Kirby Smart and Nick Saban Named One of the Greatest Coaching Rivalries in Football

Nick Saban and Kirby Smart's head coaching rivalry has been listed as one of the greatest in the history of college football.

College football has produced some of the most hate-fueled rivalries in all of sports, where the two parties often can't even agree on the series record. But while rivalries between teams are most prevalent. The sport has also witnessed some fantastic rivalries between coaches.

According to CBS Sports, one of the most iconic rivalries between college football head coaches belongs to Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart and Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban.

The past decade of college football history has been largely influenced by both Nick Saban and Kirby Smart. So, ranking the pair of coaches as one of the greatest coaching rivalries in the sport makes perfect sense. The two head coaches met six times from 2017-2023, with nearly five of the six matchups having championship implications.

Saban claims superiority in the rivalry, having won all but one of the historic matchups. But though the overall record suggests the rivalry was a one-sided affair, anytime the two coaches battled on the gridiron was must-see TV for college football fans and the matchups often resulted in instant classics for fans.

While the two fan bases share no love, Smart and Saban's rivalry was anything but hate-filled. Smart had coached under Saban as Alabama's defensive coordinator for a number of years, and the two have remained close friends even after Saban retired after the 2023 season.