The hammer vs. nail rivalry in the SEC went the way it usually goes... Despite having arguably the better roster once again, Kirby Smart's Georgia Bulldogs cannot beat the Alabama Crimson Tide for the life of them. Yes, Mike Bobo deserves a ton of criticism for a ton of dumb play calls in crucial spots. Yes, Glenn Schumann should be ripped for not doing much at all. This all falls back on Smart...
There is no way around it. Georgia has arguably the worst set of coordinators of any team ranked inside the top 25. It should not matter that Bobo played at Georgia when Smart was there and is one of his greatest friends. He has been more bad than good in crucial spots for the Dawgs. It should not matter that Schumann trusted Smart enough to follow him to Athens in 2016, the guy cannot coach.
So if you want to look at why Georgia saw its 33-game home winning streak come to an end, look no further than the men Smart entrusts on the sidelines. This was not Smart's best game by any means, but he really needed his friends to come through for him and they did not. Schumann's first half was a disaster, but he did redeem himself in the second. Bobo continues to be a huge stooge calling plays.
If Georgia wants to win another national championship, Smart needs to upgrade his two coordinators.
Kirby Smart can no longer prop up his friends to be Georgia coordinators
Smart has two national championships at his alma mater. He is widely seen as the best coach in the sport, so why does he settle for mid-tier crapola from his two most important coaches. Bobo loves to run the dang ball, but his play-calling on third down was drool monkey stupid. Putting Cash Jones in an impossible spot on a fourth-down play late was the latest fireable offense from Bobo the Clown.
As far as Schumann is concerned, the man has zero dog in him and will never be a head coach worth a damn. He lacks any fire on the sidelines. Smart is fantastic at halftime adjustments, so we should give him credit for that, as opposed to continually prop up Schumann. The worst part in all of this is these bozos he has calling plays are starting to get in his head. They messed with Smart's brain, man!
No, this is not about begging and pleading with Todd Monken to come back to Athens, although he is probably finding Lamar Jackson to be a frustrating mess in Baltimore. This is not about finding your next Dan Lanning on defense either. It is about recognizing when a high-profile assistant does not have it. Kalen DeBoer leaned on his coordinators in Ryan Grubb and Kane Wommack to win this one.
The good news for Georgia is they get to start a new winning streak next week at home vs. Kentucky.