Let's just say that ESPN's Bill Connelly is thoroughly intrigued by what Kirby Smart's team is doing. In Sunday evening's article titled "Who we can (and can't) trust after Week 8 of the college football season?", Connelly wrote a fantastic section about how much he trusts Georgia's toughness. He was quick to point out Georgia's inconsistent run game, lack of big-play ability, and its mediocre defense.
Still, he is honestly dumbstruck by the type of confidence and swagger this team plays with when it matters the most. He mentioned Georgia giving teams like Tennessee, Auburn, Alabama and Ole Miss leads at various points in those games, but Georgia went on to win all but one of them. Connelly even said that if not for "Bama's defensive red zone magic", Georgia might have beaten them at home, too.
He finished up his section on trusting Georgia's toughness by writing if the Dawgs need to score 40 points, it will, and that if it needs to hold the opposition to 10, it will as well. For as many playoff-caliber teams the SEC has at the moment, Connelly ended by saying he would not be all that surprised if Georgia were to face Alabama in a rematch in Atlanta with a first-round bye in the playoff on the line.
To see a noted analytics expert like Georgia put aside his numerical biases should speak volumes.
What is it about Georgia's toughness that sets the Bulldogs apart?
Instead of trying to quantify the unquantifiable, let's let the talk of a great narrative take over and wash over us like a beautiful cascading waterfall. Why is Georgia able to win most of these games? Why are the Dawgs just so darn tough? It is a combination of coaching and culture. What does Georgia have that trumps most of the opponents they go up against? They have Smart as a coach.
While there have been times Mike Bobo frustrates Dawg Nation, not to the degree of seemingly every first half under Glenn Schumann, Smart is an elite recruiting, a brilliant defensive tactician, a master motivator and a mischievous manipulator. Love him or hate him, he is at the top of his profession for a reason. This man's emotional intelligence is off the charts. He can connect with any player or coach.
So whether it is a young defense trying to find its footing, or a first-year starting quarterback in Gunner Stockton trying to take his game to new heights, it all comes back to Smart. He empowers his people to make a difference, regardless of if they can or not. In short, he breeds confidence into his team. It is honestly shocking how few college football head coaches seem to do it on a regular basis.
This is all the proof you need to see that going from good to great to elite is not so easily measurable.