Maybe Nick Saban is slowing down after all.

That’s how Kirby Smart jokingly put it upon seeing that Alabama’s coach was back at work two days after hip surgery. A procedure that typically calls for a six to eight-week recovery period lasted less than 48 hours for Saban. Alabama made a show of Saban’s return to the office, likely with a purpose in mind to combat any negative recruiting that may be out there, but Georgia’s coach offered up a great response when asked if he was surprised by the quick recovery by the Crimson Tide coach.

“No, that does not surprise me at all. It disappoints me actually that it wasn’t one day,” Smart offered during his appearance at Wednesday’s Regions Tradition from Birmingham. “With him, I can recall a lot of times no matter what is going on around him, he has an uncanny ability to focus and concentrate and he enjoys what he does. He’s passionate about his work. A little hip surgery isn’t going to stop him.”

There may be no coach in the SEC that knows Saban as well as Smart so it likely came as no surprise to see the Alabama coach back so soon. Based on their history together, the Georgia coach seems to believe Saban will be fueled to prove the doubters wrong more than ever.

That’s got to be a scary thought for Georgia and the rest of the SEC.