What’s the point of scheduling top-tier opponents if it doesn’t even matter? That’s the question Kirby Smart is asking as Georgia’s season reaches a crucial point. Things are looking very tight for Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs with all these tough scheduling conflicts for the playoffs spot. The Bulldogs have faced heavy-hitting powerhouses back to back to back. Smart is fired up about whether the College Football Playoff committee values the brutal gauntlet his team has run.
Kirby Smart isn’t sugarcoating anything as Georgia’s playoff hopes hang by thread. The Bulldogs had to square off against top powerhouses like Clemson Tigers, Alabama Crimsons, and Ole Miss on Week 11. And now, facing a critical matchup with No.6 ranked Tennessee Volunteers. Two losses — one to BAMA and a shocking upset by Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss Rebels—have left the Bulldogs a bit vulnerable and awkward position in the playoff picture. Smart has a few choice words from the College Football Playoff (CFP) committee.
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Recently on November 16, appearing on” The Pat Mcafee Show”, Smart laid it all out. “I think the news, Tuesday came out and it’s not something that we talk about but it’s you’re like okay well what’s the importance of the schedule if we play a really tough schedule is there value in that you know what I mean” He questioned. Kirby’s absolutely right here, the Bulldogs have battled through one of the nation’s most challenging lineups, with so much riding on tomorrow’s game against Tennessee, Smart’s frustration was well hidden, but a hint of it, can be seen on his face.
Smart then expressed what he sees as a major flaw in the selection process. “I think there’s value in that when you win, and then when you don’t or you don’t play well… I don’t know how much the committee values it. They’re looking at things through a sample size of… they’re looking at the game on TV. They’re not at the stadium, hearing the crowd noise, knowing the atmosphere that you’re playing in. It’s very different when you play on the road in our league compared to some other leagues. It’s tougher,” he preached. In his and every Bulldogs fan’s eyes, the committee’s view of the action and see what’s going on misses the real intensity of SEC matchups.
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Pat McAfee agrees on Kirby Smart’s dig at CFP and playoff dream
Pat Mcafee, known for his straight talk, agreed with Smart’s take. “I think there’s a good chance that Coach Saban is going to be saying a lot of the things that you just mentioned right there on GameDay,” Pat Mcafee remarked. He’s probably right. The SEC’s grind is no joke. And it’s hard to judge a team’s performance purely from TV highlights when the reality on the field is so much tougher.
Georgia’s showdown with the Tennessee Volunteers could define their season. The Bulldogs have a good number of flaws. The Bulldogs’ offense is lacking like anything. Their quarterback Carson Beck can’t make 5 throws in a row without throwing an interception. With the final CFP ranking set to drop on DEC 8 and the first 12-team kicking off on December 20, every game is high-stakes for the Bulldogs. The real playoff game for the Bulldogs is just tomorrow against the scary-looking Tennessee defense and their run game. With the committee give weight to the Bulldogs’ grueling schedule, or is it simply about wins and losses? One thing is clear: Kirby Smart and his team fight ahead of them, and how they handle tomorrow’s game will determine their season. Hypothetically, might be the last game of their season or just the beginning of another playoff run.
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Does the CFP committee truly understand the SEC grind, or are they just scoreboard watchers?
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Does the CFP committee truly understand the SEC grind, or are they just scoreboard watchers?
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