Georgia football: Dawgs enter 2018 season at no. 3 in AP poll
The associated press recently released their 2018 Preseason Top 25. Georgia football enters the season ranked no. 3, their highest start since 2008.
Georgia football fans will be pleased to know the starting position of the Dawgs in 2018. The Associated Press recently announced the top-25 to enter the season. The Bulldogs sit comfortably at no. 3 to enter the year. Predictably, the AP ranked Alabama no. 1 and Clemson no. 2.
The Crimson Tide and Tigers have dominated college football recently. Alabama has appeared in every College Football Playoff. Clemson has the second-most appearances with three. They’ve played Alabama all three times and defeated them for the National Championship two seasons ago.
Georgia entering the season ranked no. 3 is possibly another step in the change if culture in Athens. Though that won’t become apparent until a few weeks into the season. Even when Georgia entered the season ranked no. 1 in 2008, they still weren’t respected by the AP. The press dropped Georgia in their first two polls despite the Dawgs winning by comfortable margins.
The program and the fan base desperately wants a National Championship and to become a truly elite program. It stung seeing an old rival in Clemson defeating the Tide for a championship and backing it up with a great 2017 season and a pair of fantastic recruiting classes.
But head coach Kirby Smart began the steps to becoming an elite program last year. First with a no. 3 class in 2017, followed by the SEC Championship, Rose Bowl victory, appearance in the National Championship Game and finally a no. 1 recruiting class in 2018. Now Georgia enters the season ranked no. 3 with a talented and hungry roster.
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The team hasn’t yet earned the respect it wants though. The AP and other media outlets still have Alabama as the favorite with Clemson also appearing in the title game. The belief is that the Dawgs will lose to the Tide in the SEC Championship Game and be eliminated from playoff contention. Most in the media see 2018 as not being the Dawgs year. The last step in the program Smart is building is for every season to potentially be seen as Georgia’s year.