There is no greater time of the year than the beginning of the college football season. This first preview will focus on the Georgia Bulldogs.
The beginning and end of the expectations in Athens should be this: 11-1 or 12-0 or this season is an abject failure.
Georgia returns one of the best defenses in the country, as well as a third year starter at quarterback who will set the all time UGA record for career touchdown passes.
There are no excuses this year and Georgia fans should be setting the expectations as high as they can go.
When you look at Georgia's schedule a couple of things should jump out at you. First, the schedule is as easy as an SEC schedule can get (no Bama, LSU, or Arkansas again!). Secondly, Georgia will be favored in at least 10 of the 12 games they will play.
Those two games will decide what type of season it is going to be. The first game is a mythological big game. Georgia travels to Missouri in week 2 to play the newest addition to the SEC East. Everyone is talking about this game like it could be an upset, and that is exactly why it won't be. Upsets happen when people aren't looking for them and when teams aren't ready to play. With all of the talk surrounding this game, there is no way that Georgia will be looking past Missouri. You are going to hear people talk about the fact that Georgia will be missing some key players on defense, and that is true. It looks like Bacarri Rambo, Sanders Commings, and Alec Ogletree will all miss the game due to suspensions. However, Aaron Murray and the Georgia offense will also be making the trip and that is why Georgia will beat Missouri. Missouri's defense gave up 28 or more points 5 times last season. Georgia will score at least 40 points against Missouri and despite the suspensions, Georgia defense will not come close to giving up 40 points.
The second game that people talk about is the October 6 game against South Carolina. This will be the biggest game of the season for both teams and I'm not stupid enough to try to tell you now who will win this game (hence the 11-1 or 12-0 prediction). I can tell you that Georgia has lost to South Carolina two straight years and that this series doesn't usually go in one team's favor for too long. This is the only acceptable loss on Georgia's schedule this season, and with South Carolina having to play LSU and Arkansas from the SEC's Western Division, Georgia could once again lose to South Carolina but play in the SEC title game.
One year ago, Mark Richt was on the hot seat, Isaiah Crowell was the next Herschel Walker, and Georgia was on the decline as a program. Now, Richt's seat has justifiably cooled, Crowell is off the team, and Georgia has a chance to do something that it hasn't done in 32 years.
The hardest title for a dynasty to win is the first one. With the players on this team, the talent at the high school level in this state, and the coaching staff that is in place, Georgia can start something special this season that will put this program at the same level as Alabama and LSU.
In Athens it's National Title or bust, and that is the way it should be.
