Kirby Smart brought Georgia football its first national championship in over four decades, so it only figures that they want to keep him around forever.

Whenever a college football coach grabs a natty at a given program, that school is likely to lengthen the leash for their guy given what he accomplished. Whenever a coach brings a football powerhouse its first national championship in 41 years, though, that’s going to buy that man a bit more than just a longer leash.

That’s what Kirby Smart accomplished for Georgia football this past season as he helped guide Stetson Bennett and a historically great Bulldogs defense to the promised land for the first time since 1980. Now, all the jokes about the title drought are dated and Georgia is the king of the castle.

As such, the king of the king of the castle, Smart, is going to get rewarded. According to reports, the Georgia athletic department is finalizing a long-term and almost surely lucrative extension for Smart.

Georgia football set to give Kirby Smart massive contract extension

The details of Smart’s reported extension at Georgia have not yet been revealed but, given that offensive coordinator Todd Monken saw a $750,000 per year raise with his salary, you have to assume that the Bulldogs head man will be one of the highest-paid coaches in the country, if not at the top of that list.

And to be sure, he deserves it.

Not only does Smart now have a national championship to his credit, but he has laid the foundation to build a dynasty in Athens. His recruiting has consistently been at the top of college football since he joined the program and there are no signs that’s going to slow down.

Furthermore, there’s even reason to believe that Georgia could be more dangerous moving forward under Smart. The defense is always going to be elite with the talent he keeps accumulating, but he’s also been improving the offense, the “weak” aspect of the team in their title run, in the talent department as well.

Suffice it to say, this is a payday well earned by Kirby Smart.

For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.