Georgia football isn’t afraid to play tough non-conference games. They welcome them because head coach Kirby Smart knows it helps get teams to the playoffs.
After not having non-conference games in 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic, it made everyone in college football realize how much those games mean to the sport itself. Those opening games on a neutral field between two top-10 opponents are what create discussion among college football fans.
In recent memory, there have been epic showdowns that the Dawgs have competed in and those games being out of conference.
Whether it be the trilogy of Clemson games in the last decade, or maybe even the 2017 game against Notre Dame where the Dawgs traveled to South Bend and UGA legend Rodrigo Blankenship hit the game-winner, Georgia loves a good challenge.
Georgia football needs to keep playing tough non-conference games.
Many games shaped Georgia into what they are today, and most of those come from out-of-conference matchups. All these games where the Dawgs have stepped up to beat a major non-conference opponent is what college football is all about.
Perhaps the most memorable one for Dawg fans would be the 2018 Rose Bowl game against Baker Mayfield and the Oklahoma Sooners, where the Dawgs would go on to win 54-48 in 2 overtimes and go to their first national championship appearance since 1980. To call that game a thriller is simply an understatement.
Here are three non-conference games we would love to see the Dawgs get the chance to play in.