Only a few hours separate us between the holiday season and the College Football Playoff. That is right! The first round will be underway on Friday evening in Norman, as the No. 8 Oklahoma Sooners will host the No. 9 Alabama Crimson Tide in a rematch from the regular season. The winner of this game will take on the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers in the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day here in a few weeks.
Although fans of the No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs may only watch the rematch from the regular season between No. 6 Ole Mis and No. 11 Tulane with great detail, as the Dawgs will play either the Rebels or the Green Wave in the Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day, there are things to pay close attention to throughout the entire playoff. Georgia has a team capable of winning the national championship.
So as a bit of a table-setter, let's take a look at all four first-round games being played this weekend. Alabama at Oklahoma will be on Friday night, while No. 10 Miami will be at No. 7 Texas A&M for the early kick on Saturday. After that, it will be Tulane at Ole Miss for the mid-afternoon game, followed by plucky No. 12 James Madison at No. 5 Oregon to close out the first-round slate of games for us all.
Without further ado, let's take a look at each game and what every UGA fan should pay attention to.
No. 9 Alabama Crimson Tide at No. 8 Oklahoma Sooners
Even though the chances of Georgia facing either Alabama or Oklahoma in the playoff later on are quite slim, as the Crimson Tide and the Sooners are on the other side of the bracket from them, this is all about seeing what next year has in store for these SEC programs. A win could provide either team some momentum heading into the Rose Bowl, whereas a loss could put the focus onto their coaches.
Should Alabama lose, that might be the end of the line for Kalen DeBoer. He is supposedly up for the Michigan head-coaching vacancy. It will be interesting to see if he does leave Tuscaloosa for Ann Arbor. To be quite frank, it would be after a first-round loss to Oklahoma. Optically, it is terrible either way. As for OU, a home loss to Alabama would put Brent Venables back into hot seat conversations.
Alabama has the roster more capable of playing Georgia in Miami, but do not expect either to make it.
No. 10 Miami Hurricanes at No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies
If there was another game besides No. 11 Tulane at No. 6 Ole Miss for Georgia fans to close attention to, it would have to be No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M. The winner of this game could conceivably face Georgia in the Fiesta Bowl, should the winner upset No. 2-seeded Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl. For Texas A&M, it is all about the big stage. Can Mike Elko help his team separate and elevate here?
As for Miami, Georgia fans will obviously want to see how Carson Beck plays in what could potentially be the final game of his college career. Outside of that, Georgia needs to see if Mario Cristobal can step up his game in the postseason, as well as if offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson can find new and creative ways to get their best player in wide receiver Malachi Toney the football on more plays.
The winner of this game has a real shot at knocking off Ohio State, but they will still be the underdog.
No. 11 Tulane Green Wave at No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels
Without question, this is the one game Georgia fans need to carve out some time, if they have it, to watch in its entirety this weekend. It is because the winner of No. 11 Tulane at No. 6 Ole Miss will be Georgia's next opponent in the Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day. This game will be a rematch from earlier in the year, one where the Rebels wiped the floor with the Green Wave at Vaught-Hemingway.
From an Ole Miss perspective, Georgia needs to see how connected this team really is. Lane Kiffin is out of the picture, now that he is at LSU. Many of his assistants have stayed on to coach this game, but it will be Pete Golding calling the shots now. As far as Tulane is concerned, the point of interest is all on Jon Sumrall. He is their outgoing head coach and will be taking over at Florida once this is over.
UGA fans need to see what kind of coaching vulnerabilities Kirby Smart and his staff can exploit here.
No. 12 James Madison Dukes at No. 5 Oregon Ducks
And if there is one game you do not really need to exercise a ton of time watching from a Georgia fan's perspective, it would have to be the final one in primetime between No. 12 James Madison and No. 5 Oregon. JMU has virtually no shot of advancing as the second Group of Five team in the field. Oregon is a massive home favorite, but the Ducks are on the other side of the bracket from Georgia.
Admittedly, there is not a ton to watch from a JMU perspective, other than if Bob Chesney can really make it work at UCLA going forward. From an Oregon vantage point, this is all about how composed former Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning looks on the sidelines. Keep in mind that he is about to lose both of his coordinators. Will Stein is off to Kentucky, while Tosh Lupoi will take over Cal.
Oregon could face Georgia in the national championship, but the Ducks must win three more games.