Rick Neuheisel lays out dream playoff scenario for Georgia

As Georgia heads into the final two weeks of the regular season, there’s a possible dream College Football Playoff scenario for the Bulldogs.

Following Georgia’s No. 4 reveal in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, CBS Sports’ Rick Neuheisel laid out a scenario in which not playing in Atlanta for the SEC Championship could give the Bulldogs an advantage over the field.

“I think it’s interesting that Georgia finds themselves now at No. 4. Ironically it may still not qualify for the SEC Championship game, …” Neuheisel said. “If they don’t qualify and they stay at four, they get not only a bye in the SEC Championship, a double bye; they’ll miss that first round and be ready for the quarterfinals around New Year’s.”

Double Bye Week

As things currently stand Alabama and Texas A&M are the teams set to play in Atlanta. The Crimson Tide gave Georgia its only loss of the season. The Aggies are undefeated to this point, even after digging themselves into a 30-3 halftime deficit versus South Carolina.

Yet, neither the Aggies nor the Crimson Tide are home free yet. With regular-season finales versus Texas and Auburn, respectively, both could still find themselves at home on the first weekend of December. A loss for either Alabama or Texas A&M could put Georgia in its fifth-straight SEC Championship game via tiebreakers.

UGA head coach Kirby Smart won’t downplay the importance of winning the conference, something he acknowledges has proven more elusive than winning a national championship. Still, it is hard to ignore the positives of not having to play in that game.

The three other top-four seeds- Ohio State, Indiana, and Texas A&M- are currently slated to play in their respective conference championships. Georgia could sit back and watch. And after Georgia lost starting quarterback Carson Beck in last year’s SEC Championship game, it’s easy to be wary of playing an extra contest.