Georgia turns down White House invite following national championship

There are plenty of opportunities that arise after winning the national championship. Georgia has reaped the benefits over the past two years, being on top of the college football world under head coach Kirby Smart. For all sports, one of the benefits is heading to Washington D.C., and being hosted by the president.

However, there will be no visit to the White House for Georgia despite back-to-back titles.

Georgia announced they would not make a trip to the nation’s capital on Tuesday. President Joe Biden had invited the Bulldogs to visit on June 12 but it was declined. The date itself was used as the reasoning, with classes nor football practice being in session.

“Unfortunately, the date suggested is not feasible given the student-athlete calendar and time of year,” a statement from Georiga Athletics said. “However, we are appreciative of the invitation and look forward to other opportunities for Georgia teams moving forward.”

By the time Georgia is back on the football field practicing, the calendar will likely read August. Classes will not start back up in Athens until then as well, leaving the program without a time the team will completely be together.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2019 LSU Tigers were the last college football national championship team to visit the White House. They headed out east in early January, visiting President Donald Trump.

Alabama did not attend after their 2020 title and now, Georgia has not visited President Biden for their two consecutive wins.

White House to host multiple national championship winning teams

Georgia is not the only collegiate national championship-winning team to recently receive an invite from the White House. According to Sports Illustrated’s Ross Dellenger, there will be a “College Athlete Day” in Washington D.C. on June 12. Had the invitation been accepted by the Bulldogs, they would have not been the only team on site.

Dellenger states there will be additional information released by the White House in the coming days.

Two teams have already accepted their invitation from President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, with both coming from basketball. UConn men’s and LSU women’s basketball will visit the White House in late May following their March Madness triumphs.

Iowa women’s basketball was thought to maybe receive an invite following their run to the national championship game. But head coach Lisa Bluder decided to decline the offer, saying the tradition of only the champion visiting should continue.