Is UGA Football coach Kirby Smart Considered the No. 1 Coach in College Football Anymore?
ATHENS - Another list of the top coaches in college football is out, and UGA football coach Kirby Smart is at the top of this one.
ESPN released its list of top college football coaches on Friday, and the Worldwide Leader has Kirby Smart as the No. 1 overall coach in college football headed into the 2025 season. Kirby is starting his 10th season as the head coach at Georgia after serving as defensive coordinator during the beginning of Nick Saban’s ultra successful run at Alabama.
“With more first-round NFL draft picks (20) than losses (19) in his nine seasons as coach of his alma mater and back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022, it's hard to argue it could be anyone other than Smart with Nick Saban retired. I guess if Ryan Day guided Ohio State to a second straight national title or Dabo Swinney captured his third at Clemson this season, you could make the case they're better. I don't think Georgia's program is going to slip anytime soon.”
Kirby is 6-2 against coaches listed in ESPN’s top ten coaching list. He was followed by Ohio State’s Ryan Day, Clemson’s Dabo Swinney, Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman, Texas’ Steve Sarkisian, Oregon’s Dan Lanning, Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer, Penn State’s James Franklin, Utah’s Kyle Whittingham and Iowa State’s Matt Campbell.
ESPN further reported that Kirby is only five wins shy of moving to second in all-time wins for coaches in their first ten seasons of coaching. It should be noted college football plays more games than ever now - as seen during UGA’s 2022 national title season when the Bulldogs beat not only Day and Ohio State, but also Lanning and Oregon to complete an undefeated 15-0 season.
Georgia is set to kickoff the 2025 season in Athens against Marshall. A game time and network telecast for the game has not yet been announced by Disney.