This is an opinion column.
For the past 59 days, a single flame crisscrossed the globe -- touching the scenic French countryside to remote territories like Guadeloupe in the Caribbean and overseas departments like Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean.
The spectacle of the Olympic flame’s migration from its lighting in Greece to the caldron in Paris is a tradition with roots dating back centuries B.C. Even the greatest cynics must acknowledge the incredible symbolism dating back to a few thousand years.
Anyway, a globe-spin away, an even more cherished torch is up for a new recipient.
From Nick Saban to … who?
College football’s caveman combustible is up for grabs and Georgia head coach Kirby Smart is holding a gas can and a book of matches.
Now comes the hard part.
No longer is his former boss standing in the way so that open door to dynasty mode can be the most challenging threshold to break.
Kinda like that 3-foot putt.
Nothing’s a gimme.
But who else stands in any position to assume the Saban throne?
Or is it even fair to consider this a traveling trophy, considering Saban’s run over the past 15 years has been practically unrivaled and thus not inheritable? Probably not, but there have been your Steve Spurriers, Bobby Bowdens, Tom Osbornes, Urban Meyers and Pete Carrolls who had shorter torch jogs before Saban broke the curve from 2009-23.
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Consider the fact Smart is one of only three active head coaches who’ve won a college football title and the only one in the conversation not just to compete but stand as a preseason title favorite, he’s got fewer excuses to not join at least that second tier.
His biggest hurdle is gone too.
Smart arguably had the best team in the nation, exiting November last year, poised for a third straight national title that even Saban couldn’t claim. Yet it was his old supervisor who dealt one final insult on the way out the door, slamming it on the Bulldogs’ 29-game winning streak in the SEC title game to exclude the top-ranked team from the playoff.
It was Smart’s fifth loss in six games as Georgia’s head coach facing Saban -- the fourth in either the SEC or CFP title game. Three of those heartbreakers stood between Smart and wrestling that torch out of Saban’s pre-retirement hands but he’ll have to settle for the competition for the rest of the left-behinds.
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That list includes previous contender Dabo Swinney, but it’s been half a decade since his budding Clemson dynasty showed signs of dethroning. He’s the second active coach with a championship ring with Mack Brown third, and that’s about all we need to say about that.
Essentially, it’s a battle between Smart, himself and the weight of that crown.
Saban gave Smart as much of an endorsement as you’ll get from his perch on the SEC Network set Tuesday at SEC Media Days.
“He’s the best assistant coach we’ve ever had, on defense, especially, and seeing the big picture of the game,” Saban told the television audience.
Through eight years at Georgia, Smart has a 94-16 record with the two titles. Saban was 91-17 with three rings in his first eight Alabama seasons but he stepped into that job with NFL and SEC head coaching experience. He also had Smart as his defensive coordinator for the last seven of those eight and all three of the national title runs.
So one could argue at least part of Saban’s torch run had a Smart tailwind but none of these accomplishments are solo jobs. Conducting the orchestra at such a consistently high level is what kept pushing Saban up the list of all-time greats.
Does Smart have the discipline to avoid the pitfalls that come with that heavy crown? He’s as close as it comes to a Saban clone but it’s hard to say he has the same head-down, obsessive attention to detail and nothing else as his former manager. Nobody does.
That’s at least partially why so many had mini-runs but not 1.5 decades of annual contention.
And while Saban programs weren’t immune to off-field legal issues, Georgia’s problem with reckless driving, which continued even after the deaths of a player and staffer in 2023, is one that threatens stability to some degree.
“The incidents that we’ve had off the field are not something that that we condone,” Smart said Tuesday,via OnlineAthens.com. “It’s very unfortunate, disappointing I guess is the best word. I always talk about process and outcomes. I talked about that with wins and losses that we try not to base things on the outcomes with wins and losses. In this situation, the outcomes are very disappointing.”
Process and outcomes, you say?
The vocabulary carried crossed the border from Alabama to Georgia.
So have the wins.
And a few championships.
But now comes expectations that’ll be even greater without the threat of Saban snatching another ring from Smart’s finger. They’ll be greater than ever despite the increased difficulty of an expanded SEC, minus the comfort of the inconsistent East Division, and having to navigate at least one more playoff game in a minefield of a postseason structure.
But Saban’s gone.
And it’s either Smart’s time to run with his torch or clip the trip wire that’s separated it’s last owner from all the others.
Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter@ByCasagrandeor onFacebook.