Georgia head coach Kirby Smart provided some bulletin board material for Alabama ahead of the two teams meeting in Monday’s National Championship Game.
Media day is when coaches warn their players not to say anything that can be misconstrued as providing bulletin board material for the opposition. The last thing you want to do is say something you’ll regret or provide any added motivation for the opposition that could make you look foolish in the end.
Well, this time, it’s Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart who didn’t hold back at Saturday’s media day session in advance of Monday’s College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Smart, the former Alabama defensive coordinator, had some choice words for the Crimson Tide that is sure to go over well with the folks in Tuscaloosa and will surely be used by Nick Saban and the Alabama coaches as added motivation.
Smart was asked about the strength of the SEC when he said, “I honestly believe that the league is more equal than it’s ever been and that’s mainly because, I think maybe Alabama is not as unbeatable as they have been and they’ve had games that were closer. You look at their margin of victory on Texas A&M and Mississippi State. I think the league is closer to even.”
"Maybe Alabama is not as unbeatable as they have been."
— Stadium (@Stadium) January 6, 2018
Hear what @FootballUGA coach Kirby Smart had to say at today's #NationalChampionship media day. pic.twitter.com/8fdzhVRDhD
No matter the context and no matter Smart’s intent, this will be interpreted and perceived by Alabama fans as a slight to the Crimson Tide. Smart’s not wrong though. It doesn’t mean Alabama is going to lose to Georgia, but Smart wasn’t wrong in his assessment. And because Smart has been around the SEC for a long time, including his many years on Saban’s staff, dating back to LSU and the Miami Dolphins, he should have a pretty good pulse of the SEC, the conference he won in his second year as a head coach.
The facts are irrefutable that the margin of victory against Texas A&M and Mississippi State. It’s his opinion that maybe they are not as unbeatable as they once were. But this is also Smart giving his team the confidence needed to beat the monster that is Alabama. What’s Smart supposed to say?
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“You know, Alabama is just so good that I don’t think we have any chance to hang with this juggernaut of a team and we’ll be lucky to keep it close.”
Get outta here.
Alabama did finish as the second place team in the SEC West and snuck in the College Football Playoff as the last seed. By definition, this is the weakest Alabama team in the four years of the four-team playoff. So maybe Smart is on to something, but again, it doesn’t mean that Georgia is going to beat Alabama, it just means Smart thinks they can be beat.
We’ll find out on Monday night when the two meet in the National Championship Game.