Saturday Blitz
Fansided

Georgia Bulldogs Football: Can Bulldogs return to Playoff in 2018?

By Richard Kimball

ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 08: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs walks out of the tunnel with his players during warm ups prior to the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 08: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs walks out of the tunnel with his players during warm ups prior to the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 4
Next
(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

Georgia football fell just short of a National Title last season. Can the Bulldogs continue their success? Or will key player departures set them back?

In 2017, the Georgia Bulldogs fell just short of their first national championship since 1980. But don’t let their shortcomings appear as a failure. In just his second year as head coach, Kirby Smart led the Bulldogs to a 13-2 (7-2) season, in which they won a SEC Title and made their first appearance in the College Football Playoff. After a double overtime win over the Oklahoma Sooners in the playoff semifinal, the Bulldogs lost to the Alabama Crimson Tide in overtime in the National Championship Game by just three points.

Despite some key losses on both sides of the ball, the Bulldogs head into 2018 as one of the favorites to not only win a second straight SEC Championship, but to make the the College Football Playoff. But with Missouri and South Carolina looking to feed off their 2017 success, and Florida being set to have a bounce back season, the SEC West may not be an easy road to travel.

However, their schedule does somewhat play in their favor this year in terms of home games. With games on the road against South Carolina and Missouri, the Bulldogs have the pleasure of hosting Florida, Auburn and out-of-conference and in-state rival, Georgia Tech. The Georgia Bulldogs were considered a team that was playing a year ahead of expectations in 2017, so now expectations are even higher in 2018. With the right players, and play calls, Georgia could meet those expectations.

Home/Georgia Bulldogs