Kirby Smart Has High Praise For Alabama Freshman

The eyes of the football world will be on Atlanta on Saturday when No. 1 Georgia plays No. 8 Alabama for the Southeastern Conference Championship. The Bulldogs look to extend their 29-game winning streak and win their second straight SEC Championship while the Crimson Tide tries to reclaim supremacy in the SEC.

The programs have gone head-to-head on the field a number of times since Kirby Smart took over the head job in Athens with the Dawgs winning the most recent matchup in the 2021 National Championship Game.

Smart and Alabama coach Nick Saban are familiar foes off the field as well as the two programs often compete for similar recruits.

One such talent is Alabama freshman Caleb Downs. The safety, from Hoschton, Georgia was considered a top-10 player in the class of 2023 and the No. 1 overall player in the state of Georgia. He played defensive back and running back in high school and led his team to a state championship as a senior.

Downs ultimately chose Alabama over Georgia and Ohio State and the Crimson Tide faithful are glad he did. Through 12 games he's tallied 95 tackles while being involved in four turnovers defensively.

"He doesn't look like a freshman at all," Smart said about Downs on Thursday. "He looks like a guy that's been playing for three years. He's instinctive. He's fast. He's fearless. He's everything that he was in high school. I've seen him play about 100 7-on-7 games at our stadium and at our facility when his high school team came over all the time, and he's everything that we thought he was, punt returner, he's just a football player that is instinctive, great tackler. Just what you draw up when you want a defensive back."

Two of Alabama's prized recruits in the 2023 class came from the Peach State, in safey Downs and in running back Justice Haynes. While Haynes hasn't quite had the chance to shine on offense it's safe to call Downs one of Alabama's best defenders in 2023.

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