Kirby Smart compares current team to 2017 Georgia Bulldogs

Kirby Smart is often asked about the 2017 Georgia Bulldogs, who made it to the College Football Playoff semifinal and knocked off Oklahoma in a double-overtime thriller.

Georgia was then primed for the biggest matchup of the year by far, but fell short to Alabama in the championship game by a slim 26-23 margin, a contest that once again was decided in overtime.

When first asked about the comparisons between this year’s dominant Georgia team, slated as the No. 1 squad in the country, Kirby Smart deflected. The Bulldogs’ front man used the opportunity to lay out all of the areas the 2021 team have thrived, collectively.

Here’s Smart’s response from the SEC teleconference earlier this week.

“This team has responded to all the things we’ve challenged them with,” Smart said.

“We hit them with different things each week, things we want to really focus on accountability from their standpoint of holding other players accountable from week to week for different things. And they’ve done it each and every time, every time we’ve asked. They’ve been up for the challenge.”

Kirby Smart says one of the biggest differences between the two teams bound for similar paths has to do with the personnel. Many key positions that year were holdovers from Mark Richt, while this year’s team was handcrafted by Smart and his staff on the recruiting trail.

“The 2017 group had some really good leaders on it,” Kirby Smart added.

“I feel like this team — you know, that team, it wasn’t fully recruited by our staff. So we had a lot of guys that bought in and believed what we were selling, where this year all these guys have kind of been recruited by the staff. They seem to connect well. There’s a lot of really good kids.”

Kirby Smart understands his history vs. Nick Saban

Kirby Smart has taken the Georgia Bulldogs to the top of the college football world. However, two things have eluded Smart — a national championship, and a victory over Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

On paper, it certainly appears like this is the year Smart’s star-studded defense can stifle Bryce Young and an offense that has shown vulnerability, especially against Auburn last week in the Iron Bowl.

While Kirby Smart wasn’t going to relive all of the heartbreak from the past as Georgia prepares for the opportunity to knock Alabama out of College Football Playoff contention, he made a point to mention the task ahead.

“I know Alabama well. Really good football program. Coach has done a great job over there. We’ve got a lot of respect for their team and the way they play and the style of play.”

College football fans are in for a treat when Saturday’s SEC Championship rolls around. So much history with so much at stake, it’s certainly going to be one for the ages.