ESPN gives reality check to doubting Georgia can win it all again in 2023
The offseason is all about bold predictions and bad takes, and ESPN attempted to provide a reality check for some of the overreactions from this spring. That included one for Georgia not being able to win a third national championship in a row.
No team in modern FBS history has won three straight national championships. Georgia, which waited 41 years to win a national title before finally getting over the hump in 2021, will have a chance to do it this coming season. After setting an NFL draft record with 15 players being selected in 2022, including five defensive starters in the first round, Georgia still managed to finish 15-0 and win its second straight CFP National Championship this past season. The Bulldogs had three more players -- defensive tackle Jalen Carter, offensive tackle Broderick Jones and edge rusher Nolan Smith -- picked in the first round on Thursday. They also lost quarterback Stetson Bennett, tailback Kenny McIntosh, cornerback Kelee Ringo and tight end Darnell Washington to the pros. Perhaps more importantly, offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who helped Kirby Smart get his program past the finish line, left for the same position with the Baltimore Ravens. Former Colorado State coach Mike Bobo, who played quarterback at Georgia, is back for his second tenure as his alma mater's playcaller.
Reality check: Until someone knocks off Georgia in the SEC, it will be among the favorites to win a national championship every season. Smart and his staff have stockpiled that much talent in Athens, Georgia. Safety Malaki Starks and end Mykel Williams were starters as freshmen last season. Georgia's linebacker corps -- Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Smael Mondon Jr. and Jalon Walker -- is as good as any in the FBS. Carson Beck will probably end up winning the quarterback job, and he'll have All-America tight end Brock Bowers and a deep receiver corps to work with. Georgia's offensive line should have won the Joe Moore Award last season, and it's going to be good again. After canceling a nonconference game against Oklahoma, the Bulldogs will play nonconference games against FCS program UT Martin, Ball State, UAB and Georgia Tech. They won't play Alabama, LSU or Mississippi State during conference play. They'll be heavy favorites in every game going into a Nov. 18 showdown at Tennessee.
-- Mark Schlabach
After the Dawgs went 14-1 in 2021, making the College Football Playoff and becoming the first No. 3 seed to win the national championship, Georgia went 15-0 in 2022, winning its second SEC Championship under Smart and its fourth-straight New Year's Six bowl game, with Smart earning his 13th, 14th, and 15th wins over a top 10 opponent in the march to back-to-back titles. Georgia then signed the No. 2 recruiting class in the country while adding three former SEC players via the transfer portal, giving Kirby Smart another elite roster to compete with this fall.
