Kirby Smart takes strong hold of ranking as College Football's top coach
College Football as we knew it changed the day Nick Saban announced his retirement. Not only was the sport losing a seven-time National Championship winning head coach, but there was the fallout. Several coaches across the country received raises to keep them in their current spots while others made moves in the domino affect of Saban. Another thing that changed though? A new unquestioned top coach in the sport: Kirby Smart.
Considered by some even before Saban’s retirement to be worthy of the No. 1 spot on their offseason head coach ranking lists, Smart now finds himself there for everybody. CBS Sports released their rankings this week, as did Bill Bender of Sporting News, and Smart is the top dog according to both. Same goes for On3, ESPN and The Athletic.
What They Said…
CBS Sports: The easiest vote on the board, but there’s also some humor to Kirby’s ascension as well. Smart won back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022 but couldn’t get past Saban in the rankings. In 2023, Smart and the Dawgs lost to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, missed out on the playoff and Smart climbed to No. 1. I don’t know that we’ll ever see another program have the kind of success that Saban’s Alabama had in the expanded playoff era, but if there’s a coach and program to bet on doing it, I don’t see how you’d put your money on anybody but Smart and Georgia right now. 2023 rank: 2 (+1)
Sporting News: Smart is the logical choice to inherit the No. 1 ranking. The Bulldogs are 42-2 the last three seasons – and the only two losses were to Saban. Smart has won two national championships and built a dynasty that nearly mirrors his mentor, and the Bulldogs are equipped to make another run in the first year of the 12-team College Football Playoff. Smart will cross the 100-win mark at Georgia this season. Last year: No. 2
On3 (Jesse Simonton): Smart is the undisputed top-ranked coach in America right now. He’s won at least 11 games in six of the last seven years, has a pair of national titles and just inked another No. 1 recruiting class. Georgia has sent more talent to the NFL than any program in the country in the last few seasons, and the Bulldogs are the early favorites for the national championship in 2024. Last year: No. 1
ESPN: With Nick Saban retired, Smart is unquestionably the preeminent coach in college football. He took his alma mater, Georgia, to back-to-back national championships in 2021 and 2022 and played for a third national title in 2017. The Bulldogs won an SEC-record 29 straight games before losing to Alabama last season in the SEC championship game. In eight seasons at Georgia, Smart has built a juggernaut in terms of evaluating, recruiting and developing great players. He has produced 55 NFL draft picks, including 15 first-rounders, and could have as many as 10 more players selected in the upcoming draft.Smart is unbeaten against all active coaches over the past five seasons — his only losses in that span are to Saban (3), Dan Mullen at Florida, Ed Orgeron at LSU and Will Muschamp at South Carolina. His consistency sets him apart. The Bulldogs finished 8-5 in his first season (2016), but since then, Georgia is the only team in the country to finish in the top 7 in the final AP poll every year. Smart’s Bulldogs have played for and/or won an SEC title or national title in six of those seven seasons.
The Athletic (Stewart Mandell): Following Nick Saban’s retirement, Smart is now the unquestioned king of college football, with two recent national championships (2021 and ’22), a 42-2 record over the past three seasons and a remarkable 27 consecutive SEC regular-season wins. His juggernaut shows no signs of slowing. Last year: No. 1b
The Athletic (Bruce Feldman): The easiest one to ID on this list. Smart is 94-16 with two national titles, and he’s 86-11 since that 8-5 debut season. In the last seven years, Georgia has finished no worse than No. 7 in the final AP poll. Smart is 24-0 the past three years in SEC regular season games. The gap between him and the second spot is pretty wide right now. Last year: No. 2
Smart recently saw that top ranking reflected in his salary, receiving an extension and a raise to make him the sport’s highest paid head coach at an average of $13 million a year. In eight seasons under Smart’s direction, Georgia has gone 94-16. It’s the most wins by any head coach in their first eight seasons in college football history. The Bulldogs have won two national championships (2021, 2022), two SEC titles (2017, 2022) and made six appearances in the SEC Championship Game (2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023).
Over the last 48 games, the Bulldogs are 46-2 and have won 39 straight regular season contests including a school-record 25 consecutive at Sanford Stadium. And as long as things don’t fall off in an unexpected way in Athens, it’s likely we see Smart at No. 1 again next year. Will he have another National Championship to show for? His Bulldogs are the favorite in Las Vegas. Quarterback Carson Beck is a big part of the reason why, being listed by the same oddsmakers as the top candidate for the Heisman Trophy. He’ll have weapons to work with – both new and old – in his second year as the starter including Dominic Lovett, Rara Thomas, Dillon Bell, Oscar Delp, Colbie Young, Benjamin Yurosek, Trevor Etienne and others. Put all that behind an offensive line that returns four players with starting experience, and it’s easy to see why hopes are high for the Georgia offense.
Of course though, as long as Smart is the head coach, the Bulldog defense is going to be strong, and that remains the case in 2024. Safety Malaki Starks was an All-American last season while EDGE Mykel Williams and inside linebacker Smael Mondon are certainly capable of playing at the kind of elite level. CJ Allen and Raylen Wilson played valuable snaps as true freshmen and should take steps forward – as should sack leader Jalon Walker, now a junior – while the secondary must replace three NFL Draft picks including one each at cornerback, safety and STAR.
