Kirby Smart would support nixing SEC title game under one condition
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In years past, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart has advocated for the SEC Championship Game. With a further-expanded College Football Playoff looking like an eventuality, Smart is starting to come around.
During an appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show on Wednesday, Smart said he would support nixing the game if the overall structure of the college football season was modified.
“I love the game. I’m an enthusiast. I love the game,” Smart told Finebaum. “If we can get our season over and the national championship done earlier by way of removing that game, I think I could find a way to support that. But I also think you just had Greg Sankey up here, and he would argue that game puts a lot of money into our programs. And you’re turning down money in an era when money is tight in a lot of the athletic departments.”
Smart also said earlier this month that the title game would likely have to go if the CFP grew. That echoed what Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said around the same time; he told USA Today the game had “run its course.”
The SEC has played a title game since 1992. Alabama won the first one, beating Florida at Legion Field in Birmingham. Florida then ripped off 4 straight. Georgia won its first in 2002, and it has become a mainstay in the game of late.
Smart’s Dawgs have made 5 straight appearances in the game. They have played in 8 of the last 9 games, and they have won 3 of the last 4.
The future of the game will likely come into focus a bit more as the 2026 season approaches and the sport’s power brokers make determinations on the future of the CFP.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
