ESPN details how Georgia can run the 2025 College Football Playoff table
Georgia knew it was in the College Football Playoff when it found a way to take down upset-minded Georgia Tech in eight overtimes almost two weeks ago. It punched its ticket to the second round with an SEC Championship victory over Texas on Saturday, a game that also required overtime.
Now it has a chance to rest, recover, and refocus before it plays its next game. The Bulldogs come back together as a team today for some conditioning and they’ll be back on the practice field in the next couple of days. Georgia needs three wins for its third National Championship in four years and according to ESPN’s Bill Connelly, it’s not going to take smoke, mirrors, luck, or a specific draw.
Connelly recently laid out the path for each of the 12 playoff teams and gave his reason as to why each one has a chance. When it came to Georgia, Connelly simply said “upside and resilience.” It seems like he has watched this team quite a bit.
The Bulldogs’ inconsistencies aren’t lost on Connelly. He even calls Kirby Smarth’s ninth team in Athens “frankly maddening” with the way it has played so poorly in certain aspects and played so well in others.
But there’s also where the Bulldogs have been and what they’ve accomplished this season. They played three top 15 teams on the road this season, beat Texas twice away from Athens, and did some things to Tennessee’s defense that no other offense in the country has accomplished.
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Jalen Milroe status
Alabama QB playing in bowl
- 2
Former 5-stars currently in portal
Transfer portal ripe with talent
- 3
Dan Mullen is back
UNLV hires former Florida HC
- 4New
WVU hires Rich Rodriguez
Rich Rod is coming home
- 5
Belichick contract
Details out on UNC deal
“We know their best is still pretty brilliant. No team scored more on Tennessee,” Connelly writes. “No team scored more on Texas (or held the Longhorns to fewer points). No team held Clemson to fewer points. Only one team scored more on Alabama. UGA’s defense is among the nation’s best on third down (holding Texas to 8-for-32 in two games). The Bulldogs still tackle as well as anyone in college football. Their raw talent and depth are still off the charts, and after a frustrating run of mistakes, quarterback Carson Beck was excellent in the season’s home stretch. (We’ll see how severe his arm injury proves to be.) And with running back Trevor Etienne healthy again, the backfield has more upside.
“The Dawgs are as battle-tested as anyone, having played five games against the top eight teams in the country, per SP+ — they went 3-2 and won with their backup QB — and six of the top 22. No playoff team is going to test them in a way they haven’t already been tested, and for as frustrating as they’ve been to follow at times, it’s all forgiven if they shift into gear.”
The Bulldogs will be back in action on January 1, 2025 in the Allstate Sugar Bowl. It will play the winner of No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 10 Indiana, which will be played on Friday, December 20.
