Georgia opens the season as the top-ranked SEC team in the AP Poll. The No. 3 Bulldogs were picked to win the SEC at media days.
Read the full story here
"It’s clear the Bulldogs are viewed as a good, but not great, team entering this season."
While I am not sure that is the case this season (think we Dawgs might be great overall), the Dawgs - and the rest of the SEC in general - have got to start stepping up to the NC plate and competing like we used to do. The Dawgs can't rest on their laurels of past victories and dominating wins any longer. It's simply been too many seasons to keep giving excuses.
From "The Athletic" article a couple of days ago…
" Comparing the Big Ten to the SEC, do you think the Big Ten is more top-heavy while the SEC is deeper? Is it that simple?
A simple answer can still be the right one. In this case, I think it is. Ohio State, Oregon and Indiana are all likely favored — or at least a pick ’em — on a neutral field against Texas or Georgia. So right off the bat, the elite teams of the Big Ten are superior to the elite of the SEC. Where the difference comes in is when you look at the next four SEC teams in my model: Alabama, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Ole Miss. I’d have all of them favored over the next four in the Big Ten: USC, Michigan, Washington and Penn State. That trend continues further down the ranks to the middle and bottom of the conference as well. "
Giving this a closer look, I would have to mostly agree. The Dawgs and the SEC have got to start proving their worth on the field. Just look at the SEC bowl and playoff results the last 2-3 years, and you can see the SEC is certainly not dominating teams like they used to do.
And CR does too. No faith in this program and team or KS for that matter.
Sick of the negativity narrative.
Ridiculous.
I appreciate the national media having no faith in the Dawgs. It's much better to be doubted and an underdog. One thing a lot of us know (or believe) is not obvious to The Atlantic. The SEC schedule, with the SEC teams being stronger in the middle and towards the bottom, results in SEC teams beating each other up. The top Big 10 teams get to play easier competition for the most part. They arrive at the playoffs fresher and less beat up. I used to love the inter-conference bowl games. They used to mean something. That's changed in ways I don't like, but many of these bowl games are now meaningless to many of the SEC teams. It's become a playoffs or bust situation. Again, I don't like that at all, but it is what it is. College football has got to figure out a way to make all games meaningful, in my opinion. College football has gone a long way towards a system which penalizes an excellent regular season and rewards (sometimes) a team which loses several games and comes in third or fourth in its conference.
I'm with you, @MontanaDawg. I want all the games to be meaningful and important including all the bowl games. If the games aren't important, don't play them.
Go, Dawgs!
It's simply been too many seasons to keep giving excuses.
OMG...Three WHOLE SEASONS.
Too many seasons. Didn't read the rest of the post. Lost any credibility there.
Those 3 Seasons...we made excuses....how would Indiana or any other team have done w/o their starting QB? And yet...youre saying they've failed? 2024 was 12-1 and got cheated out of a cfp bid.
Last 2: 2 SECC and They're BACK2BACK. So top 4 seed both years. Yes. Should have won. But it was not excuses. It was 1 team that made the NCG and the other had a QB play out of his mind.
So failure is NOT winning a natty? Conference titles and getting top 4 seeds is failure. Gotcha.
“The questions when it comes to the wide receiver room have been something the Bulldogs have heard all offseason.”
We will have those answers soon enough, but there is no question in my mind about how dominant the defense will be. I believe they will have an opponent scoring average between 13 and 17 for the season. That will be good enough for undefeated!
GO DAWGS!
ummmm don't all the teams have to prove they're a contender
“But Georgia’s ceiling as a team will, to some extent, depend on Stockton’s ability to elevate from “reliably efficient” to something more." What people in the know have been saying since seeing the UGA offense in '25. Anybody that watched the UGA O play last year saw a QB who didn't have a lot of game experience or great command of the offense and was limited by the HC and OC in what he was allowed to do.
"The Bulldogs need an alpha to emerge within their receiver room to help Stockton, who ranked 129th among FBS quarterbacks in air yards per attempt at just 6.6 in 2025.” Wow! 129th! That is about as low as you can be ranked as far as throwing the ball down field. Something else we all saw last year. 129th is not about a WR alpha. It is about QB and OC.
IF the HC and the OC follow the same offensive script and play calling as '25 then '26 will look a lot like '25. And the program will have to take a hard look about how it is recruiting the QB position.
EXACTLY!!! New season and every team has to prove a contender. First step is make the playoffs. Silly headline.
I'm glad someone up and said this outright (thanks @ctd !). I always try to give the benefit of the doubt, but after several years of "negative spin" from CR, it's not just a coincidence, it's a consistent style.
As long as it's fact-based, I respect almost all opinions (whether I agree or not), but this is not a case of WHAT is being reported, but HOW. Compare this to MG, who can push out some pretty strong perspectives (occasionally even some that can be pretty hard to swallow), but you always know that he's a UGA fan reporting facts and perspectives FOR UGA fans. At least there's a role model here at Dawgnation, which I sense Hunter (the accelerating intern!) is following in the footsteps of.
As to the rest of the content, I agree with @montanadawg : I think the The Athletic gets it pretty darn right on B10 vs SEC... and the forthcoming 9 game seasons are going to make it even tougher.
Regardless, it's time to start seeing reality on the field... can't wait for Saturday!
Totally Agree !! So I guess going 11-2 And winning the SEC Crown means that Gunner ( a tren first year starter) and the 2025 Dawgs just totally stunk right ? Wrong !!!! There are Numerous D1 CFB teams that would pluck out an eye to win at that level !!
These sports “experts” show year in and year out that they harbor a strong dislike for UGA. But you can always count on them to have teams like ND at or near the top. What’s so sad to me is to see Some Dawgs fans backing these “experts”. YES there Are questions and concerns that happens pretty much every year. So the other teams Don’t have questions and concerns ?
And I’m gonna brag on Gunner to. For him to go 11-2 And help get the SEC Crown is pretty dawg gone good !! NO team devastated the Dawgs !! Ole Miss won in the second match up by Five points. That’s not like they destroyed UGA. There are a couple of fans here that Never liked Gunner from the first time he came out on the field as starter. They blast him at every opportunity but not a speck of praise.
If the Dawgs have a bad season this year but they’re NOT. And Gunner is the primary reason why I’ll come back on here and Own it. But if they have a great season and he plays a vital role in that I won’t hold my breath and expect him to get any credit from those same folks.
I think many times they’d rather be right and see the Dawgs lose than wrong and see the Dawgs win !! Maybe they are bucking for one of those “expert” jobs !!
I’m a Dawgs FAN to the bone. If I want strong criticism even hate all I have do is read some of the rival sites. But here we are haven’t even had the first snap of the first game and some are crying in their cereal. There’s nothing wrong with constructive criticism and objective looks. I get that. But Fan is a derivative of the word Fanatic. You’d think Dawgs Fans would be fanatical and Believe in their team before joining the ranks of the many sports “experts” to heavily criticize our Dawgs.
OK got my red & black glasses on !! I’m gonna Believe in our Dawgs until they give me a solid reason Not to. I bet the archives would show these Same experts didn’t think the Dawgs would win in 2021 & 2022 !!
Good comments. I agree to an extent. But you answered your own question. Look at what teams those Fabs in the Big 10 play over the course of the full season. Then take a close look at the SEC over the same time frame. Being battle weary ( and injured) is not an excuse. It’s a very tangible thing.
It Used to be there were games you could Nearly just go ahead and chalk a W. As far as the “ better” SEC teams facing the supposedly weaker. But those “weaker” teams have gotten better. No easy wins. Which means gotta play the starters the Whole game. Then after the cream of the crop of the Big 10 look at the garbage teams they play !! So by the time the season is over they are well rested and probably few injuries.
This part is my only real contention with what you said. Two or three years is not a decade !! Look how long the SEC owned all those other teams !! So they’ve got a whole lot of catching up to do. And I think they might start to run out of steam !! And could be This year !!
Forgive this last comment as it’s a bit off topic related to your comments. I Love how media never mentions the TEN TDs Gunner got with his legs !! And as importantly the Numerous first downs he got for the Dawgs !! Many of them were Very critical first downs !! Some on fourth down plays !! I’ve got a TV to. I watched every game. And I recorded them so I’ve watched them many times in some cases. Wonder how many times those “experts” actually watched Gunner ? And helping Win games is much more important for the Team than his passing yardage. There are plenty of QBs with great passing yardage whose Teams lost allot of games. I Believe in our Dawgs !!
Totally OK with people's opinions of where improvements can be made. GS had impressive #'s overall last year but will elevate his game to another level when/if he sees the whole field and effectively works thru his progressions. The film guy identified it clearly on a number of plays where GS is not connecting on open big plays and either tucking and running or missing the open man. Also the consensus is he needs to become a more vocal leader. If he takes these next steps we go further and once again compete for a natty. This is not a lack of respect for the team I love, UGA grad 1981, just believe there is always room for improvement
@navydawg and @CTD...hey, appreciate the comments. I know it seems like a might be ragging on the Dawgs and the SEC, but I'm simply stating that yes, the SECCG is great to win, but is that all we are shooting for? Are you both not disappointed in our playoff results over the last few years? If you think the SEC Championship is enough for a successful season the you go right ahead and be satisfied with that. There are possibly legitimate reasons we haven't done well in the playoffs, like injuries, but is that the reason the SEC is general now stinks during bowl season and the SEC record against the B1G has fallen off a cliff? Sure, we beat each other up in the SEC, play tougher schedules overall, but is that the excuse we are going to keep giving if we fail again this season or next? I'm not really satisfied with our results. Heck, the SECCG might be going away in the future.
We've got a potentially great team this year, a very manageable schedule, and (2) cupcakes to start the season and chip off the rust. Like I've said before, let's not waste an experienced QB, the best TE group in the nation, a stellar defense, a very good OL, a solid RB group, and a very good receiving corps ( i hope) this season. We've got the pieces for a Championship run.
GO DAWGS!!!
@MontanaDawg I sense my comments peed you off. That was NOT my intent. And NO winning the SECCG should never be the ceiling. Winning the Ntl. Title should Always be the goal. I just don’t see last year as a Fail. It’s almost like the B2B Nattys were a curse of sorts. Now folks seem to expect that every year. The last one was 2022 and haven’t even started 2026 yet. I’m gonna beat this drum till I bust a hole in it. There was Allot of young on last years Dawgs including GS !! Yet they did what they did no need in repeating all that.
I just don’t see pulling the fire alarm YET. Had the Dawgs went say 10-3 ( won a bowl game after) in 2023 then continued a downward trend from then to now. YES I’d be in fire alarm mode !! But that didn’t happen or even close.
NOW these things said IF we don’t see improvement from Gunner, Coach Bobo, other elements of the game from our Dawgs. Then it might be time to say Hey minor changes ain’t gonna get it, major changes need to take place. KS says Gunner Has improved and I’m not prepared to call him a Liar.
Will Coach Bobo use the wealth he has in the TE room ? We’ll see. And I sure hope so. In order for Cignetti to be lauded as the next Nick Saban he needs to win more than One Natty in say a four year period. Using That soley as the measuring stick he has Not accomplished what KS has. THIS season in my book will be the determine factor of whether the Dawgs are on a Winning or Losing Trend. Go Dawgs !!
@NJDAWG With all due respect did the film guy give Gunner any credit for his Ten TDs ? And that he was I think I’m right on this the Third leading rusher on the team ? To fully appreciate Gunner one needs to go back and see all the numerous first downs he picked up with his feet. Many times on critical fourth down plays. It’s not like he just tucked the ball and ran out to the sidelines. At a minimum Gunner was a “capable” QB or No Way the Dawgs would go 11-2 ! Now it IS very reasonable to expect even demand improvement from him This year. There is one important proviso, Coach Bobo needs to put him in position to win. And much of that could come from the talent loaded TE room !! I know Gunner must execute the plays he’s given. But Bobo has to give him plays geared for success to. We’ll see how it goes. Go Dawgs !!
