Alabama football coach Nick Saban leads the Crimson Tide against his former assistant Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs on Monday night in the College Football National Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
It is an intriguing matchup between the mentor and his pupil, who led the Crimson Tide defense before accepting the head coaching job in Athens.
But while Smart may have a deep understanding of Saban’s strategy and what makes him tick, it won’t be easy to come out on top.
In fact, former Saban assistants struggle when the time comes to face off against their former boss.
Ahead of the national championship, ESPN Stats & Info tweeted out that Saban has a perfect 11-0 record when coaching against his former assistants. All 11 wins have come by at least two touchdowns.
The unsuccessful assistants to go against Saban are Derek Dooley, Jim McElwain, mark Dantonio, Will Muschamp and Jimbo Fisher.
Here’s the full breakdown:
0 days to the #CFBPlayoff national title game.
0 former Nick Saban assistants have beaten him as a head coach, losing all 11 games by at least 14 points. pic.twitter.com/zPCNk46kE9
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 8, 2018
Kickoff between the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs is set for 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Will Smart be able to reverse the trend and knock off his former boss to lead Georgia to a national title? Sound off in the comments section below with your thoughts and predictions for tonight’s big game.
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