I texted my Georgia group chat this yesterday: “Guys, I don’t want to overreact, but this team looks really f-ing good.” Most years under Kirby, Georgia has handled lesser opponents with varying degrees of competence. Sometimes they seem to be trying out different guys at different spots, sometimes they lack focus, sometimes certain positions reveal themselves to be weak links or omens for the future. Yes, they always win and almost always comfortably. But several of those games have left us wanting more.

Not so this year. The first and second string teams have absolutely eviscerated the first two teams on the schedule with such an easy brutality that, considering the star power and historical coaching acumen present on the team, you have to believe is potentially scalable to conference play. And I don’t know what’s got into Kirby, but he’s been confident, snarky and prickly at press conferences this year, which is different from last year when he was more forgiving about the team’s play. Are the two connected? Does that mean anything? I could be wrong, but I think it means this team is on a mission. On to the bullets.

• I consider myself a uniform traditionalist, but damn those all-white unis were sweet. Maybe the kids are on to something. I hope Kirby does it annually.
• Our visitors from the genteel southern town of Bowling Green were kind enough to bring us a house-warming gift on the opening kickoff, leading to a lovely TD pass to Barbour for the quick lead. Thank you, kindly.
• Yet again, the starting defense looked extremely well organized, with great push from the DL into the QB’s passing lanes, getting off blocks to make tackles, speed on the edges, and good coverage by the DBs. Utter dominance.
• WKU has an athletic QB and a pretty good RB1 and WR1, but they did nothing all game.
• Gunner was in total control of the offense yet again. He knew where to go with the ball without hesitation, even if he’s not perfectly accurate every time. The two times I saw when he got pressured, he easily maneuvered out of the pocket and got positive yardage.
• 5 TDs in a half, going deep on 3-4 plays, 14.6 YPA. Shades of Stetson vs UAB?
• Loved the shot of Bobo’s dip cup in the booth taking up half the screen. Also white! 😉
• Running game was competent and efficient (after taking out that long run from Puglisi). Nate had some great hesi moves that reminded me of Swift. Bobo and Glover hoisting Nate into the end zone was really fun too.
• The interior of the OL missed a couple of stunts and delayed blitzes, but otherwise the unit looked sharp.
• Ellis handled their best WR with back-to-back PBUs in the first quarter, and the top DBs never really looked challenged. Interesting to see Braylon Conley rewarded with some early PT ahead of Gentry Williams, but he certainly showed why. And Demello had a gorgeous pick over his head running full speed. Too bad he couldn’t finish off that run back.
• Chauncey made the 100M hurdle team, on his second attempt. That kid looks rocked up yet again.
• The pass rush was fast and aggressive again, with Gabe Harris picking up his first sack of the year and Chris Cole and Justin Williams erasing bad angles with their 4.4 speed.
• I thought the high-low passing concept that got Sacovie free for the long TD was really well conceived by The Crayon Master^TM , and I can’t wait to see what else he’s been up to this offseason as the more competitive games start. Exciting times!
• Speaking of the WRs, Talyn Taylor is now 2 for 2 in being unguardable in games this year. Arrow up.
• Downfield and perimeter blocking was ridiculously good, and the TEs continued putting on a clinic.
• As for the young guys, I thought Dean and Ogbokbo turned in some nice performances yet again. They’ve got to work on sustaining that play over time, but having talented kids that can back up Gabe and Jordan will be huge, especially with McLeod gone.
• I had a conflict for the 4th quarter and missed it, and apparently it was good that I did because the rest of the third stringers and the wet conditions apparently conspired to prevent what could have been the biggest blowout in Kirby’s tenure. Ah, well.

I don’t think we as fans could ask for much more than we’ve received from the Dawgs to start the year. The starters have look incredible against weak competition. The immediate depth is coming along well. The defense looks fast, physical, and disciplined; the pass rush is improved. The offense looks efficient and explosive; the WRs look promising. The slow build of the schedule continues next week against the worst team in the conference, but on the road. Plenty of decent talent on the roster, but a new coaching staff and coming off a beatdown from a Big 12 team. I’m sure we’ll get their best shot. Go Dawgs!

In what was a pretty blissful and uncomplicated start to the 2026 season, Georgia manhandled a terrible opponent yesterday with ruthless efficiency and explosiveness. And they covered the spread, as they should have, but rarely do in these spots. Other than that, no real surprises occurred and nothing was really learned either, other than maybe the coaches were sandbagging on Talyn Taylor’s fall camp. As we all know, TSU had no shot of staying close to the Dawgs. The only stakes were how deep into the bench Kirby was able to go. On to the bullets!

• The best part of the game was realizing there might be some good receivers on this team. Talyn Taylor and Craig Dandridge are different. Canion had a slow start but should improve with more time in the system.
• The tight ends are a parade of athletic marvels. Jaden Reddell, Elyiss Williams, and Kaiden Prothro are aliens. Blocking was incredible from these guys as well, including a great block by Elyiss on Talyn’s TD.
• When was the last time you saw 4 QBs play for one team in a game? A first for me.
• The defense smothered a terrible TSU offense with unadulterated speed and toughness. I’m sure Schuman wanted the shutout, but 3 points ain’t bad.
• Harris and Cole dominated the edges of the defense and the young guys looked promising as well (Dean, Brooks, Ikinnagbon). Dean looks like a shorter Gabe Harris before he built his body up.
• Nice to see Nate Frazier cash in on some relatively easy TDs. The OL barely strained and made holes the size of minivans.
• Was very relieved Bowens was ok after that hit to the knee, and then he took 3 more to the same knee. Tough kid.
• Offense and defense was super vanilla, and we screened them to death, but I wasn’t expecting anything else.
  Gunner still looks good on the run and seems better with progressions, and his only mistake was missing Talyn on the deep ball and forced it into Canion who was covered.
• Sacovie White-Helton looks quicker and flashed well on special teams.
• Speaking of special teams, gah, that FG unit is gonna have a rough week with coach Benedict. What a mess.
• Other than that, the only thing one could criticize was JJA’s stupid penalties.
  The crowd seemed energetic and into the game well into the second half. I was impressed, given the heat. Good job on the fans that made the environment more than it probably should have been.
• 2 huge hits from the starting safeties told TSU the Dawgs weren’t playing around. Sending a message to future opponents as well.
• Nothing made me happier than Jeremy Bell laying the wood on the TSU DB on that 4th quarter end around, only to be rewarded with a beautiful throw from Montgomery for a TD. Especially after the tragedy his family just went through.

All in all, every goal was met. No injuries, no heatstroke, win comfortably, lots of game reps for backups, most everyone played well. Good teams win, great teams cover. The preseason continues next week against Western Kentucky, a much better team than TSU, but another overmatched opponent. Let’s hope for a similar outcome before the trip to Fayettenam. Go Dawgs!

We’ve come to the final installment of the 4 Questions of the 2026 Season. Thanks for all the comments and participation thus far. I think we’re all finally getting excited about the game tomorrow, regardless of how hot it will be in Sanford Stadium at 3pm ET (extremely) or what happens in Baton Rouge and Birmingham today (gah). For this topic, I went big picture.

Can Kirby Smart’s strategy of retention and development still produce a national champion?

So much has changed over the last several years in college football, with exorbitant amounts of money being paid to schools, coaches, and now players. There are no rules, winning is the only rule. Kirby has always been great at in-game strategy micro adjustments and outside the lines macro adjustments. He may move less quickly than some want on some things, but often he sees around corners fans can’t. But the rules of acquiring talent have changed so much and so fast that it’s fair to ask whether the Kirby process is still the best way to win championships.

Georgia has had chances to sign elite QBs, RBs, WRs, DEs, and DBs during times when they needed them and decided to bow out of the bidding wars. To date, it hasn’t hurt their chances of winning the SEC, and maybe with a healthy Beck and a non-Superman performance by Chambliss they make the national championship game the last two years. But the entire sport has leveled at the top where UGA once reigned supreme. Georgia has fallen back a little into a muddled top-10 picture that used to be a top-3 or -4. If they had spent on 1-2 more elite portal guys, would that have been enough? Hard to say.

Kirby has clearly recognized a gap and implemented one big change this year. The seasons are longer now, as teams can play up to 17 games. Does beating the living shit out of each other through fall camp and 3 days a week during the season still make sense, or does resting your stars and seniors have value? It seems like Kirby has decided on the latter, at least during camp, which I think is prudent. Keep the guys fresher for longer, limit injuries, etc. Bloody Tuesdays can still happen to keep the team tougher than the competition.

I’ve said it several times now, but this is almost a national championship roster with a national championship schedule. It’s all laid out as well as it could be, in these times. Stay healthy and get some high level play from a wideout or two and this team can win it all. Losing Amaris Williams sucked, but maybe he can play come January. That was an example of paying for a transfer. I just hope passing on the elite WRs and Safety options they had last winter don’t come back to bite them. If it does, it will be a huge missed opportunity and I think Kirby/Georgia will need to adjust further.

Thats all for now. I’ll have a postgame analysis of the beatdown from Section HD on Sunday morning. Go Dawgs!

We are now at the 3rd of our 4 Key Questions for Georgia’s Season. And this one could be the most important of all.

Question 3: Can Gunner Level Up?

There is no one who can criticize Gunner Stockton’s heart, his toughness, or his love for Georgia. He was a heavily recruited QB out of Rabun County, a true duel threat, and he’s developed his passing skills quite a bit since arriving in Athens. He waited his turn as Stetson and Carson held the reins at QB1 and then turned a magic trick beating Texas in the SEC Championship game in 2024. We all had the highest of hopes.

Last year, he started slowly, partially because his OL was inexperienced and injured early, then had to work through inconsistencies before developing late in the year. He was harassed and started seeing ghosts, leaving the pocket when he didn’t need to and missing open receivers downfield. He also had some amazing performances, like at Tennessee, and Ole Maid and Texas at home. He improved his elongated delivery and heavy elbow. But the inconsistencies were draining for fans because we always expect development to be linear. It rarely is.

This year, he’s got no competition for the starting job again, his OL is miles better than last year, his RBs should be improved, his TEs are (as a group) the best in the sport, and his defense should be giving him the ball back more frequently and in better spots. His WRs should be pretty good at a minimum, but likely a downgrade from last year. He has packed on some lbs and worked hard all offseason. So, will we get a more consistently good product out of him, or will the WRs impede that production? Will he trust the pocket more, keep his eyes downfield when he scrambles, and improve his accuracy? Will he slide a few more times instead of taking so many hits? Or will none of that be as relevant as we think because Kirby intends to RTDB 50 times per game? (Not that there’s anything necessarily wrong with that. Whatever works, amirite?)

As a reminder, we’re working out our semi-ball-knower minds this week in preparation for the season. I’m rekindling a feature from last year, the 4 Key Questions for Georgia’s Season. 

Question Two: Does Georgia need a true #1 WR?

Georgia has elite TEs, LBs, and DBs, great OL and QB, and really good RBs and DL. The WR group lost its top 3 performers from last year, and Kirby plucked Isaiah Canion off Tech’s roster. The former Warner Robbins HS Demon was a miss on the recruiting trail a couple years back, and Kirby has admitted as much, but he’s with the good guys now. I watched a few Tech games last year and he stood out to me, even if he was underused. He seems destined for the X role, but all these guys train at multiple positions so he’s likely to be found at Z and in the slot as well. London Humphreys found himself as WR4 last year, but made a couple remarkable grabs (@ UT-Knoxville, for one) and seems primed for a nice year. Sacovie White-Helton is a slot guy all the way, but he’s got to hold off Landon Roldan, who has turned heads in camp and David Pollack says is the next Ladd McConkey.

Speaking of up-and-coming young WRs, the Dawgs are full of them. So much so that Kirby, after missing on Tre Richardson from Vandy (now at Louisville, gah), decided he would retain these guys and see who develops into a star. So far in camp, if you can believe the rumors, no one has stood out. That includes Talyn Taylor, who many had high hopes for until he got hurt last year. Also fellow blue-chip recruits CJ Wiley, Tyler Williams, Thomas Blackshear and Craig Dandridge (my personal favorite just based on his HS film). It’s not clear who from this group will emerge this year. Yes, the Dawgs’ secondary is both talented and deep, and yes, the camp practice is mostly geared towards giving the defense looks first, and yes, the defense knows the offense’s plays. But George Pickens seemed to shine regardless. So did AD Mitchell.

This reality leaves Georgia fans wondering who amongst these guys can beat an elite coverage guy in the games that matter most. Bama has a great secondary. So does Oklahoma. There will be more in the playoffs (Oregon, Ohio State, Indiana, Notre Dame). The Dawgs could be relegated to a one-dimensional offense. But they also have a top-5 OL and a really good running game, and maybe those freakish TEs can pick up the slack. It’s worked before. Can it work again?

I don’t know about the rest of you, but that was a rough offseason for me as a college football fan. I’ve never loved any sport anywhere near as much as this one, but damn, there are forces out there trying hard to make me love it less. I couldn’t be happier to get back to actual games, especially those of our beloved Dawgs. With that in mind, I’m rekindling this feature from last year, the 4 Key Questions for Georgia’s Season.

Question One: Can the Defensive Line Dominate?

This is my evergreen question for any football team, because historically the team with the best DL wins championships. Last year, this unit was excellent at stopping the run, but struggled at times to generate pressure or collapse the pocket on QBs. Elijah Griffin is the star and the Dawgs could really use a level-up year from him, penetrating and generating pass rush from the inside from time to time. Big Baby Hall will be back to full strength and endurance soon, and his experience will be critical as well. After that, it’s a lot of unproven but developing young talent like JJA, Horton, Nasir Johnson, Hanne, and then a bunch of good looking but green freshmen. Losing McLeod this week was not ideal, but one has to wonder if some of the young pups might have passed him by. I’m most intrigued by Valdin Sone, the kid from Sweden (!) who apparently is turning heads. Best to not expect much from him this year, but instead look to the older guys. Can JJA finally step up and compliment Griffin and Hall? Did Horton’s reshaping of his body give him more ability to get off blocks? How big will the drop off be for the second string? If I put the over/under for sacks for this group at 6.5, what would you take? I have a lot of faith in the linebackers getting a ton of sacks, so if that means the DL plays old school Kirby defense and occupies blocks to let the faster guys eat, I’m fine with that too, but man the Dawgs are nastiest with the big boys overpowering opponents’ OL. What say you, do we get 2022-level play from this group?

In what I hope will be the final reference to soccer on this blog for a while after a way too slow summer for Georgia football (which is also good with fewer players in trouble!), allow me to show you this soccer jersey from one of the most well known clubs in South America. From The Athletic ($$):

Based in Lima, the nation’s capital, Deportivo Municipal are one of the nation’s most historic clubs and four-time national champions but currently play in the nation’s third division and have encountered financial problems.

After losing its main kit sponsorship, the club decided to launch a new campaign which would redesign its jersey with a pixelated grid made up of a thousand small black-and-white squares, each of which had room to showcase an individual sponsor.

Each square, available for a price of $60 (£44), represents an advertising spot for a small business located around Lima, and the club’s campaign turned its shirt into a crowdfunding platform.

If financially strapped ACC or Big 12 schools get desperate, they could always go in this direction.

Your move, IPTAY.

In honor of Widespread Pete’s tragic theft of Georgia’s golden opportunity at their 3rd national title in 5 years, I searched for the right Panic song to both commemorate the agony of the last minute loss, the regret Kirby must be feeling right now, and the hopeful nature of getting back up off the mat and trying again for 2026. “Aunt Avis” fit the bill nicely with this refrain: “How to remember how to be good, how to continue when I feel I really shouldn’t.”

Last night was painful, infuriating, and surprising. Based on how they finished the season, Georgia seemed to have a distinct advantage on both lines of scrimmage and I assumed that they would run the ball down Ole Miss’ throats, limit possessions and win a lower scoring game than their October barn burner. Unfortunately, Trinidad Chambliss put his Superman cape on, the defense tackled poorly too often, and Georgia’s offensive line decided to regress to its week 2 level of performance.

Sure, there were a couple of bad coaching decisions on both sides, the game was sloppy in the middle, and the refs weren’t great, but to me those aforementioned three issues decided the game. There’s a lot to get to in this, and I’m sure several of us will do different versions of a season postmortem (mine will relate back to my preseason questions), but for now, the game bullets.

• I really liked the tempo to start the game and feel Gunner is at his best when they go faster. Wish that could have been employed more to wear down Ole Miss last night, but other things conspired against that plan (if it even was one).
• Thought all we needed was a B game from Gunner and to tackle well for the win. We only got one of them. Ole Miss has really good skill players, but the Dawgs had been tackling much better than they showed last night.
• The pressure packages Schumann utilized in the first game were largely stymied by Ole Miss, and missing Gabe Harris’ edge setting was a bigger factor than I expected. Lacy got to the edge too many times for big gains.
• Their kicker made 2 FGs over 50 yards and Woodring missed his one long one. Not much you can do about that, but it makes for a 3 point differential.
• We won the middle 8, but it could have been better. Kirby’s end of half time management issues continue. It’s his lone in-game coaching issue, so I won’t harp on it, but I do hope he puts some focus on that in the offseason. It’s these razor thin margins in the playoffs that can make a difference.
• Welcome back, Colbie Young! So impressed and happy for him that he was able to come back after a gruesome injury, and his sideline catch was a thing of beauty.
• Chambliss was absolutely amazing. When a great player is in the zone, it’s really hard to beat them. I know there’s hand-wringing about Schumann today, but I’m not sure what else could have been done. Without Gabe, Quintavius Johnson was on his own rushing the passer and can’t play every down. And Chambliss was just too elusive anyway.
• I thought the defense played really hard against an elite offense, but I knew that losing one safety and getting another one dinged up was going to hurt the Dawgs at an already thin position at some point. Hate that Demello got beat and there was no safety help. What an epic back-breaker.
• Gunner may not have had his A game, but he’s still the toughest QB in the country. I loved how he survived that huge hit in the second quarter and then showed Ole Maid his ball sack and snuck it in on the next play. What a warrior.
• Both teams traded turnovers for easy scores, otherwise one would have been the difference.
• While we saw it all year (because it was so effective early), Ole Miss stunted their interior guys all game, and for the life of me, I don’t understand why our OL could not communicate well enough to adjust. Drive killers.
• Elijah Griffin is going to break out next year. He’s this close already.
• Massive props to Kirby and Kirk Benedict for the fake punt design and execution. It almost looked easy.
• The 3 straight plays Chambliss made early in the 4th were dark voodoo magic. After that, Bolden and Wilson got hurt, the defense was gassed and in shambles and allowed an easy TD. 
• Zxavian Harris, the 6’8” DE monster, really took over the game for a while and Bobo didn’t adjust to put a TE out there to help. Freeling and Morris got abused on several plays.
• Awesome comeback drive down 10 when a lot of people thought the game could be out of reach, a tough run from a dinged up Frazier and great catch by Branch for the TD. I really thought the cardiac Dawgs were going to pull it out again.
• Thought Branch might’ve scored on that screen on 2nd and 20 if he didn’t trip.
• Way too many balls got batted down last night, and it was an issue all season. Bobo and Searels have to figure out how to open better passing lanes or teach Gunner how to better adjust when they close.
• What a hit by Zion Branch on Cayden Lee, but it was all for naught in the end, because we allowed that over-the-top pass and their kicker was on fire.
• Going for it on 4th down with just under 10 minutes left was a brutal mistake. Kirby said Toliver was not supposed to snap it, but we gifted them a TD against a tired defense.

This game was SO close, even with Ole Miss playing their game of the year and Georgia playing at a B- level. Margins are thin in the playoffs, so any one of the aforementioned issues could have made a difference in the outcome. That’s playoff football, folks. Just have to trust that Kirby can build a new team and go after it again next year. I’d guess they’ll be ranked in the top 5 preseason and have a great title shot, but we’ll see how the portal giveth and taketh. That said, in a season where expectations were lower due to a new QB starter and huge OL and defensive player losses, Georgia won another SEC championship. That’s pretty great in my book. Go Dawgs.

Other than the elation felt after attending the two national championship games, last night’s SECCG gave the most “feels” of the Kirby Smart era. An absolute smashing of the Tide, a capital revenge murder, resulted in an early roll-out of their petulant and entitled fan base and made for a jubilant night around these parts. It was the largest margin of victory against Bama since I was in diapers, so yeah, we’re gonna have some fun celebrating this win for the next few weeks. The Dawgs came fully prepared, totally dialed in, and hungry. Not sure many teams can beat this bunch when they arrive to a game like that. On to the bullets:

• There seemed to be a different buzz in the stadium, per my friends in attendance, but I was still skeptical because of the Bobo injury and how Toliver played against Tech.
• First key to the game was whether Toliver could block the uber-talented Tim Keenan all night, or if Georgia needed to play multiple backs in order to help him. Other than a couple early misses, Toliver and the guards held Keenan in check without having to change much of the blocking scheme. Huge props to Toliver and the OL coaches for getting him to play at a championship level within a week.
• Also, how different did all the freshmen look vs. the game in September? Along with Toliver, Gaston and Glover played with a ton of power and control. This group has changed from a weakness to a strength in 2 months. I know the rest of the top 5 teams have great DLs, but I don’t think any of them are a matchup nightmare for us anymore.
• We didn’t give up an offensive score on the first drive! Raise your hand if you also jumped up and down as if that was as good as scoring a TD ourselves. At that point, I felt like perhaps things could be different.
• Like a white blur across the screen, Cole Speer perfectly timed and directed his sprint for the ball off Bama’s punter’s foot and set the tone for the game early. The Dawgs would be the aggressors all night.
• Although Gunner started the game with unease in the pocket again, it was understandable based on the early hits he took. After the blocked punt, he seemed to find more confidence and played well. He missed a couple of open downfield throws in exchange for checkdowns, but he was pretty accurate, and nails on the called draws. I really don’t understand how he isn’t concussed every game. What a warrior.
• I said in my pregame note that I thought Bell and Thomas would be another key to the game since Branch would be bracketed by Bama. Womack did bracket Branch with success at times, but Branch (with some elite UGA perimeter blocking) got free anyway.
• That said, Bell had a whale of a game as a receiver and runner. His DGD status was attained long ago, but now he has a legacy game.
• Gunner’s scrambling opened up the middle of the field often for some nice slants and drag routes, although a TD to Taylor was batted down by Bama at one point. TEs got a few touches, but they were open quite a bit.
• ELEET edge setting by Q, Cole, and the DBs last night. So impressed. That and better QB pressure is all this defense needs to win another championship.
• Speaking of, how about Gabe Harris, Cole and Q with the vertical pass rush? Bart Simpson was rattled all night. Even though those guys only accounted for a half sack, it was Bama’s preoccupation with them that allowed JaCorey and Zayden to get their sacks.
• Ellis Robinson is finally dominating in big games. Look out, Buckeyes.
• Schumann dialed up some fun and new pressures that targeted Bart early in the play rather than the delayed pressures he used last time. We all knew Bart couldn’t repeat the crazy game he had last time, but these pressures were the main reason he buckled.
• Is “Miller and Overton” the new “Metchie and Williams?” Asking for a friend.
• Middle 8 was a push, partially due to some turtling at the end of the first half, but Kirby going for it on 4th and 1 at midfield also probably saved us from a Bama FG.
• Turnovers were critical, but they came in different ways. BART’s poor throw that was tipped by SECCG part-owner Daylen Everette was nice, but conventional. The blocked punt (which I consider a turnover) set up one score and DeBoer’s overly aggressive decision to go for it on 4th down in his own red zone gave the Dawgs another short field to finish off the Tide.
• I really hope what we saw out of Resean Dinkins is real so he can supplant Joenel Aguero at star. The slot guys for Bama were awfully quiet last night.
• Bolden had a weird game and that’s a few in a row. I’m wondering if he’s hurt. Schumann was passing off the crossing routes earlier to the safeties (since the LBs struggled in coverage the last game), which mostly worked. KJ was good in coverage but just didn’t tackle very well, which is unusual.
• Absolutely loved seeing RodRob healthy and getting a TD. Picked himself up from a turf monster trip and coasted into the end zone. Hold on to that ball longer though, son. 😬
• I thought Greene’s false start near the goal line was gonna be a killer, but a nifty play design/call from Bobo opened up Dillon Bell for a perfect throw from Gunner. After that series, I thought we had them.
• Demello had a rough night, as Bama targeted him quite a bit with success.
• The only obvious #bamarefs play was their TD, when their OL was 12 yards downfield blocking before the pass was released.
• CJ Allen with the tackle of the year on 3rd and 2 in the 4th quarter, and after DeBoer’s terrible decision to go for it on 4th, it was all over but the shouting.

You can’t say enough about the OL. Yes, LT Overton was out, but there’s no way him playing would have made that much of a difference. Bama’s DL was out-schemed, out-played, and out-manned by a Georgia group of THREE FRESHMEN that played out of their minds. With a vastly improved secondary, a deeper OL, a tough SOB at quarterback and an unguardable slot WR, where are the holes on this team? You really have to squint, don’t you? I don’t think anyone wants to play the Dawgs, and that includes the defending champs.

I’m trying to figure out which CFP game to book plans to attend, because work is conspiring against my Road Dawg tendencies. But I’ll admit, I did book a flight to Ft. Lauderdale already. Go Dawgs!

There are no bad wins against your rivals, but that one almost stung (pun intended). Reverting back to early season troubles, the Dawgs let Georgia Tech hang around through offensive errors, poor QB play, missed blocks and injuries. That said, the game still never felt in doubt and the final score doesn’t seem to tell the tale of the game. But, there was Tech, a Hail Mary away from tying or winning the game. What a weird one. Bullets, here we come.

• To start, the ACC refs had some, um, interesting calls and non-calls in the game. Not the least of which was the safety on Tech’s first drive when King threw to no one in particular from the end zone while being hit.
• Of course, immediately thereafter, Buster Faulkner calls a sudden change explosive play and KJ gets lost in coverage.
• Gunner started confidently but the first drive soon went off the rails, and he was missing open guys and then throwing right into the Tech defender’s hands for the early pick.
• It went downhill from there, as he had his worst game since week one. Without seeing the all-22 tape, he seemed to be cutting off his progressions early and takimg off running. Even with the bad first half, I expected an exceptional second half from him since he’s been rebounding well after halftime most of the year. Not so much on Friday. Was it nerves, pressure, miscommunication, Tech’s defense? (That last one is a joke, like Tech’s defense.)
• Early on, Nate Frazier was killing it, the OL was making almost every key block and it looked like the Dawgs would have their way on the ground. I expected Bobo to see that and change the gameplan, but there were several more drop backs than runs until it came time to ice the game. Not sure what Mike was seeing there.
• Defense mixed up a lot of coverages early and eventually that started to frustrate King and he had his worst game of the year. I thought other than some edge setting issues, the front 7 had a nice day.
• Why Daylen Everette and the safeties were giving so much cushion on average receivers and TEs, though, was frustrating as hell.
• Loved the way Demello Jones held up the WR on the screen until his friends showed up. It’s what Raylen needed to do on that blitz when King juked him and got the first down. Jones and Ellis Robinson are going to be shutdown corners next year.
• Speaking of Ellis, that’s two straight games with a Malaki Starks highlight reel pick!
• Dawgs win the middle eight again and won the game, but that finish to the first half was constipated and wasted points.
• I think Earnest Greene is a really tough kid for playing hurt, but he’s missing blocks that kill drives too. That said, Gaston reminded us that he’s a freshman by badly missing a block allowing a sack. And Glover got blown up on a play too.
• Not sure what was going on with KJ yesterday either, as he missed several tackles and looked out of it.
• Really hope Dylan Bell isn’t back to dropping passes.
• What kind of creature is CJ Allen to be back playing 2 weeks after surgery?
• Tech was only able to get points when Georgia gave them the ball in plus territory. The defense was out in crappy positions several times and held up well.
• I just kept hoping for one good drive from Gunner to put the game out of reach, but it never came. Guess we can cancel those flights to NYC.
• Two biggest plays of the game were Branch’s sick 3rd down catch and the unnecessary roughness penalty on Rutledge.
• I know I say this almost every week, but where would we be without Branch this year?? He’s becoming as good a slot receiver as McConkey. That juke on the TD catch was ELEET.
• Did anyone else notice that we had 3 straight penalties in man coverage on that late drive from Tech? Pass interference was only being called against UGA though.
• Loved the call from Bobo on second down on the final drive as Tech was fully committed to the line of scrimmage. Great patience from McCray for the first down run. It was unfortunate that Gunner crapped the bed after that and they had to punt and pucker up.

Again, a win is a win this time of year and this is far from a healthy team. The Dawgs are fortunate to have A&M do Aggy things yet again and let them into the SECCG, which I love but I know many other fans don’t. I’m certainly worried about Bobo not being able to play next week, as OL play looked worse after he left the game. But CJ Allen is back, the RBs look good, and the defense is rounding into form. Whoever they match up with in Atlanta, it should be competitive. Unless it’s a blowout loss, I don’t see them dropping past #4, but the committee is going to committee, so we’ll see. I hope lots of Refugees make it to the Benz and the Dawgs can get some long overdue revenge on the Tide. FTMFs and Go Dawgs!