ATLANTA—Nick Saban retired during the offseason. You may have heard about it. His departure, coupled with Jim Harbaugh fleeing to the NFL, leaves college football with just three active head coaches who have won national championships. Two of them—the only two who have won more than one title—faced off here Saturday.

The result underscored who is the new king of the sport. It’s two-time champion Kirby Smart, and it’s not close. The coach of the Georgia Bulldogs won his 40th straight regular-season game, routing the Clemson Tigers, 34–3, in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. And his two-time champion counterpart, Dabo Swinney, looks more like a has-been than ever.

The latest iteration of the Georgia beast is much like its predecessors. The Bulldogs have dudes all over the field, a never-ending supply of dominators and playmakers just waiting for their chance to show what they can do. Nine Dogs caught passes from quarterback Carson Beck against Clemson, and 22 others made tackles. 

Star transfer running back Trevor Etienne, who came in from the Florida Gatos, didn’t play after an offseason DUI. Touted freshman Nate Frazier racked up 83 yards on 11 carries in his first college football game. Linebacker Jalon Walker, who was 11th on the team in tackles last season, was unblockable for a long stretch of the second half, racking up 1 ½ tackles for loss and 1 ½ sacks. Beck was a known commodity, but he showcased a full arsenal of talent in making a variety of throws and some timely runs.

The Bulldogs hit. They covered. They executed. They dominated.

The contrast between a very current Kirby and an outdated Dabo is jarring. Swinney has played Smart twice and is yet to score a touchdown. A guy who stood toe-to-toe with Saban for many years is lying at Smart’s feet. This was Swinney’s worst loss since 2013, before he elevated Clemson to elite status.

Swinney famously took zero transfers in the offseason, continuing his noble but anachronistic approach of building his team through high-school recruiting and internal player development. He’s also now lost three of his last four season openers, and 11 of his last 41 games after going 79–7 the previous six seasons. It’s getting away from him.

There was little to no room to explain away this beatdown, so Swinney didn’t even bother. “Tyler from Spartanburg” might well be on Line One for Swinney’s next radio show, ready to fire away again.

“You get beat like this, it’s on the head coach,” he said. “That’s on me. … When you lose like this, [the critics] have got every right to say what they want to say.”

Acknowledging that Georgia’s defense is a monster, Clemson still has to be able to do better than this offensively. The Tigers generated one play longer than 19 yards and averaged just 3.6 yards per play. 

The Tigers have become a place where hotshots go to flounder on that side of the ball, with continual offseason talk about improvement that doesn’t really happen.

Coordinator Garrett Riley, USC Trojans head coach Lincoln’s brother, was swiped from TCU at $1.75 million a year after the Horned Frogs made the College Football Playoff championship game in 2022. Riley’s last TCU offense averaged 38.8 points and 455 yards per game; last season at Clemson, Riley’s unit put up 29.8 points and 402.7 yards. Now this season’s team has slogged to 188 yards and three points, the lowest totals yet for Clemson under Riley.

Cade Klubnik was a five-star quarterback recruit—as was DJ Uiagalelei before him. Klubnik was a pedestrian first-year starter in 2023, recording a 126.35 pass efficiency rating that ranked 10th in the Atlantic Coast Conference. His efficiency rating against Georgia on Saturday: 96.30. But this offensive horror show was a team effort: Klubnik’s receivers didn’t help him out early with some dropped passes, and there were a couple of crucial penalties. 

Swinney did stick up for Klubnik, saying he thought the quarterback played well. And, characteristically, the coach voiced confidence about the season ahead.

“I feel great about our team,” Swinney said. “A loss is a loss; I hate to lose. So it hurts. This one will leave a mark. This will be one I won’t forget.

“They didn’t hand out a national championship trophy tonight. We didn’t lose the ACC tonight.”

Indeed, the ACC is a bit of an early mess. Reigning champion Florida State was beaten by Georgia Tech last week. Trendy pick Virginia Tech was upset by perennial Southeastern Conference doormat Vanderbilt on Saturday. And the once-mighty Tigers were embarrassed in Atlanta.

Smart was asked after the game about the transfer portal in relation to Clemson. Smart hasn’t been a huge portal dabbler himself, choosing to simply fill a few gaps when they appear. But he acknowledges the need for it.

“If you give me every kid I sign, they stay at my program for four years and they can’t leave, I would take that every day of the week,” he said. “But if we’re going to lose kids, we’ve got to replace them. … It’s a forced situation. You have to use it.”

Swinney has been a self-made success in part due to his stubborn belief in himself and in how he builds a program. He was successful for long enough with that approach that it’s become difficult to get him to accept a need to make radical changes. Starting 4–4 last season led to the “Tyler from Spartanburg” moment and a greater level of criticism than Swinney has endured in more than a decade—but then Clemson regrouped and won its last five games, and Swinney could claim his approach is still viable.

The same thing could happen here. Losing to Georgia is no great shame—although the margin was brutal. Season-opening losses are less costly than ever with the expanded playoff looming. There is an entire season ahead.

But the days of Clemson being able to measure up with the very best programs in the country are fading like a Trevor Lawrence jersey left out in the sun. This was a yardstick game for the two most accomplished active coaches in college football, and it was an absolute beatdown of Dabo Swinney by Kirby Smart.

Gameday is once again here for Georgia Tech. Tonight, they welcome their cross-town rival Georgia State and the Yellow Jackets will be looking to start their season 2-0 for the first time since the 2016 season. After being able to beat Florida State in Ireland last week, will Georgia Tech be able to avoid the letdown?

This is going to be the first ever meeting between the two programs and you can bet that Georgia State is going to want to come out and ruin whatever good feeling that Georgia Tech has been able to generate over the last week. There has been a lot of national attention on the Yellow Jackets over the past week and tomorrow is going to be the first indication of how they have been able to handle it and remain focused on their goals for the season.

So how do these two teams matchup and who will win tonight? Let’s preview the game.

Georgia Tech Offense vs Georgia State Defense

Last week, Georgia Tech was able to control the line of scrimmage against a very talented Florida State defense and on paper, they should be able to do what they want in this game. There could be some interesting wrinkles though that Georgia State could throw at the Yellow Jackets.

The Panthers defensive coordinator is Kevin Sherrer, who was on the Yellow Jackets staff last year. Sherrer took over as the defensive coordinator and play caller last year around the middle of the season and while the Georgia Tech defense did not improve much, they did have some games where they were able to force a good number of turnovers. The Panthers defense has some new faces on it and it will be interested to see how they are used.

Haynes King played a really sound game vs Florida State and made plays on the ground and through the air. Georgia Tech clearly wanted to beat the Seminoles on the ground last week and I wonder if they could try and attack Georgia State through the air and open up the offense. The best number for King last week was that he committed zero turnovers. King made timely throws and was a dynamic runner last week and will be a vocal point again tonight.

The running attack ran for 190 yards and nearly six yards per carry last week against Florida State and they should be able to dictate things tonight. Jamal Haynes led the way last week and Chad Alexander was the main backup. Head coach Brent Key said the health of this room is good heading into the week, which means Trey Cooley might be back. If this game does get out of hand, look for freshman Anthony Carrie or Evan Dickens to get carries as well.

The offensive line did a great job last week of opening up holes for the run game and protecting Haynes King from the Florida State pass rush. The Panthers defensive line is nowhere is near as talented and this should be the biggest mismatch on paper in the game. Georgia Tech should be able to move the ball rather easily on the ground and it will be interesting to see how Georgia State tries to slow the Yellow Jackets.

Malik Rutherford was the top wide receiver last week, but guys like Eric Singleton Jr, Chase Lane, Abdul Janneh, Leo Blackburn, and Bailey Stockton all got time as well. The Georgia State defense was one of the worst in the country last year when it came to defending the pass, but that was last year and there are a host of new transfers on that side of the ball for the Panthers.

Some guys to watch on the Panther’s defensive line include Henry Bryant and Fuches Lewis in the middle and transfers Dorian Royal, Sir Mells, and Bishop Thomas as well. Justin Abraham and Kevin Swint are a talented group of linebackers and Gavin Pringle could be a difference maker in the secondary. Will the Panthers defense be better? It is hard to say, but they have brought in quite a few transfers on that side of the ball.

As long as Georgia Tech does not turn the ball over, they should be able to do what they want to against this defense. The run game should be strong and I would look for the Yellow Jackets to take some shots through the air as well.

Georgia Tech Defense vs Georgia State offense

The Georgia Tech defense was one of the stories of the game last week and they showed massive improvement from a year ago. They held Florida State to under 100 yards rushing and had seven tackles for loss. They are going against a far less talented offense this week, but they need to show they can string together consecutive strong performances.

Georgia State could play multiple quarterbacks tomorrow night and Georgia Tech is very familiar with one of the options. Former Yellow Jackets quarterback Zach Gibson might get the start for Georgia State tomorrow or it could be former Penn State/Pitt transfer Christian Veilleux. The Panthers took multiple transfer quarterbacks this offseason and they could play multiple today.

The running attack is going to be led by USF transfers Michel Dukes and Colorado transfer Sy’Veon Wilkerson. The offensive line for the Panthers could see a lot of rotation tonight and they will have a tough time against Georgia Tech’s front four.

Last week, the Yellow Jackets defensive line did a great job of slowing down the Florida State offense. Zeek Biggers and Makius Scott did a great job on the interior, while Romello Height, Sylvain Yondjouen, and Josh Robinson had strong games off the edge. Expect there to still be strong rotation with this group still.

Kyle Efford had a strong game last week against Florida State and Trenilyas Tatum will be the other starter at linebacker. E.J. Lightsey and Tah’j Butler were the other linebackers who got playing time last week.

The strongest position group on Georgia State in my opinion is the wide receiver group. Petey Tucker, Ja’Cyais Credle, and Tailique Williams are the guys to know. This is a talented group, but do they have a quarterback to get them the ball? That is one of the many questions facing the Georgia State offense.

The Yellow Jackets secondary had a solid week against Florida State and Ahmari Harvey, Warren Burrell, LaMiles Brooks, and Clayton Powell-Lee will have to make sure none of the Panthers receivers have any big plays.

X-Factor

I feel like a broken record, but turnovers are the biggest key to tonight. Georgia Tech is the superior team in every way on paper and the only reason this game could be close is if they are careless with the football. As long as they take care of the football, I have a hard time seeing this game go in favor of Georgia State.

Prediction

The Yellow Jackets struggles in games like these is well documented and they are going to have to prove this is different. I think this team is out on a mission and they win this game very comfortably behind a big game through the air from Haynes King. Georgia Tech will be 2-0 for the first time since 2016 and head into the game vs Syracuse playing very well.

Final Score: Georgia Tech 45, Georgia State 17

Rudy Giuliani may have to part with some of his prized possessions, including his New York Yankees memorabilia collection, as two Georgia election workers move to seize the former Big Apple mayor’s personal property to collect on a $148 million defamation judgement. 

Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss filed a motion in New York’s southern district federal court Friday asking a judge to enforce the December 2023 judgment against Giuliani by compelling the 80-year-old “to turn over certain property” – including his Madison Avenue apartment, extensive watch collection, autographed baseball memorabilia and three Yankees World Series rings. 

The Atlanta poll workers also asked the judge to put Giuliani into receivership to take his Palm Beach condominium and argued that they’re entitled to $2 million in fees Giuliani claims he’s owed by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. 

“Mr. Giuliani has proven time and again that he will never voluntarily comply with court orders, much less voluntarily satisfy Plaintiffs’ judgment,” lawyers for Freeman and Moss wrote in a court filing, explaining why the seizure of Giuliani’s assets is necessary. 

“At every step, Mr. Giuliani has chosen evasion, obstruction, and outright disobedience,” the attorneys added. “That strategy reaches the end of the line here.”

Freeman and Moss are seeking to take custody of several items Giuliani disclosed ownership of during his bankruptcy case, which was dismissed last month, including:

• 1 1980 Mercedes-Benz, Model SL500

• 1 signed Reggie Jackson picture

• 1 signed Yankee Stadium picture

• 1 signed Joe DiMaggio shirt

• 3 Yankee World Series rings

A spokesman for Giuliani told The Post that the filing from the poll workers is an attempt to “harass and intimidate” the former mayor before he appeals the defamation verdict. 

“The appeal of the objectively unreasonable $148 million verdict hasn’t even been heard, yet opposing counsel continues to take steps designed to harass and intimidate Mayor Rudy Giuliani,” Ted Goodman, Giuliani’s spokesman, told The Post.

“This lawsuit has always been designed to censor and bully the mayor, and to deter others from exercising their right to speak up and to speak out,” he added. “America is facing an existential crisis.”

“We were once a country that put a premium on free speech and the integrity of our justice system, yet we now live in a time where the justice system has been weaponized against Mayor Giuliani and so many others for strictly partisan political purposes.” Goodman said. 

A federal jury in Washington, DC, awarded $75 million in punitive damages to Moss and Freeman, as well as $20 million to each woman for emotional distress after two days of deliberations last December. Moss was also awarded just under $17 million for defamation, while Freeman received nearly $16.2 million.

The two women accused Giuliani of defaming them and destroying their reputations after he alleged that they worked to cheat Trump out of the 2020 election.