Desmond Howard says Georgia, Michigan are '1A and 1B' among CFP contenders

When it comes to national championship contenders in college football, few teams look better right now than Georgia. And ESPN analyst Desmond Howard isn’t deviating from the pack in picking the Bulldogs atop the sport.

But the Michigan alum doesn’t think his Wolverines are terribly far behind, fresh off a Top 10 road win. But with the way Georgia is playing right now, Howard thinks the rest of the country needs to watch out.

“Stephen A. I was at the game last week in Athens when they played Ole Miss. And the thing about Georgia is they’re getting healthy now. They were missing some linemen. They were missing the best player in college football, Brock Bowers the tight end. Ladd McConkey was missing early in the season, he’s back. Bowers played last week. And they look to be one of the strongest teams in the NCAA right now. I mean, what I saw was very impressive, offensive and defensively,” Howard said to Stephen A. Smith on ESPN’s First Take.

And while Howard thinks Michigan is right on par with the Bulldogs, he sees Georgia finding its form at the perfect time.

“So I would say they’re probably like 1A and 1B, Georgia and Michigan, from what I saw a week ago. The Georgia Bulldogs, they’re peaking at the right time because they’re getting healthy,” Howard said.

He also offered a prediction about a future matchup for Georgia.

“And man I tell you what Stephen A., brother, when they play Alabama in the SEC championship, that’s going to be one of the heavyweight matches for the ages,” Howard said. 

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart explained how Bowers came back so fast

Georgia‘s offense took a massive hit in Week 7 when Bowers, the team’s leading receiver and star tight end, suffered an injury to his ankle that would require surgery. But less than one month after his procedure Bowers was back suited up for the Bulldogs, contributing to their dominant 52-17 win over Ole Miss this past Saturday.

There’s no question that Bowers’ speedy recovery and fast comeback were impressive, and on Tuesday Georgia head coach Kirby Smart detailed the rehab process and progression of his tight end following his return to action.

“He wanted to get back, it was never a rush, you don’t rush an injury back. Especially not somebody like that,” Smart said. “You have markers to hit, and when you hit the markers, you go to the next marker. And once you hit the four markers, then it becomes are you capable of playing at a high enough to contribute to the team?”