The first edition of the College Football Playoff rankings came out on Tuesday and Georgia earned the No. 5 ranking. This means that Georgia is in a great spot to make the playoff at the end of the season, but they by no means are a lock to do so.
But the consensus from most college football fans is that Georgia should have nothing to worry about, but On3 college football analyst Josh Pate believes the Bulldogs are nowhere near a playoff team right now.
“I want to say Georgia, but given the stakes here, I would prefer to see them get through this Saturday at least before I start mentioning Georgia because they’re playing one of them and Alabama, both just one-possession machines, one-possession games every week," Pate said via essentiallysports.com. "So, I like Bama, I like Ole Miss, I like A&M. That’s where I’m drawing the line right now.”
Josh Pate isn't ready to name Georgia a playoff team yet
Pate was willing to say that Alabama, Texas A&M and Ole Miss are locks to make the playoff, but he is not ready to say that about Georgia. His reasoning is because UGA has played a lot of close games this season, so he isn't convinced they'll be able to finish strong enough to make the playoff.
While that is definitely a good reason to be concerned, saying that Georgia doesn't look like a playoff team right now is a bit of a stretch. That is especially the case when one of those close wins came against Ole Miss, a team Pate believes does look like a playoff team.
The one thing Pate is right about is that Georgia has a lot of work to do still. They can afford one more loss this season and still make the playoff, but Texas and Georgia Tech could very easily beat Georgia later this season. Even Mississippi State has a decent shot to pull off the upset as well.
Georgia however shouldn't be worried about what Pate or anyone else thinks. All they need to do is handle their business and win at least three more games and they will make the College Football Playoff again this season.