State of Play: Georgia's preparing for the unknown
Young Georgia fans have it made.
For those who cheered on this program in the 1990s and 2000s, it was dreadful at this stage of the season. From 1990-99, Florida went 9-1 against Georgia. From 2000-2009, the Gators held an 8-2 advantage.
The trend started to change in the first half of the next decade, with the series splitting at 3-3 from 2010-2015.
Then along came Kirby Smart.
While Smart dropped his first game against Florida, he’s gone 7-2 against the hated rival since 2016. This includes winning the past four by an average margin of victory of 21.5 points. Those attending the university right now have experienced quite a run in their young sports lives. My message to them is to be grateful for this time. You never know when the cycle reverses.
Just ask Florida. After two decades, a major sea change took place and the Gators haven’t course corrected since.
The key to the game
Throw out conventional wisdom and Xs and Os in a traditional sense. On top of this being a huge rivalry game, Florida threw a wrench into the process by firing Billy Napier and naming Billy Gonzales to be its interim head coach. As a longtime wide receivers coach, Gonzales has never been a head coach in any capacity. He’s held a co-offensive coordinator title for seven of his 31 years coaching.
Of course, prior head coaching experience doesn’t necessarily matter. Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and Georgia Tech’s Brent Key didn’t have head coaching experience when they took over their programs on an interim basis, only to do a good enough job to get their respective head coaching gigs. Although he’d been Alabama’s defensive coordinator for eight years, Smart’s first head coaching gig was Georgia.
Florida is likely to throw some new looks and wrinkles at Georgia that haven’t been put on tape. There will be an emotional factor too, with Florida looking to right a ship that has been veering off path for a while. Will Gonzales shock the world with a huge upset over Georgia? The Bulldogs need to be prepared for any and everything to prevent the unthinkable from occurring.
SEC Everest
Chasing the summit: Texas A&M, Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt
A camp behind: Tennessee, Oklahoma, Missouri
Advanced base camp: Texas
Base camp: Auburn
Quitting time: LSU
Here so they don’t get fined: South Carolina, Florida
Bad at winning: Mississippi State
Stop, they’re already dead: Kentucky, Arkansas
Games of note
No. 2 Indiana at Maryland: The Terrapins are 4-3 but have lost their last three games by a total of 10 points. Indiana has Penn State next week, even if the Nittany Lions fired their coach for not living up to preseason expectations. Point is, this has the classic hallmarks of a trap game if Fernando Mendoza and company aren’t careful.
No. 9 Vanderbilt at No. 20 Texas: Diego Pavia is seeking a Heisman moment to propel him next to Mendoza and Ty Simpson. The Commodores are also looking to remain in the top-10 and the playoff hunt. 2025 is wild.
No. 18 Oklahoma at No. 14 Tennessee: Both teams have two losses, meaning a third will make a playoff berth extremely difficult. John Mateer has not been the same since his hand injury.
ICYMI
Smart refuses to be pinned down on Georgia and Florida playing in Jacksonville.
Georgia’s availability report ahead of Saturday’s game against Florida.
Jordan Hall is enjoying the growth of Georgia’s defensive line.
Four-star running back Andrew Beard named a top five with two schools standing out.
Dawg Tracks: 15 thoughts heading into Georgia-Florida.