Dawgs schedule Texas, Clemson for home-and-homes
Georgia’s non-conference schedule for the next 12 years got a lot more interesting Monday, as it was announced the Bulldogs have agreed to home-and-home series against Texas and Clemson.
The Bulldogs will travel to Austin to take on the Longhorns on Sept. 2, 2028, and host Texas on Sept. 1, 2029.
Georgia is 1-3 all-time against the Longhorns, with the lone victory coming in the 1984 Cotton Bowl when John Lastinger quarterbacked the Bulldogs to a 10-9 win.
The three other meetings took place in Miami at the Orange Bowl (a 41-28 Texas win in 1949), Atlanta (a 26-7 loss in 1957), and Austin (an 18-13 loss in 1958).
Georgia, which will also play Clemson in the 2024 Kickoff Classic at Mercedes Benz Stadium, will travel to the ACC school on Sept. 15, 2029 with the Tigers coming to Athens on Aug. 31, 2030.
“We’re excited. I mean, I think when you come to the University of Georgia, you want to play against the best. I've always believed in playing Power 5 opponents. Our fan base will follow us anywhere. They want to go. We proved that last year," head coach Kirby Smart said. "We've proven over the history of time that Georgia people will travel. They want great games; they want home-and-homes. And as a coach, I know that for going out recruiting, it helps."
Clemson and Georgia first played in 1897 and have played 64 times since, with the Bulldogs holding a 42-18-4 advantage. The two teams last played in 2013 in Clemson and 2014 in Athens, with each team winning the home game.
Quarterback Jake Fromm obviously won't be around when the games are played, but acknowledged those types of contests are just as exciting for players as they are for fans.
"I think you can see where we are as a program," said Fromm, who made his starting debut in last year's game at Notre Dame. "It's kind of a way to compare. You really have to get up, to play big. Those games are usually at the beginning of the season, so you can kind of mold your team in a good way, to fight, in order to win those kinds of games."
The Bulldogs’ non-conference schedule has certainly received a boost in recent years.
In 2019, Georgia will host Notre Dame on Sept. 21, followed by a 2020 date against Virginia in the Kickoff Classic set for Sept. 7.
There’s more.
Georgia and Oregon will play in the 2022 Kickoff Classic and have a home-and-home series scheduled with UCLA starting in 2025 at the Rose Bowl, with the Bruins returning the trip in 2026.
"The College Football Playoff has shown they want strength of schedule. They want you to play good opponents. Who knows what the system will be ten years from now," Smart said. "It certainly could all change, but I'd argue that the better schedule you play and the better teams you play against, the more rewarding it'll be 10 years from now. I know 10 years ago from today, nobody thought we'd be where we are."