Gary Danielson suggests Auburn should be worried about facing Kirby Smart
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No. 9 Auburn seems to be on a collision course with top-ranked Alabama for an Iron Bowl that will decide the SEC West.
There’s only one thing standing in the Tigers’ way: a trip to face old rival Georgia in Athens on Saturday. Though Auburn enters as double-digit favorites, CBS analyst Gary Danielson thinks that game could end up being a huge hurdle for coach Gus Malzahn’s squad.
“If I was Gus Malzahn, I’d want to play 10 other teams in the SEC rather than Georgia this week,” Danielson told CBS Sports’ Chip Patterson. “I don’t like the fact that (Bulldogs coach) Kirby Smart has faced me in big-time pressure games before.
“I think he is very attuned on how to attack the Auburn offense. If you look at Georgia’s defense, they’re really coming on with a lot of young athletes on the defensive line. … I think they tackle well at linebacker, and it should be a really tough game.”
Smart, of course, matched wits with Malzahn for several years during his eight-year stint as Alabama’s defensive coordinator. Malzahn was Auburn’s offensive coordinator for six of those eight years, during which the Crimson Tide went 4-2 in the Iron Bowl.
Could things be different now that they’re meeting as head coaches? We’ll find out when Auburn (7-2, 5-1) visits Georgia (5-4, 3-4) at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.
Marcus covers SEC football for Saturday Down South.
