ESPN’s Rece Davis still feels there’s a tension between Alabama’s Nick Saban and Georgia’s Kirby Smart.
During a recent appearance on “The ESPN College Football Podcast,” the “College GameDay” host described the palpable energy he felt speaking with the two coaches in the days surrounding Monday’s national championship game.
The elevated heart rate of @davidpollack47. Dodging beer cans. Why didn’t they listen to us about Stetson Bennett? Impact on Saban/Smart relationship. And Pollack treating himself for the title by upgrading from dial up internet. Download immediately! https://t.co/KqfDoLMXcU
— Rece Davis (@ReceDavis) January 12, 2022
“Whether it’s totally about that they’ve both been at the upper echelon of the sport, whether it’s about second and 26, whether it’s about recruiting, whatever,” Davis explained. “Both of them professional about it, but you can feel it.”
“You can feel it and the things that happened,” he continued. “I mean Kirby really talked pretty openly about having a greater understanding now and kind of appreciating the relationship a little more.”
“And I think maybe Nick maybe has started to, not that he hasn’t always, but started to understand that you can foster those relationships and still maintain that high level of competition.”
Nick Saban giving Kirby Smart props postgame pic.twitter.com/AD4J0PaL7X
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 11, 2022
Davis continued on. Telling his podcast-mates that the SEC championship and eventual College Football Playoff title game actually brought the two coaches closer.
“I’m not saying it was bad, and they’re still going to compete,” Davis said. “The way Nick handled himself, I think the graciousness that Kirby showed, it felt different. It felt different than it has the last few years.”
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