Lane Kiffin jokingly floats Kirby Smart as next Atlanta Falcons head coach
Lane Kiffin has a recommendation for who should be the next head coach of the Atlanta Falcons: Kirby Smart.
Despite Georgia being unable to win a 3rd straight national championship, Smart has turned the Bulldogs into one of the elite programs in college football. And Kiffin — jokingly — suggested that Smart get the call from Falcons owner Arthur Blank to make the move to the pros.
@KirbySmartUGA is my pick. https://t.co/wx9yMwk28F
— Lane Kiffin (@Lane_Kiffin) January 8, 2024
For what it’s worth, Smart has NFL coaching experience: he was the Miami Dolphins’ safeties coach in 2006 under — who else? — Nick Saban. Saban, of course, took the Alabama job after 2 seasons at Miami (his wife, Miss Terry, notably “was not particularly happy” in South Florida), hired Smart to his staff, and the duo built a dynasty in Tuscaloosa — 2015’s title team also included Lane Kiffin as offensive coordinator — before Smart took the reins in Athens.
In all seriousness, Smart isn’t making the move to the NFL. The Falcons, for their part, went 21-30 in 3 seasons under Arthur Smith before his firing early Monday morning, just hours after a season-ending blowout loss to the New Orleans Saints.