Paul Finebaum: Alabama's Iron Bowl win gave Kirby Smart, Georgia everything they were hoping for

While Alabama ended the regular season with a 24-22 win over Auburn in the Iron Bowl, the Crimson Tide had to grind out every second of that game. As Alabama gets ready to take on Georgia in the SEC Championship game, Paul Finebaum thinks that the Iron Bowl gave Georgia head coach Kirby Smart everything he was hoping for.

Georgia finished the regular season undefeated. The Bulldogs are the unquestioned best team in college football right now with a spot in the College Football Playoff locked up. But Finebaum doesn’t think that Smart is content with that. In fact, Finebaum thinks that Smart wanted Alabama to win in the Iron Bowl so that they weren’t “limping” into the SEC title game against Georgia.

“And for those who say out there that it doesn’t matter, they’re already in, you don’t understand Kirby Smart,” said Finebaum. “I can promise you that Kirby Smart was screaming his lungs out for Alabama to win that game Saturday. He did not want Alabama limping into the Georgia dome. He got what he wanted, he got a smiling Nick Saban for coming from behind to beat just an average Auburn football team. Now (Smart) has them where he wants him. He’s into perfection. This team, they just go out and it doesn’t matter who they’re playing. Georgia Tech is a terrible team, but they just destroyed them.

“They don’t take days off. And they’re not taking a day off against Alabama because this is an exorcism for Kirby Smart. The demons from Tua (Tagovailoa) to Devanta (Smith). In the same game in 2018, Kirby Smart had I think an 18-point lead and just threw it away against an Alabama team. That’s not happening in his mind going into this game.”

Auburn’s performance showed Georgia how to prepare for Alabama

Auburn blitzed Alabama quarterback Bryce Young consistently throughout the Iron Bowl. Young was sacked seven times in the game. Auburn’s game plan has given the blueprint on how to prepare for Alabama to an already elite Georgia defense.

Finebaum notes that Georgia’s defense is much better than Auburn’s. So if Georgia follows a similar game plan, Alabama’s offense could be in even more trouble in Atlanta.

“I would say that, not that Kirby Smart needed any template on how to go after Alabama, but Derek Mason gave him the game plan Saturday,” Finebaum said. “Just bring the house. And the house from Georgia is going to be significantly more dangerous than the house from Auburn.”

The SEC title game is set to kick off at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday.