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One assistant coach believes Georgia’s defense is better than Alabama’s
By Cody McClure
Published:
Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel apparently recently spoke with three coaches — whom he didn’t name — for a Friday article previewing Monday’s College Football Playoff National Championship Game between Alabama and Georgia.
One of those coaches gave a particularly interesting breakdown of the game.
“Yahoo Sports tracked down three assistant coaches who’ve schemed and studied both teams this year,” Thamel wrote. “Two picked Alabama to win and one picked Georgia.”
While two of the coaches picked Alabama, the other one reportedly felt like Alabama’s personnel isn’t nearly as good as it has been in the past — particularly when it comes to rushing the quarterback.
Thamel pointed out that Alabama has been vulnerable to play-action this season, thus leaving it susceptible to deep shots.
“The thing about them (Alabama) is that the way their defense is structured, you can get one-on-ones with safeties with you slot,” the coach apparently said.
He viewed Georgia much differently on the defensive side, noting the Bulldogs’ scheme — which is geared around freeing up its linebackers to make plays.
“There’s no weakness, they’re very sound,” he said. “I have a lot of respect for that defense. There’s just never any guys open. I have a lot of respect for their linebackers. They were the best linebackers I’ve seen in a long, long time.”
One of the coaches interviewed left this compelling nugget for folks to ponder:
“I think Kirby has the upper hand in this. Kirby knows Nick like a book, where Nick knows Kirby, but he doesn’t know him as a head coach.”
Cody McClure is an SEC Football Writer for Saturday Down South. He lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he also co-hosts a midday sports radio show for FOX Sports. Cody previously worked for Athlon Sports.
