The Georgia Bulldogs are now back in the 12-team College Football Playoff field.
After a tough loss to Ole Miss the previous week, Georgia needed this win to stay in contention for the SEC Championship and a potential playoff berth. Sanford Stadium was buzzing from the start, and the Bulldogs delivered when it mattered most.
Tennessee started strong, opening the scoring with a one-yard touchdown run from Miles Kitselman and later adding a 52-yard field goal to take a 10-0 lead. Georgia’s offense struggled early but found its rhythm in the second quarter.
Carson Beck connected with Oscar Delp for two touchdown passes, one for 19 yards and another for four. Tennessee briefly regained the lead with a 27-yard touchdown run from Dylan Sampson, but a late Georgia field goal tied the game 17-17 at halftime.
In the second half, Georgia’s defense took control, shutting out Tennessee and allowing the Bulldogs to dominate. Beck added a 10-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter, capping off a 12-play, 87-yard drive.
In the fourth quarter, Nate Frazier sealed the win with a two-yard touchdown run. Georgia’s defense, led by standout performances from Smael Mondon Jr. and Malaki Starks, held Tennessee to just 167 passing yards and limited Nico Iamaleava’s effectiveness as the Volunteers failed to find the end zone again.
Carson Beck led Georgia’s offense with 346 passing yards, two touchdowns, and a rushing score. Oscar Delp caught four passes for 56 yards and two touchdowns, while Nate Frazier added 68 rushing yards and a score. The victory improves Georgia’s record to 8-2, keeping their playoff hopes alive as the season nears its conclusion.
Following the game, it didn't take long for Kirby Smart to continue his pointed shots at the College Football Playoff committee, which dropped the Bulldogs to No. 12 in the most recent rankings after losing 28-10 to Ole Miss last weekend.
When asked about what his team had proven to the committee, he reiterated that he "doesn't know what they are looking for."
“I don’t know. Because I don’t know what they look for. I don’t know what they look for anymore.”
— 4th & Wrong Podcast (@4thAndWrongPod) November 17, 2024
- Kirby Smart on what this win said to the College Football Playoff Committee pic.twitter.com/KGwMfI35OS
Georgia boasts the No.1 strength of schedule in the country, but the Bulldogs also already have two losses. Smart's belief last week was that they should not have plunged a total of nine spots for the loss, and that's understandable after what we saw in Athens on Saturday night.
That being said, it's also a slippery road to continue to rank teams with two losses ahead of teams with one loss, or undefeated teams, just because of the sake of them "being SEC teams" and that we "think" they would win if the two teams played on the same field. Because time and time again, we've seen that predictions are a moot point when the games are played on the field.
Regardless of Smart's heckling of the College Football Playoff committee, he has his Georgia Bulldogs right back in the conversation. They'll easily move inside the Top-10 in the updated rankings, and there's a great chance that Georgia is setting itself up to host a playoff game next month.
The Bulldogs will finish out the year with UMass and Georgia Tech at home.
Tennessee fell to 8-2 overall and 5-2 in the SEC. With the loss, the Vols are now behind the eight ball in terms of getting to Atlanta to compete for an SEC Championship, but they are still very much alive in the quest to secure an at-large bid in the College Football Playoff.
Tennessee finishes out the year with UTEP and Vanderbilt. As long as the Vols win out, they will still be set up nicely to secure a bid in the playoff.