The Georgia Bulldogs have made unbelievable strides as a program in Kirby Smart’s three years as head coach.
Think about it. Two seasons of 11-plus wins, an SEC Championship, a Rose Bowl title, a spot in the National Championship game—heady accomplishments, for sure.
Of course, there’s still a lot more to achieve. That is, if the Bulldogs can get past Alabama in the SEC Championship.
Love him or hate him, what Nick Saban has done as the head coach of the Crimson Tide is simply amazing. With five national titles since 2009, the Crimson Tide is on an unprecedented roll.
This year’s squad has run roughshod through its schedule, averaging almost 50 points a game with an offense that might be the best Saban has ever had.
If Georgia wants to be recognized as a program that's truly taken the next step, though, the Bulldogs have to beat the Crimson Tide. It’s really as simple as that.
From a talent perspective, it’s pretty clear that Smart has managed to narrow the gap. There’s still work to do, and it’s going to take a victory over Saban to convince most folks that the Day of the Dawg has truly arrived.
We’ll obviously delve more into the actual match-up as we move forward in the week, but prepare yourself: Georgia will be a double-digit underdog. Still, it shouldn’t bother Smart too much as he preps his team for a rematch of last year’s National Championship.
Get ready to be inundated with stories reliving last year’s game, the way Georgia lost, 2nd-and-26, blah, blah, blah. Not here, of course—nearly everywhere else. It's the obvious "story line."
While players obviously remember what happened, it’s not something they’re going to worry over as they get ready for this year’s game. Different year, different circumstances.
Will the results be different? We’ll see, but whatever happens, the Bulldogs have given their fans a lot to be proud of.
Confession: They’ve already proven me wrong. After the Dawgs were beaten soundly by LSU, I didn’t see the team responding with five straight victories.
Not only did the Dawgs win, but they did so in impressive fashion, and truly seem to be peaking at the right time. Just like you draw it up, right?
Yes, I’m including Saturday’s big victory over Georgia Tech.
Don’t let anyone try to kid you or bellyache that the Bulldogs were somehow “let down” in yanking the stingers out of the Yellow Jackets’ collective rear ends.
This was a tail-kicking.
Georgia Tech scored two touchdowns against a freshman-laden defense. For those who bothered counting, at times there were eight TRUE freshmen on the field for the Bulldogs, while the Jackets were finally having some measure of offensive success in a meaningless situation.
Don’t come at with me with this somehow being a “debacle,” or arguing you weren’t happy how the Bulldogs “finished.”
With the game squarely in hand, all Smart was worried about was getting the game over and keeping anyone from getting hurt. Mission accomplished.
Next week is entirely different. I won’t sugarcoat it. Georgia is going to need to be at its absolute best to pull the upset Saturday. The Bulldogs will need to play out of their minds on offense, defense, and special teams, although even then, it may not be enough against this Alabama squad.
Then again, that’s why they play the games.
There have been bigger upsets in college football, and this team has already proven me wrong. We’ll see if they can do it again.
