With the injury to Georgia star tight end Brock Bowers, the SEC East race just got a lot more interesting

The SEC East suddenly just got a lot more interesting. 

With Monday’s news that Georgia star tight end Brock Bowers will potentially miss the next four-to-six weeks after undergoing tightrope surgery to fix a high-ankle sprain suffered in the win over Vanderbilt, a  third-straight trip to Atlanta no longer looks inevitable for the Bulldogs. 

Still likely? Perhaps. But without Bowers, who might be the best pure football player in the country in 2023, the Bulldogs recede even closer to a pack of hungry teams already nipping at their heels. 

The Georgia training staff is taking a look at Brock Bowers. pic.twitter.com/8UlzP62Vkx

— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) October 14, 2023

With an already banged-up football team (no Amarius Mims, Kendall Milton and others) and the accumulation of a record two-year talent drain to the NFL, Georgia was already a more vulnerable top dog in 2023. They’ve played down to their competition in most weeks, and now it enters the teeth of its schedule without its best player. 

The timing is terrible. 

vs. Florida (in Jacksonville)

vs. No. 20 Missouri

vs. No. 13 Ole Miss

@ No. 17 Tennessee

For the first time since the COVID-shortened 2020 season, there could be a legitimate race for the SEC East this fall. During their back-to-back title runs, the Bulldogs have dominated the East, beating their division foes by an average of over 20 points per game. 

But as we inch toward Halloween, Georgia (7-0, 4-0), Missouri (6-1, 2-1), Tennessee (5-1, 2-1) and Florida (5-2, 3-1) are all still in the mix.

The Gators have found their footing and have some momentum entering the bye week. Strange things tend to happen at the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party, too. With Luther Burden and Theo Wease, the Tigers have the offensive firepower to challenge Georgia. Meanwhile, James Pearce (6.0 sacks, 9.0 TFLs) has become a gamewrecker, as Tennessee has quietly developed a bully-ball identity — mashing opponents on the ground (No. 5 rushing attack nationally) and pummeling teams in the trenches (No. 5 in sacks, No. 7 in TFLs). Similarly to Missouri, Ole Miss can score. 

So we’re going to find out if Georgia is up to the test. 

The Bulldogs are not a one-man band, so their season isn’t doomed. Bowers is fantastic (41 catches for 567 yards and four scores), but UGA has plenty of other playmaking options — just not at tight end. During the bye week, Mike Bobo might spend more time on 1o and 11 personnel without Bowers, leaning on the likes of Dominic Lovett, RaRa Thomas and others. 

There are a couple potential avenues for Georgia here. Perhaps UGA hones in on a new identity post-Bowers, and when he does return, the Bulldogs simply sprinkle in the best player at his position to the mix. Or UGA struggles mightily sans its go-to-guy and loses a couple games. 

Tennessee plays at Alabama this weekend, so the Vols could remove themselves from the race in less than a week. But with games against both Missouri and UGA remaining, they could still play spoiler, too. The Gators and Tigers will also meet in November, so these teams could all cannibalize one another and Georgia ends up in Atlanta as expected. 

Maybe that’s what’ll happen. But maybe not? Either way, a division that’s been dominated by the team in Red and Black suddenly got a lot more interesting this fall.