Kirby Smart addresses if anything from his Alabama days sets the tone for this Georgia team

Prior to going to Georgia, Kirby Smart made a name for himself as Nick Saban’s defensive coordinator at Alabama. He had tons of success there, and like many others, he was able to learn how to run a program from Saban.

Ahead of Georgia’s attempt to make a run at a second national championship in as many seasons, Kirby Smart was asked if there’s anything that he can take away from his time with the Crimson Tide.

“I can’t remember that far back. Like honestly, it’s too hard. I don’t have a book of notes or you just have experiences from your coaching career,” Kirby Smart said.

“In 20-something years coaching, you just try to do the best job you can. There’s no like this magic potion. Let me go to the book where you have a team go twice. There is no book for it. You just manage each and every team and each and every season as best you can.”

During his time at Alabama, the Crimson Tide won four national championships, largely because of the elite defenses that Kirby Smart was producing. That success was good enough to land the Georgia job in 2016, his first head coaching opportunity. Since then, he hasn’t looked back, turning Georgia into college football’s premier program in recent seasons.

Georgia plays Ohio State in the Peach Bowl, which will act as a semifinal for the College Football Playoff.

Paul Finebaum praised Kirby Smart

ESPN college football analyst Paul Finebaum is typically known for his coverage of the SEC. That means he’s followed Kirby Smart closely over the years, leading him to praise the Bulldogs’ head coach.

“I think it’s getting to be cliche to say that he has stolen Nick Saban’s playbook. We already know that. That happened seven years ago. The only thing that he has done is, in some ways, he’s perfected it,” Paul Finebaum said.

“I think Georgia is about as well-situated a recruiting hotbed as you can find in America. He gets the most out of that and then he goes out and goes shopping. By the way, he’s not like the rest of us Monday, Tuesday after Christmas getting the bargains. He’s buying on Christmas Eve and paying full price.”