Georgia football: Sunday afternoon thoughts and feelings

Georgia football has had worse Sunday afternoons. However, the sky is not falling yet. What I found funny was SEC fans and Georgia football fans were hyper-critical of the Dawgs. Which Georgia fans should be, but that is not the funny part. It was the national consensus on the game was, “Wow, did Georgia just show you why they are back-to-back champs.” I’m not sure why one side is saying something completely different. But it’s funny.

In the second half, Georgia showed me that this team can be just as dominant as the 2021 and 2022 teams. The first half reminded me of the 2019 season. Smart said they must figure out why the team started to slow in the first quarter in his post-game press conference.

I do not know why Georgia is getting off to a slow start. My belief for now is that this team has not entirely gelled, and there are new faces in critical roles. For the folks blaming Bobo, Bobo didn’t stumble on new pages in the playbook at halftime. The play-calling worked in the second half. Why was that? Because the offense was executing at a high level. So, going back to Kirby Smarts question. Why is this team starting slow? Not executing.

I do agree with some of the criticism of Beck. My only criticism of Beck is that he has to take some risks downfield. The checkdowns short of the sticks so far have bogged the offense down. That will be corrected over time. The more Beck plays, the more he will be confident in his decision-making. The guy has only been the starter for three games. This offense will look different in a few weeks, is my hope and belief.

The defense in the second half is the defense Georgia fans have grown accustomed to. Not only did they shut down South Carolina, they dominated them. In the first half, they looked subpar. Giving up 14 points in the first half is not terrible, but it’s not great either. It showed how important Javon Bullard is to the defense. David Daniel looked hesitant at times. Now, throughout the game, Daniel played better. Furthermore, Daylen Evervtte, early in the game, was also playing hesitant. Georgia’s defensive backfield is something not to worry about. They will be okay. Malaki Starks, Kamari Lassiter, and Tykee Smith played lights out.

My only worry for this defense is being unable to create pressure with 4 or 5 guys. It felt like Georgia had to design blitzes because the line and outside linebackers were not getting to Rattler. South Carolina’s O-line had lost their best two guys and had a freshman at left tackle. Georgia, in the first half, could not get any pressure. Now, will Georgia play a better QB in the regular season? No. But they will when they get to the playoffs, which scares me. We will see if the Dawgs D-line can get more pressure as the season progresses.

This team is still capable of winning a national championship. Saying that after a subpar performance and where you were, a 27-point favorite is weird. But this college football season is weird. So far, in three weeks of football, there has not been a team that has clearly separated themselves. There is a long way to go, and we did learn more about the Dawgs. This team has no quit in them, and I know it sounds cliche, but that is an essential factor. So, until proven otherwise, I will not give up on this team yet.