Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer is embracing the big-game environment and the challenge Georgia will bring to Tuscaloosa on Saturday.

Indeed, DeBoer does not seem interested in creating the illusion that it will be “just another game” with ESPN GameDay set to arrive.

“It is kinda cool that we have a lot of people that want to be a part of the atmosphere and the excitement the game will bring,” DeBoer said, seemingly taking the potential distractions in stride.

“I told the guys with GameDay and everything being here …. take as much off of their plates, other than a few extra interviews toward the end of the week.”

The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, but already, the chess game is underway.

The psychological approach to handling the big-game environment varies between the Georgia and Alabama coaching staffs.

This ain’t your daddy’s Nick Saban Crimson Tide team.

Offensive genius

As for the Xs and Os, DeBoer made no bones about it, the plan is to out-smart the opposition.

“What you have to do is create the opportunities with your matchups, and create opportunities to do what you can do to get a step or have that defense freeze or flinch, that’s offensive football,” DeBoer explained to the Alabama media on Monday.

“You try to do that any week, but that’s what becomes a bigger test when you have a program like this (Georgia) that has so much continuity with what they’ve been doing, especially on the defensive side of the ball.”

Of course, with that “continuity,” DeBoer has an idea of what to expect from Smart’s Georgia defenses.

It doesn’t hurt that DeBoer beat the defenses of Oregon coach Dan Lanning — whose defensive philosophies are similar to Smart’s — three times while at Washington.

At Georgia, the names and faces have changed under Smart, but the calculated approaches to creating havoc with minimal big-play risk has not changed.

Ultimately, Smart and DeBoer would agree, for all the scheming taking place, it comes down to winning the line of scrimmage and execution.

“The main thing,” DeBoer said, “is they get prepared to play the best football game they’ve played this year.”

Words of wisdom

To that end, DeBoer shared how he’s having returning players off last year’s SEC Championship team share the wisdom they gained from defeating Georgia, 27-24.

“You look back to last year, right? And this is a new team, this is a new season, and that’s what I make sure I’m emphasizing, this is the 2024 Alabama Crimson Tide football team,” DeBoer said.

“But there’s certainly learning moments you have when you’ve been through the experiences … our players can take those experiences and give them confidence and give them an understanding of what it takes.”

Some of those key players, such as SEC Championship Game MVP Jalen Milroe and preseason All-American safety Malachi Moore, figure to have plenty to say.

“You try to give them a chance to spread what they have learned to the rest of the team, understanding it’s going to be a four quarter game and understanding there’s going to be ebbs and flows to the game,” DeBoer said.

“The physicality isn’t going to be here and there, it’s going to be every single play, so you have to be on your ‘A’ game the entire start to finish.”

Winning streaks

It has been well-documented that Smart has won 21 consecutive games when he has had more than a week to prepare.

But there’s something to be said for DeBoer’s success in such instances, too, as he’s won 10 straight with more than a week to prepare.

“For us, it’s a matter of doing what we can do and making sure we present the best version of what we can be on Saturday through great preparation and great focus,” DeBoer said.

“Making sure we are feeling great about what we have, because we do, we feel like we have a football team that’s a top-tier team that’s going to every day continue to get better.

“That’s not just this week, that’s not just next week, that’s all season long. So, we really feel the skies the limit …”

Certainly, with a win over Georgia it would be.