All games should be viewed differently. Let's just say Dawg Nation should be thanking its lucky stars that Mike White's Georgia Bulldogs actually went out there and took care of business at LSU last week. Had UGA not gotten the decisive Quad 1 road win, who knows where they would be at this stage of the game in Bracketology? The home beatdown vs. Florida has Georgia up against it a bit.
For the third update in a row, ESPN's Joe Lunardi has Georgia as a No. 10 seed. While the Dawgs are still the best No. 10 seed in his eyes, that is only eight spots ahead of the cut line for the last team into the field of 68. Georgia would be playing No. 7-seeded Saint Louis in the St. Louis quadrant of the West Region that runs through San Jose. If UGA were to beat Saint Louis, next up might be ... Purdue.
At 17-7 on the year and 5-6 in SEC play, Georgia is playing with fire at this stage of the season. The Bulldogs only have seven more SEC games left to play. While going 3-4 could get them into the tournament, picking up one last Quad 1 win could give them a little wiggle room. Thankfully, they might have their easiest Quad 1 opportunity this season with a road date at the Oklahoma Sooners.
OU is 12-12 on the season, but only 2-9 in SEC play. The Sooners did just beat Vanderbilt on the road.
Georgia must beat Oklahoma on the road to make the NCAA Tournament
Let's put this as simply as possible. Georgia has a NET rating of 35. While Oklahoma only has a NET rating of 71, any time you play an opponent on the road with a NET rating of 75 or better, it is considered a Quad 1 game. Even though Oklahoma has been the worst team in the SEC this year, one with no shot of making the NCAA Tournament, this game is technically a resume booster for Georgia.
While there is a chance that after Georgia beats Oklahoma that the Sooners' NET rating could drop below the 75 threshold to only be a Quad 2 game, that seems a tad unlikely. Moreover, the road win at Missouri is looking better with each passing game. UGA also has a high-quality home victory over Arkansas. What does Georgia need to do to make sure it will be above the cut line this tournament?
Looking at their seven remaining games, Georgia has four more Quad 1 opponents, two more Quad 2 games, and one of the Quad 3 variety. Assuming Georgia gets Quad 2 wins over Texas at home and Mississippi State on the road, as well as a Quad 3 win vs. South Carolina, that should be enough to get UGA into the field of 68 at 20-11 (8-10). Of course, getting another Quad 1 win will help a ton.
After the road date at Oklahoma, Georgia has three more Quad 1 games at Kentucky, at Vanderbilt, and home vs. Alabama. For Georgia to win any of those three other Quad 1 games might be a bit of a stretch for this year's team. They will be lucky to get one of them. It is why they need to take care of business at Oklahoma, as well as not slip up vs. Texas, South Carolina, and Mississippi State either.
This road win at Oklahoma might be just as important as the road date was last week at LSU for UGA.