If you want some shakeup, here enters the ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum to do so. Now when does the analyst run out of stirring analysis? Never, right? This time it’s a $50 million SEC coach who is in the hot seat. And guess who made the seat hotter for him? It’s none other than the GOAT, Nick Saban. Not directly, though!

After all, to Finebaum, Saban is the OG standard in college football. He is someone that CFB has worshipped and will continue to worship for the longest time. Now come on, when even Finebaum, one of the most critical analysts, talks good about Saban, then you must know how there is nothing that Saban does wrong. After all, coaching for 17 years with the Alabama Crimson Tide and 28 years overall is NO JOKE! Well, history says that in his 28 years of coaching journey, he never had a losing season.

Nick Saban has been the flagbearer of the SEC, which, upon his leaving, was supposed to be taken care of by Georgia Bulldogs’ HC Kirby Smart. Finebaum even pointed out before the season started that the Georgia Bulldogs are where the Crimson Tide were a few years back. He even went on to say, “Kirby Smart in his late 40s is Nick Saban in the absolute prime of his career.” But fast forward now? Smart failed to do the honors. 

On the Matt Barrie Show, host Matt Barrie sheds light on how college football works. He said, “Everyone in the SEC knew that if they wanted to win a National Championship or h- -l even an SEC Championship they had to do what they could to catch Nick Saban and try to be up to his standard.”

This comment was made in relation to Smart’s ability to carry forward Saban’s SEC legacy. So the host ended it by saying, “And he’s not there.” Well, that’s true. Saban is the GOAT for a reason. He won seven national titles, by far the most in college football history. On that note, Finebaum took the charge from Barrie to share his take. “Nick Saban played for nine at Alabama 10 national championships if you include LSU in ‘ 03 and by the way, he was also in the play playoffs like two or three more times. I mean so he owned that period,” commented the analyst.

Was Kirby Smart able to keep that fire alive? Sadly, no. Finebaum sounded disappointed with Smart when he said, “So he’s gone Kirby was supposed to take the sport over. He didn’t…we probably won’t see dominance like that again the Nick Saban era in college football.”

The Bulldogs HC won the National Championship title twice in his eight-year-long stint with Georgia. But this season turned out to be a big flop. Even though they made the playoffs and won the SEC title, their 23-10 loss to Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl really stings. Questions started to swirl, wondering if it was quarterback issues, problems with Smart’s play-calling, or if the offense just lost steam.

However, no matter how the CFB world always compares the two coaches, both Smart and Saban share a cordial relationship.   

Nick Saban and Kirby Smart’s unbreakable bond

The bond is strong that Smart did not inch back before calling the GOAT “old school.” After all, the now Bulldogs HC has spent quite some time coaching under Saban. Back in 2004, Saban was coaching the LSU Tigers and needed a new defensive backs coach. That’s when the legend himself gave Smart a call. He even owes his safety coach job with the Miami Dolphins to Saban. 

When the GOAT tried to try his luck in Alabama as the head coach, the now Dawgs mentor served as the assistant head coach and also the defensive backs coach. Between 2008 and 2015, Smart served as the Alabama defensive coordinator. In that case, for 11 years, the two shared the coaching room.

So on July 16, during the SEC Media Days 2024, Smart shared his gratitude for his mentor, “A couple words I want to say to Coach Saban, who meant so much to me in my career. First of all, the words he shared at the ESPYs the other night were incredible. Very touching, very moving.”

Do you know that Kirby Smart and Nick Saban even shared the same dance floor? That’s when you can count on the Georgia Bulldogs HC to get some little secrets about the GOAT. Smart once said, “Our dance styles are completely different though. He’s old school. He’s like the guy that hits the backboard and basketball and uses the glass. I’m not a bank player…He’s got a patented dance that he can do and he does a great job of that and I think Miss Terry probably taught him.”

So no matter how ruthless the CFB world goes with the Nick Saban vs. Kirby Smart comparison, this bond will continue to live on.