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Kirby Smart and Nick Saban battled for college football supremacy over the last few seasons, but the respect between the two never wavered.
Smart worked under Saban from 2008-15, helping the Crimson Tide win four national championships as defensive coordinator.
From there, he moved on to Georgia, where he’s won two more national titles as a head coach and has posted a 94-16 overall record in eight seasons.
Speaking at the Regions Tradition in Birmingham Wednesday, Smart expressed his appreciation for Saban and what he’s meant to him as a coach.
“Nick’s been great,” Smart said, via On3. “He’s been wonderful for my career, he’s a great man. He’s a leader in college football. He continues to do that. Been very supportive of me and my family. Enjoyed it.”
As a head coach, Smart went just 1-5 against Saban, but that lone victory was a big one. Georgia beat Alabama 33-18 in the College Football Playoff Championship Game in January 2022 to earn the program’s first national title in more than four decades.
Alabama exacted a measure of revenge back in December, when the Crimson Tide knocked off the unbeaten Bulldogs in the SEC Championship Game, earning a College Football Playoff spot and keeping Georgia out of the field in the process.
Smart and the Bulldogs will travel to Tuscaloosa this season to take on Saban’s successor Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide on Sept. 28.