Georgia football: Bulldogs surpassing expectations so far in 2017

No. 5 Georgia football heads back up to Tennessee this week to play the unranked Vanderbilt Commodores.

Georgia football is looking good right now. They are looking real good. Coming off of a 41-0 annihilation of SEC East rival Tennessee, the Dawgs are now a perfect 5-0. They are getting ready to face a Vanderbilt team this Saturday that upset them last year in Athens.

It was a loss that made some question if Kirby Smart was the right hire for head coach of UGA. I was not a part of that crowd, I always maintained that he needed more than a year to right the ship.

I figured that the 2017 version of this team would be much more competitive and by 2018, Smart would have us being a legit conference contender and possibly a playoff contender. Well, it looks like ol’ Kirby has the team about a year ahead of schedule.

We all know they are undefeated. And if you’re reading this, I’m sure you know they have won the past two SEC games by a combined score of 72-3 and gained some much deserved national attention.

Georgia versus the spread

They have been favored in every game this year except one (Notre Dame), but this is a team with a history of playing down to its competition. In fact, the Dawgs only went 6-7 against the spread last year. How have they fared in that department this season?

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As is the case with most aspects of this team, UGA has overachieved in 2017 when it comes to covering the spread. In game-one against Appalachian State, media favored the Dawgs by 14.5. They won by 21.

The next week at Notre Dame, they were 4.5 point underdogs and flat-out won that game. They obliterated Mississippi State and Tennessee, games in which they were a 4.5 favorite and a 7.5 favorite respectively.

The only game UGA hasn’t covered in this season was against Samford. The Dawgs are sitting at a very respectable 4-1 against the spread and have covered against every Power 5 conference opponent they have faced this season.

So what will happen Saturday?

The Dawgs roll into Nashville to take on the Commodores, a team that many thought would have a legit SEC defense. The 59 points that Alabama put up against them and the 38 points Florida put up against them suggest otherwise.

Next: Predicting the final score of Georgia vs. Vanderbilt

The Georgia defense is stifling right now, so I don’t believe Vandy will be able to move the ball. The offense is improving every week, and while it is an early kickoff (12 noon E.T.)  and supposed to be a sloppy one with rain per the forecast, we have too many play-makers on that side of the ball for Vandy to contain.

The Dawgs are a 17.5 point favorite. If they are for real, and they seem to be, they should take care of business.  Look for the Dawgs to win and cover the spread once again against Vandy.