Paul Finebaum says a Georgia national championship makes Kirby Smart the 'king' of college football
Paul Finebaum believes Kirby Smart can sit in the throne atop the college football world if Georgia wins the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship Game.
Still, the Bulldogs have to go through Ohio State in the Peach Bowl prior, but that’s not stopping Finebaum from weighing the possibilities.
“I think what it means is that suddenly there’s a new king in college football, and it’s not Nick Saban,” answered Finebaum, asked what back-to-back championships would mean for Kirby Smart and Georgia on First Take. “I say that because Nick Saban has seven national championships, and he’s won six championships since 2009. What makes this even more interesting is that Kirby Smart is a disciple of Nick Saban. He worked for him for 11 years. The fact that he would go across the state border and do it at a big rival within the same conference is pretty amazing to think about, because Nick Saban at 71 has not gone anywhere. He’s still a very respected coach. His team is No. 5 in the country. They lost two games on the final play this year.
“But it would be a remarkable achievement, considering that Georgia until last January have not won a national championship in 41 years.”
If Kirby Smart does indeed capture another title, he’ll have a strong claim to the top of the college football world. Nick Saban won’t go gently into that good night, but Smart is coming for the best.
Kirby Smart excited to be playing close to home crowd in Atlanta for CFP semifinal
Moreover, Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart said he was excited for his team to compete once again in front of a friendly crowd at Mercedes Benz in Atlanta, however, he wasn’t going to take anything away from Ohio State fans.
During his press conference with Ryan Day previewing the Peach Bowl playoff game, Smart credited the Buckeyes fanbase and their fervor for popping up wherever the team plays.
“The field is the exact same length as any other field we play them on,” Smart said. “The ticket sales, Ohio State, as I understand it, has never had a shortage of alumni base or money because I go against Ryan all the time in recruiting. I know how strong their alumni base is and how proud they are of it.
“So I don’t look for it as — it’s home as in the state of Georgia, but the fan bases both turn out. They both have great fan bases, and I think that’s great for the Peach Bowl and great for the state of Georgia.”
Unlike the SEC title game in Atlanta, the bowl game prep involves a full week of the team practicing in the big city.
“Once you get to the venue, it’s different than when you’re coming in for a game and kids have been in classes and they just fly in for the game,” Smart said. “It’s different when you’re there for a whole week. We’ll practice at Mercedes Benz. They’ll practice at Mercedes Benz. It’s not like you’re going to walk in there and not have seen the place.”
On3’s Nikki Chavanelle contributed to this article.