On Sunday, at a team meeting, Kirby Smart asked for any player in the room who had beaten Florida to stand up. No one did.
That is how you set the tone for the week. Yes, Georgia is undefeated and the third ranked team in the country, but on the field in Jacksonville, they have to prove they can get the job done.
For the past three years, Georgia has come up short against the Gators after winning three straight from 2011-2013.
For any fan, we have to remind ourselves that fan is short for fanatic, but as much as we care about the team's results, the players and coaches care more.
I want this season to keep heading down the magical road we have been on. I want it for the me, and for the rest of the Bulldog Nation. But more than anyone else, I want it for our 5 seniors who came back this year to do something special.
Lorenzo Carter, Davin Bellamy, Dominick Sanders, Sony Michel, and Nick Chubb.
Carter and Bellamy have led a defense that is the backbone of the team. Sanders has been a constant at safety since his freshman season. He is a ball-hawk. Sony Michel may end up being a better pro than a college player, but Sony has been a rock for this team and he is the vocal leader that this team needs.
Then there is Chubb. I'm going to be honest and tell you that I get a little emotional when I think about Nick Chubb.
When Chubb committed, I watched a few of his high school videos online and I immediately fell in love. I remember showing my brother those videos and telling him that this was going to be a guy we were going to love. He never went down from just one tackler and he kept his legs moving.
Little did I know that his play on the field would be the second most lovable thing about Nick Chubb. In 2014, when Todd Gurley was suspended, the quite freshman stepped up. After an amazing performance on the road at Missouri, they interviewed Chubb on the field. He was soft spoken, unassuming, and seemingly ego-less. He credited the offensive line, and his entire team around him.
I loved Gurley, but with Todd out because he signed autographs for money, here was a 19 year old kid, putting his teammates first.
After the horrific injury that Chubb suffered in Knoxville in 2015, he returned in 2016 with a solid, but not Chubb-like season. There was no reason for him to come back this season. No, he wouldn't have been a first round pick, but even still, the life of a running back is shorter than any other position in football. Chubb probably cost himself at least 1/2 million dollars returning to Georgia for his senior season.
So why did he do it? Why did any of these guys come back?
For today. For week 2 against Notre Dame. For what could happen over the next 5 weeks. These five seniors believed in this team, believed in this coaching staff, and delayed their own dreams of playing in the NFL for one more shot to bring Glory to Georgia.
Today isn't "win one for the Gipper." It should be win one for the seniors. They believed first. A top 5 recruiting class believed second, and now we are all believers.
Georgia wins big today. I hope each of those 5 seniors gets a special moment this afternoon on the banks of the St. Johns river. They deserve this moment, and our unending gratitude for restoring not only our hope, but more importantly our pride in the Red and Black.
Georgia 48. Florida 13
Go Dawgs
Saturday, October 28, 2017
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Enough is enough, and it's time for a change
It’s that time of the year again. Time for the Cocktail
Party. Time for Georgia/Florida.
This season, it is undoubtedly a tale of two teams, as
Georgia and Florida seem to be heading in opposite directions. Georgia, is 7-0
and ranked #3 in the nation. Florida is 3-3, and unranked.
In any season, there are games that could go either way. I
have always been a believer that your record is the best indicator of what kind
of team you are, but we can look and hypothesize a little as to what could have
been.
For Georgia, we are living our best case scenario every week
of 2017. You can’t really do any better than undefeated. When you look back at
the first 7 games of the season, there was really only one game that Georgia
was at risk of losing, and that would have been on the road to Notre Dame, who
is currently ranked in the Top 10.
Again, the situation in Gainesville is much different. It is
not an exaggeration to say that Florida is lucky to be 3-3. If it weren’t for
Butch Jones and Tennessee finding a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of
victory, Florida would have lost to the Vols. Kentucky had Florida beat as
well, but they failed to guard a wide receiver on two separate plays in the
fourth quarter that directly lead to touchdowns in what turned out to be a one
point loss for the Wildcats. So, if you look at the worst case scenario for
Florida, you see that the Gators are three plays away from being 1-5.
I say all of this to make the most obvious point anyone
could make heading into the game this weekend:
Georgia is a far better team than Florida.
Alright! This is the fun blog! This is where we get to talk
about how Georgia is going to dominate the Gators.
Wrong. This is the blog where we talk about how being the
better team hasn’t worked out so well for Georgia in Jacksonville.
Now, the premise of this idea is that Georgia had to be the
superior team, so we are throwing out all of the Spurrier era. From 1990-2001,
Florida was a much better program and fielded much better teams than Georgia. Even
though Georgia upset Florida in 1997, they weren’t the better team.
Hold on, here we go down bad memory lane.
2002: Georgia is undefeated coming into Jacksonville.
Georgia fails to convert on 3rd down throughout the entire game,
going something like 0-13 on third down. Even still, Georgia has a chance to
win the game, but Terrence Edwards, one of the greatest receievers in the
school’s history, drops a critical pass towards the end of the game that sealed
Georgia’s fate. The Dawgs end up 13-1, win the SEC title, and the Sugar Bowl,
but couldn’t beat Florida.
2003: Georgia is again the better team, and again the Dawgs
would fall to Florida. This time, the Gators kick a field goal late to win.
Georgia goes 12-3 and loses to eventual national champion LSU twice that
season, once in Baton Rouge and once in Atlanta in the SEC title game.
2005: Georgia limps into Jacksonville with starting
quarterback DJ Shockley injured. Joe T 3 was average at best for the Dawgs as
Florida scored on their first two offensive possessions and held on two win
14-10. Georgia again wins the SEC title, but fails to beat Florida.
2008: I’m not sure this game quite fits in this category
because the 2008 Dawgs lost four games overall and the 2008 Gators won the
National Championship. However, it makes the list because Georgia was the
preseason #1 team in the nation and featured Stafford, Moreno, and AJ Greene.
Florida embarrassed Georgia, 49-10 to get their season back on track and send
the Dawgs into a tail spin that lasted the better part of 4 seasons.
2014: This is the game that will be referenced time and time
again over the next few days. Georgia enters the game as big favorites (10
points). Florida was reeling, and it was a foregone conclusion that Will
Muschamp would be fired at the end of the season. Georgia scored early with
Nick Chubb to take a 7-0 lead, then Florida scored the next 31 points en route
to a mind-blowing 38-20 win. Florida ran all over Georgia. By the end of the
afternoon, Kelvin Taylor and Matt Jones combined to rush for 389 yards and four
touchdowns. As a team Florida ran for 436 yards. To illustrate just how one dimensional
Florida was, the Gators completed only 3 passes on the day for 27 total yards.
2015: Jacksonville will always be Mark Richt’s Waterloo, but
the 2015 game got him fired. Georgia was limping through the month of October,
with quarterbacks Bryce Ramsey and Grayson Lambert both showing they sucked. So
Richt went with Faton Bauta against the Gators to bring a running dynamic to
the game. However, rather than have Bauta run, Georgia ran their normal offense
with a quarterback that was worse at throwing the ball than their normal sucky
quarterbacks. Bauta, the running quarterback threw the ball 33 inexplicable
times and Georgia lost to Florida 27-3. How do I know that this was the game
that cost Richt his job? Georgia won the rest of the games in 2015 to finish
the season 9-3, so the loss in Jacksonville must have been the breaking point.
That brings us to 2017. Once again, Georgia is the better
team, but will it matter? Georgia is 5-11 against Florida since 2001. In at
least 5 of those 11 losses, Georgia was the better team. If we are being
honest, Florida is a program that is living off the Spurrier error, along with
about 4 really good years (the Tebow years) under Urban Meyer. Florida hasn’t
been great in a long time, but Georgia still can’t manage to get the job done.
Everything about this season feels different, but the
biggest test to see how much has changed may come Saturday afternoon at 3:30.
Georgia will probably go to the SEC title game, win or lose, but a loss will
mean that the more things change for Georgia, the more things in Jacksonville
stay the same.
Saturday, October 14, 2017
Take Nothing for Granted
In college football, humility is just a week away.
Last night, two more Top 10 teams fell to un-ranked opponents. While I never thought much of Washington State, I felt, and still feel, that Clemson is one of the best teams in the country, so seeing them lose to Syracuse is shocking.
Two big things for Georgia fans to remember as you start your college football Saturday, first, a one loss ACC Champion, Clemson will still make the playoff. Second, we don't have to root for other teams to lose. We control our destiny.
If the last two weeks have thought us anything it should be that it is way too early to be talking about playoffs, rankings, or even SEC titles. We need to be talking about one thing, Missouri.
Four top ten teams have lost to un ranked teams since last Saturday, that should be all the motivation we need to keep our focus on the Tigers.
On paper, this game should be as intriguing as the Samford game. Missouri is 98th in the country in rush defense, lady in the SEC in turnover margin, and winless in the conference.
Georgia is ranked 4th in the nation, they have the number one defense in points per game allowed, and are blowing out their conference opponents by an average of 30 points per game.
On paper, this game is pointless. On paper this isn't a game worth attending or watching. On paper, Georgia is favored by 30 points.
Problem is, the game isn't played on paper.
What is required from Georgia tonight is something that far too often plagues teams. Respect for their opponents. Too often, in different sports, a team knows they are better than their opponent so they go through the motions of preparation, but mentally they aren't on their game, because they expect to win. Just this past week, the US Men's National Team failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup because they couldn't be bothered to show up and give a respectable performance. In sports, anyone team can win one game.
Georgia is far better than Missouri, but if Georgia doesn't come out, grasp the Tigers by the neck, and choke the hope out of them early, you never know what could happen.
Kirby won't miss the opportunity to remind his team about Michigan, Oklahoma, Clemson, or Washington State, but these guys are 18-22 year old kids, so telling them might not get the job done. If it were me, I would spend the next 13 hours making the team watch Oklahoma's embarrassing performance last week, over and over.
I think this is a special team, so I think they will keep their focus where it should be, on their opponent, and get the job done tonight. I would never lay 30 points, but it will be a blowout.
Georgia 42. Missouri 17
Go Dawgs!
Last night, two more Top 10 teams fell to un-ranked opponents. While I never thought much of Washington State, I felt, and still feel, that Clemson is one of the best teams in the country, so seeing them lose to Syracuse is shocking.
Two big things for Georgia fans to remember as you start your college football Saturday, first, a one loss ACC Champion, Clemson will still make the playoff. Second, we don't have to root for other teams to lose. We control our destiny.
If the last two weeks have thought us anything it should be that it is way too early to be talking about playoffs, rankings, or even SEC titles. We need to be talking about one thing, Missouri.
Four top ten teams have lost to un ranked teams since last Saturday, that should be all the motivation we need to keep our focus on the Tigers.
On paper, this game should be as intriguing as the Samford game. Missouri is 98th in the country in rush defense, lady in the SEC in turnover margin, and winless in the conference.
Georgia is ranked 4th in the nation, they have the number one defense in points per game allowed, and are blowing out their conference opponents by an average of 30 points per game.
On paper, this game is pointless. On paper this isn't a game worth attending or watching. On paper, Georgia is favored by 30 points.
Problem is, the game isn't played on paper.
What is required from Georgia tonight is something that far too often plagues teams. Respect for their opponents. Too often, in different sports, a team knows they are better than their opponent so they go through the motions of preparation, but mentally they aren't on their game, because they expect to win. Just this past week, the US Men's National Team failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup because they couldn't be bothered to show up and give a respectable performance. In sports, anyone team can win one game.
Georgia is far better than Missouri, but if Georgia doesn't come out, grasp the Tigers by the neck, and choke the hope out of them early, you never know what could happen.
Kirby won't miss the opportunity to remind his team about Michigan, Oklahoma, Clemson, or Washington State, but these guys are 18-22 year old kids, so telling them might not get the job done. If it were me, I would spend the next 13 hours making the team watch Oklahoma's embarrassing performance last week, over and over.
I think this is a special team, so I think they will keep their focus where it should be, on their opponent, and get the job done tonight. I would never lay 30 points, but it will be a blowout.
Georgia 42. Missouri 17
Go Dawgs!
Sunday, October 8, 2017
Keep Chopping Wood
Another week, another solid performance, and another week of rising expectations. Georgia's victory over Vanderbilt was not the most impressive win of the season, but that alone is pretty impressive. While the Dawgs weren't at their best, the B game or C game was more than enough to win a SEC road game. I don't think anyone needs to be reminded, but Georgia lost to Vanderbilt last year at home. I think we can all agree, this year is much more fun.
Now the Dawgs get ready to host lowly Missouri between the hedges for Homecoming . You might be thinking this game is nearly pointless, but all I have to do is point you towards Norman, Oklahoma to show that no game is a guaranteed win. The Sooners lost at home to an Iowa State team who had their backup quarterback starting the game.
While there is no logical reason Missouri should be within 4 touchdowns of Georgia, some times sports can be illogical.
I would be fine if the team skipped watching the tape of the Vanderbilt game and watched the entire Oklahoma game instead.
With the Oklahoma loss, I saw a lot of social media posts about Georgia deserving to be #3 in the polls instead of #4. While that is a perfectly fine argument to make, the reality is that it doesn't matter one bit where Georgia is ranked right now. The focus for this team should be the next game on the schedule, and I'm sure that is exactly where Kirby will have their focus this week.
If Georgia keeps winning, the polls will take care of themselves.
One of the best things about this week was that Florida managed to lose at home, to LSU, who was coming off a home loss to Troy last week. The Gators now have one loss in the SEC, and will be considered underdogs this week as they head to Texas A&M. Unless something dramatic happens, Florida will pick up their second SEC loss against the Aggies, which means Georgia will be in position to all but clinch the East in Jacksonville.
While Jacksonville has been a house of horrors for the Dawgs for a quarter of a century, this could end up being one of the most important games Georgia has played there in a very long time. The last time Georgia was undefeated heading into the Cocktail Party was 2002, in Richt's second season. Georgia found a way to lose that game when they were much better than Florida for the only loss of the 2002 season.
Even if Missouri turns out to be a cupcake next week, the memories of 2002 should be plenty to keep Georgia fans uncomfortable for two weeks until the big game arrives.
One last thought for the week and it's about expectations. While the first half of the season has been a lot of fun, Georgia fans are notorious about letting themselves get carried away with expectations too early in the season. I was guilty if it in 2013 after Georgia beat LSU at home, and I put the Dawgs in the SEC title game. But this year is different. First, the team is playing with a consistency that I don't remember ever seeing before from Georgia, bust most importantly Georgia doesn't have that much competition left on their schedule.
Here we are, half way through the season and Georgia only has one game left against a ranked team. They only have two true road games left, and one of those is in Atlanta, where Georgia hasn't lost since 1999. The SEC is down again this year, and the East is down even by the East's ridiculously low standards. So Georgia's accent into the upper echelon on the college football world is equal parts Georgia's improvement and their opponents' mediocrity.
But don't worry, if the Dawgs take care of business over the next few weeks, they will get their chance to see where they measure up against the Tide in Atlanta.
Until then, keep enjoying the ride as the Dawgs keep chopping that wood.
Glory, Glory
Go Dawgs!
Now the Dawgs get ready to host lowly Missouri between the hedges for Homecoming . You might be thinking this game is nearly pointless, but all I have to do is point you towards Norman, Oklahoma to show that no game is a guaranteed win. The Sooners lost at home to an Iowa State team who had their backup quarterback starting the game.
While there is no logical reason Missouri should be within 4 touchdowns of Georgia, some times sports can be illogical.
I would be fine if the team skipped watching the tape of the Vanderbilt game and watched the entire Oklahoma game instead.
With the Oklahoma loss, I saw a lot of social media posts about Georgia deserving to be #3 in the polls instead of #4. While that is a perfectly fine argument to make, the reality is that it doesn't matter one bit where Georgia is ranked right now. The focus for this team should be the next game on the schedule, and I'm sure that is exactly where Kirby will have their focus this week.
If Georgia keeps winning, the polls will take care of themselves.
One of the best things about this week was that Florida managed to lose at home, to LSU, who was coming off a home loss to Troy last week. The Gators now have one loss in the SEC, and will be considered underdogs this week as they head to Texas A&M. Unless something dramatic happens, Florida will pick up their second SEC loss against the Aggies, which means Georgia will be in position to all but clinch the East in Jacksonville.
While Jacksonville has been a house of horrors for the Dawgs for a quarter of a century, this could end up being one of the most important games Georgia has played there in a very long time. The last time Georgia was undefeated heading into the Cocktail Party was 2002, in Richt's second season. Georgia found a way to lose that game when they were much better than Florida for the only loss of the 2002 season.
Even if Missouri turns out to be a cupcake next week, the memories of 2002 should be plenty to keep Georgia fans uncomfortable for two weeks until the big game arrives.
One last thought for the week and it's about expectations. While the first half of the season has been a lot of fun, Georgia fans are notorious about letting themselves get carried away with expectations too early in the season. I was guilty if it in 2013 after Georgia beat LSU at home, and I put the Dawgs in the SEC title game. But this year is different. First, the team is playing with a consistency that I don't remember ever seeing before from Georgia, bust most importantly Georgia doesn't have that much competition left on their schedule.
Here we are, half way through the season and Georgia only has one game left against a ranked team. They only have two true road games left, and one of those is in Atlanta, where Georgia hasn't lost since 1999. The SEC is down again this year, and the East is down even by the East's ridiculously low standards. So Georgia's accent into the upper echelon on the college football world is equal parts Georgia's improvement and their opponents' mediocrity.
But don't worry, if the Dawgs take care of business over the next few weeks, they will get their chance to see where they measure up against the Tide in Atlanta.
Until then, keep enjoying the ride as the Dawgs keep chopping that wood.
Glory, Glory
Go Dawgs!
Friday, October 6, 2017
Georgia/Vandy Preview
It has been a fun few weeks in Athens as the Dawgs are on a roll. The good times kept going today as five-star quarterback Justin Fields, FROM GEORGIA, decided he was staying home and committed to the Dawgs. This is the first time that a school has managed to get a five-star quarterback in three consecutive recruiting cycles.
I don't usually get this excited about recruiting during the season, but this is a big get for Georgia. I don't know if Fields will turn out to be a huge star or a huge bust, but either way, Kirby and the Georgia coaching staff are continuing to keep the best players from the state at home, and that is a recipe that will produce success.
As far as this week's game against Vanderbilt goes, Georgia should coast. Vanderbilt beat Georgia last year in Athens, so I don't think there is any chance the players will underestimate the Commies. The Dawgs have been one of the best teams in the country so far this season, while Vandy has had trouble against top-level opponents.
Alabama dominated Vanderbilt two weeks ago in amazing fashion, and last week, Vandy made Florida look like a viable team, with a viable offense.
Ralph Webb is the best offensive threat Vandy has. He is the school's all-time leading rusher, but he hasn't had a great senior season so far, and there is no reason to think his luck is going to change against Georgia's defense.
Even without Reggie Carter, Trent Thompson, and Natrez Patrick (who got popped for weed Thursday night), Georgia should be more than capable of stopping Vanderbilt's offense.
For Georgia's offense, it is all about getting better. The Dawgs have been incredibly effecient so far this season, but as the season goes on, and the competition level rises, Georgia's offense is going to need to rise to the level of the defense if this is going to be a special season.
The running game is so good, but I would expect to see a lot of D'Andre Swift in this game, saving Chubb and Michele for the stretch run.
For Jake Fromm, the next two weeks are all about getting better. There is a big difference in being good and being great. Fromm is good, there is no doubt about that, and I'm not sure he has to be great for Georgia to have a great season, but I do know that anyone who watched the Tennessee game saw Jake look like a freshman for the first time this season. Fromm was far from perfect in the first half, and as much as it pains me to say it, Gary Danielson was right about Fromm deciding where he is going to throw the ball before he takes the snap. Aaron Murray was guilty of that same sin, and it cost Georgia multiple times in big games.
The last two seasons have been defined by terrible Octobers.
In 2015, after starting the season 4-0, Georgia went 1-3 in October and got Mark Richt fired.
Last season Georgia was 3-1 heading into October. The Dawgs were again 1-3 with an inexplicable loss at home to Vanderbilt tucked between the heart breaking loss to Tennessee and yet another disappointment against Florida.
This year will be much different.
Georgia will take care of Vanderbilt and Missouri, but I expect one of those two games to be a little closer than you might think.
But this year, the entire month of October will boil down to one afternoon in Jacksonville.
Enjoy tomorrow, Dawgs win big, 44-6.
Glory, Glory
I don't usually get this excited about recruiting during the season, but this is a big get for Georgia. I don't know if Fields will turn out to be a huge star or a huge bust, but either way, Kirby and the Georgia coaching staff are continuing to keep the best players from the state at home, and that is a recipe that will produce success.
As far as this week's game against Vanderbilt goes, Georgia should coast. Vanderbilt beat Georgia last year in Athens, so I don't think there is any chance the players will underestimate the Commies. The Dawgs have been one of the best teams in the country so far this season, while Vandy has had trouble against top-level opponents.
Alabama dominated Vanderbilt two weeks ago in amazing fashion, and last week, Vandy made Florida look like a viable team, with a viable offense.
Ralph Webb is the best offensive threat Vandy has. He is the school's all-time leading rusher, but he hasn't had a great senior season so far, and there is no reason to think his luck is going to change against Georgia's defense.
Even without Reggie Carter, Trent Thompson, and Natrez Patrick (who got popped for weed Thursday night), Georgia should be more than capable of stopping Vanderbilt's offense.
For Georgia's offense, it is all about getting better. The Dawgs have been incredibly effecient so far this season, but as the season goes on, and the competition level rises, Georgia's offense is going to need to rise to the level of the defense if this is going to be a special season.
The running game is so good, but I would expect to see a lot of D'Andre Swift in this game, saving Chubb and Michele for the stretch run.
For Jake Fromm, the next two weeks are all about getting better. There is a big difference in being good and being great. Fromm is good, there is no doubt about that, and I'm not sure he has to be great for Georgia to have a great season, but I do know that anyone who watched the Tennessee game saw Jake look like a freshman for the first time this season. Fromm was far from perfect in the first half, and as much as it pains me to say it, Gary Danielson was right about Fromm deciding where he is going to throw the ball before he takes the snap. Aaron Murray was guilty of that same sin, and it cost Georgia multiple times in big games.
The last two seasons have been defined by terrible Octobers.
In 2015, after starting the season 4-0, Georgia went 1-3 in October and got Mark Richt fired.
Last season Georgia was 3-1 heading into October. The Dawgs were again 1-3 with an inexplicable loss at home to Vanderbilt tucked between the heart breaking loss to Tennessee and yet another disappointment against Florida.
This year will be much different.
Georgia will take care of Vanderbilt and Missouri, but I expect one of those two games to be a little closer than you might think.
But this year, the entire month of October will boil down to one afternoon in Jacksonville.
Enjoy tomorrow, Dawgs win big, 44-6.
Glory, Glory
Sunday, October 1, 2017
Raising Expectations
41-0.
That was fun.
Despite what Gary Danielson tried to say on the broadcast, the game was never in question. From start tonfinish Georgia dominated a Tennessee team that just got their coach fired, if not today, then by a he end of the season. Tennessee isn't great. Mississippi State isn't great. But that doesn't take away from the two performances that Georgia has given us the past two weeks.
Heading into October, Georgia is 5-0, with games against Vanderbilt and Missouri coming up next. Those should be easy wins, which should set up a defacto SEC East title game in Jacksonville. The Gators lost their starting QB yesterday for the remainder of the season, so they will turn back to Filepe Franks, who has already been benched this season.
Georgia will now be favored in 6 of their last 7 games, with the only exception being when the Dawgs travel to Auburn. Georgia should win the East, and anything less than 11-1 would be a huge disappointment.
So now we will see how Georgia handles expectations.
The Dawgs are going to be double digit favorites the next two weeks, and even the most conservative Georgia fan has to recognize that the expectations have changed for this team this year.
Now I know how you are feeling. You aren't quite ready to let yourself be vulnerable again. We have been hurt too many times in the past. Let's be honest, it's only been 8 months since most of us had our hearts ripped out in the Super Bowl. But here is the advice I have for Georgia fans.
Embrace the expectations.
This is what we wanted. We wanted Kirby to come in and make us contenders. Here we are, in year 2, and we are contenders.
At the beginning of the season, I said the minimum expectations for this season was 10-2 with losses to Florida and Auburn. Now those expectations have changed. The new minimum is 11-1 with the lose coming on the road at Auburn. Even with a loss to the Tigers, which isn't to say that Georgia can't win that game, Georgia would be playing in Atlanta against Alabama for the SEC title. A win against the best program in the nation would put Georgia in the playoff.
Guys, this is a great thing.
I don't believe Georgia is quite ready to take that last step this season, but it could happen. One thing I do know is that if the Dawgs can get to Atlanta I am really excited to see how this team stacks up against the standard of the SEC.
This isn't 2012. This isn't a one-off peak season with a ton of seniors that will lead to a rebuild. This is only the beginning. Kirby has changed this program in just 20 months. He has brought in elite talent at every position to provide depth, but most importantly, he has developed the talent that was already here so guys don't have their best seasons as freshman and sophomores.
Don't be nervous to be excited. Don't be hesitant to be confident. Embrace the expectations.
Georgia is the favorite in the SEC East.
Georgia is a Top 5 team.
Georgia is one great Saturday afternoon in December from playing in the College Football Playoff.
Raise the bar and attack the day!
Glory, glory!
That was fun.
Despite what Gary Danielson tried to say on the broadcast, the game was never in question. From start tonfinish Georgia dominated a Tennessee team that just got their coach fired, if not today, then by a he end of the season. Tennessee isn't great. Mississippi State isn't great. But that doesn't take away from the two performances that Georgia has given us the past two weeks.
Heading into October, Georgia is 5-0, with games against Vanderbilt and Missouri coming up next. Those should be easy wins, which should set up a defacto SEC East title game in Jacksonville. The Gators lost their starting QB yesterday for the remainder of the season, so they will turn back to Filepe Franks, who has already been benched this season.
Georgia will now be favored in 6 of their last 7 games, with the only exception being when the Dawgs travel to Auburn. Georgia should win the East, and anything less than 11-1 would be a huge disappointment.
So now we will see how Georgia handles expectations.
The Dawgs are going to be double digit favorites the next two weeks, and even the most conservative Georgia fan has to recognize that the expectations have changed for this team this year.
Now I know how you are feeling. You aren't quite ready to let yourself be vulnerable again. We have been hurt too many times in the past. Let's be honest, it's only been 8 months since most of us had our hearts ripped out in the Super Bowl. But here is the advice I have for Georgia fans.
Embrace the expectations.
This is what we wanted. We wanted Kirby to come in and make us contenders. Here we are, in year 2, and we are contenders.
At the beginning of the season, I said the minimum expectations for this season was 10-2 with losses to Florida and Auburn. Now those expectations have changed. The new minimum is 11-1 with the lose coming on the road at Auburn. Even with a loss to the Tigers, which isn't to say that Georgia can't win that game, Georgia would be playing in Atlanta against Alabama for the SEC title. A win against the best program in the nation would put Georgia in the playoff.
Guys, this is a great thing.
I don't believe Georgia is quite ready to take that last step this season, but it could happen. One thing I do know is that if the Dawgs can get to Atlanta I am really excited to see how this team stacks up against the standard of the SEC.
This isn't 2012. This isn't a one-off peak season with a ton of seniors that will lead to a rebuild. This is only the beginning. Kirby has changed this program in just 20 months. He has brought in elite talent at every position to provide depth, but most importantly, he has developed the talent that was already here so guys don't have their best seasons as freshman and sophomores.
Don't be nervous to be excited. Don't be hesitant to be confident. Embrace the expectations.
Georgia is the favorite in the SEC East.
Georgia is a Top 5 team.
Georgia is one great Saturday afternoon in December from playing in the College Football Playoff.
Raise the bar and attack the day!
Glory, glory!
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