By Mark Pszonak
Nobody will ever say that being a college football coach is easy, but it is always a much smoother ride when your team is winning. And the last few seasons have been very smooth for Kirby Smart at Georgia. However, after a 28-10 thumping at Ole Miss on Saturday, the Bulldogs are 7-2 and preparing for #6 Tennessee. And Coach Smart needs a win in November to save Georgia’s season.
The 2024 season started with a 34-3 victory over Clemson, which was the type of dominant performance that everyone is accustomed to in Athens. However, the first red flag was raised soon after when the Bulldogs’ offense struggled during a hard-fought 13-12 victory at Kentucky. That performance raised some concerns but is even more troubling now considering the Wildcats are currently 3-6 and one of the most disappointing teams in the country.
The first loss of the season followed two weeks later at Alabama. A loss in Tuscaloosa can never be seen as a “bad loss”, but it took a miraculous comeback in the second half to avoid full blown panic by Bulldogs’ fans.
Coach Smart then did a quality job righting the ship after the loss to the Tide with wins against Auburn, Mississippi State, Florida and most notably #1 Texas. After the impressive 30-15 victory in Austin, everything seemed to be back on track for the Bulldogs.
But that would be proven incorrect on Saturday against Ole Miss. Georgia’s offense had no answers for the Rebels’ defense. The running game totaled 59 yards, while quarterback Carson Beck looked rattled throughout. With his security blankets from last season, Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey, now in the NFL, Beck has had issues in 2024 establishing any level of consistency with his receiving corps.
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With the loss, the entire season comes down to the game against #6 Tennessee. With Georgia’s aura of invincibility gone, they must regroup immediately and defeat the Vols if they hope to make the inaugural 12-team playoff. And that is entirely up to Coach Smart.
Coach Smart has done an amazing job preparing his team for important games during the last three seasons. But he has done so when the Bulldogs were dominant, when the Bulldogs were full of confidence, and when the Bulldogs were expected to win.
After the loss to Ole Miss, the Bulldogs are not dominant, confidence needs to be rebuilt and while they are the favorite according to Vegas, they are now seen as beatable. And these are things that Coach Smart has not had to deal with during his time in Athens.
Georgia has the talent to beat Tennessee. That isn’t a hot take. But now they must put it all together this week and play like they did against Texas and not like they did at Kentucky, against Alabama in the first half and at Ole Miss.
Kirby Smart is a great coach, but this is new territory for him. And with Georgia’s faults this season, getting this team to the playoffs would prove to be his best coaching job yet.
