With the third College Football Playoff rankings coming out in earnest on Tuesday night, Georgia Bulldogs fans are praying, hoping they get the break they need. In truth, they may have already gotten it with the Alabama Crimson Tide suffering a second loss on the season. It may have only been their first in league play, but there is no way on god's green earth they will be ranked inside the top four.
As far as Georgia is concerned, the Dawgs should be ranked either third or fourth in the third playoff rankings on Tuesday night. They will almost certainly be behind Ohio State and Indiana out of the Big Ten, possibly leapfrogging the Texas A&M Aggies after what transpired last weekend. Georgia clobbered Texas 35-10, while Texas A&M pulled off a 28-point comeback to shock South Carolina,
Fortunately for Dawg Nation, a card-carrying member of the Big Ten in Joel Klatt loves this program.
"They played better in that game than I think that they have played all season long, which is scary for everybody else. Because Georgia now, to me, is the best team in the SEC."
That was only the tail-end of Klatt's thoughts on Georgia, so you definitely need to check out this clip.
Let's unpack Klatt's comments in full, especially where he talked about Kirby Smart as a great leader.
Joel Klatt is a big believer in Georgia Bulldogs because of Kirby Smart
Klatt got to the crux of his argument by saying that Georgia flipping the script on Texas was all of Smart's doing. He argued that Smart puts trust in his players, and his guys return the favor. Smart empowers Heisman hopeful quarterback Gunner Stockton and he in turn lights a fire in the entire team. Klatt effectively said that Smart demands this out of his players, which not every coach does.
Georgia has become the team that nobody in the country wants to play. Do you think other high-quality teams like Ohio State, Indiana, Texas A&M or Texas Tech want to see the Dawgs in the playoff? Not a chance! What about teams who have already played Georgia so far in SEC play in Alabama and Ole Miss? They will want to avoid the Bulldogs in the playoff bracket for as long as humanly possible.
Overall, Klatt is absolutely right in that Georgia is the best team in the SEC right now. It was Alabama, right up until the Crimson Tide lost to Oklahoma at home by two points... Georgia did lose at home to Alabama by three points, but does not have another loss on its resume. While Alabama must win the Iron Bowl to make the playoff, Georgia is a lock to make it in, just like a team it is better than in A&M...
Texas A&M may not want to hear it, but Georgia is more battle-tested and is peaking at the right time.