singular focus to the Bulldogs that has been a hallmark of Saban's teams, doesn't want his players thinking about a game from nine months ago, especially with the Crimson Tide being coached by them now Kalen DeBoer.

“I don’t know how similar or different it will be,” Smart said. “We are a different team. They are a different team. They are a different staff. We are a similar staff. So I can’t compare last year’s game with this year.”

This will be Smart's second trip to Tuscaloosa since accepting the job at Georgia. During the pandemic-plagued 2020 season, the Bulldogs lost 41-24 to an Alabama team that won Saban's last national title.

“Go on,” Smart said. “I think the last time we went (to Tuscaloosa) it had been four or five years since we lived there. It's so strange when you play there because you're in and out. You’re there and then you’re gone.”

Smart certainly forged his own dynastic path in Georgia, but he never fully escaped Saban's shadow. His record against his former boss was 1-5. The Bulldogs have suffered just two losses in their last 51 games – both at Alabama.

Certainly Saban's presence still looms large over this rivalry. There may be a different man on the Alabama sideline Saturday night, but many of those taking the field will have ties to the previous coach.

“Well, he recruited a lot of them, and they're good players,” Smart said of Saban, before catching himself and quickly focusing on the game at hand rather than who will or won't be coaching in it.

“Any time you play a really good team that’s a strong team in college football, it’s a challenge,” Smart said, reiterating his message. “I really look at it like this is a huge opportunity for our kids, our program at the national level.”

He talked some more, but Saban was no longer mentioned.

___

Get poll alerts and AP Top 25 updates throughout the season. Sign up Here. AP College Football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll And https://apnews.com/hub/college-football