Paul Finebaum: Kirby Smart is the 'epicenter' of college football

Paul Finebaum dropped a banger of a line regarding Kirby Smart at SEC Media Days, coining him the “epicenter” of college football now that Nick Saban has retired from coaching.

During an appearance on ESPN First Take, Finebaum took some time to heap praise on Smart, and how he’s taking over the mantle of being the unquestioned top dog in the sport, now that Saban has called it a career and joined him in the broadcasting world.

“You think about Kirby smart, he’s a 47 year old Nick Saban, and he is Nick Saban. He is the best coach in college football, and with all due respect to Nick Saban, he was the best coach in college football last year, and the year before,” Finebaum stated. “He has not lost a regular season game since ’20. One play in the SEC Championship Game cost him, very likely, a three-peat, something that hasn’t happened in college football since the 30s. He studied under Saban, he mastered everything that’s part of Saban’s great process, and then, in many ways, he toppled Saban at the end.

“He lost a big game against Nick Saban, don’t misunderstand me, he’s lost to Saban twice in SEC championship games. One, he overcame, in the National Championship Game in ’21, but last year, they couldn’t do it. This year. Kirby Smart would have lost that game and probably still gone on to win the Playoff, because of the 12-team Playoff. But Kirby Smart, really, is at the epicenter of college football right now, and I don’t think there’s anybody on his level.”

While it’s tough to argue with Finebaum’s sentiment at the moment, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo tried to, believing the expanded College Football Playoff may actually work against Smart, as he’ll have more of a gauntlet to get through before playing for a national title.

“Paul, it’s going to be a lot harder to be dominant over a longer period of time,” Russo said, regarding Smart matching Saban’s success. “Yes, they got a better chance to get into the Top 12, because obviously (there’s) more teams in the SEC. They’re going to play more games. Schedule is going to be a little tougher. And remember, getting into a semi-final, that’s not what Georgia is trying to do. They’re trying to win. And same for Texas. They’re trying to win a championship, and now, he’s got to win at least one extra game in the Playoff, because he’s gonna have to win an extra game, because even if he’s in the Top 8, he’s going to play in the quarterfinals, semifinals and final, he’s going to occasionally lose that extra game. So, he might have a better chance to get in the playoff scenario, like last year he didn’t, because he lost at the wrong time. This year, that wouldn’t occur. If it was the same scenario, he’d be in. But once he’s in, he’s got to win an extra game, because there’s more games he’s going to have to win.

“So, he’ll lose that extra game once in a while. Not going to win those extra games, all the time. So I think it will be a little harder. What’s Saban got, seven? I think it’d be a little harder to get to that number, based on the amount of teams that will have a chance to win a championship, at the end of the day.”

Paul Finebaum: Kirby Smart ‘is not a Johnny-come-lately’

In response, Finebaum didn’t exactly know where to go after Russo’s rebuttal, but he reminded the ESPN analyst and radio legend that Smart isn’t some newcomer to greatness, and he’s been racking up the accolades since he first arrived in Athens.

“Doggy, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I mean, he can lose a game he can lose a game, a he very well may lose a game. But he remember this stat, I know you love statistics, he hasn’t lost the regular season games since Florida in 2020. I’m not worried about this guy dropping a game,” FInebaum added. “So what if he loses the game at Texas, or against Ole Miss or somebody, he’s still gonna get in the playoffs, and he’s still gonna dominate, like he has. Don’t forget, this three game stretch I’m talking about, Kirby Smart just didn’t start there.

“In 2017, he went down to the final play in overtime, against Nick Saban again, and lost on that famous Tua [Tagovailoa] to Devonta Smith play. I mean, this guy is not a Johnny-come-lately. I mean, he’s been there since 2017, at the very top of the game. The only problem he’s had, and it’s the same problem everybody else’s has had, he had trouble beating Nick Saban. Breaking news.”

As you can tell, Paul Finebaum believes it’s going to take some serious, sustained winning for anyone to match Kirby Smart’s prowess, and even with the expanded College Football Playoff, he’s a believer in the Georgia Bulldogs, more than any other program at the moment.