On Saturday, No. 6 Georgia and No. 11 Kentucky will square off in Lexington, with the victor earning the SEC’s East Division title.
Wait, did you read that right? Yes, you did.
Kentucky. Playing for a title. In football.
While the general population might be somewhat surprised that the Wildcats – who haven’t won an outright conference championship in almost 70 years and have yet to claim SEC East honors -- are one huge win away from playing in the SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, no one connected with the Bulldogs is.
“They do a tremendous job, and we’ve got a lot of improving to do to be able to complement and to match up with these guys because they have a really good football team,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said of Kentucky (7-1, 5-1 SEC) on Monday. “And we’re excited for the opportunity to go up there and play.”
Although the Bulldogs (7-1, 5-1) throttled the Wildcats 42-13 at Sanford Stadium last year, those with somewhat longer memories recall that Georgia needed a 25-yard field goal from Rodrigo Blankenship in the waning moments of the 2016 game to escape Commonwealth Stadium with a 27-24 victory.
“They’ve gotten better every year we’ve played them – that’s no surprise,” tight end Isaac Nauta said. “Playing in Lexington was a tough place to play my freshman year. It’s a tough place to play, they’ve got a really good team with a lot of good players. It’s going to be a big game this weekend.”
“No, I’m not surprised at all,” defensive back Tyrique McGhee added. “… Playing them my freshman year, they had a great team and even last year they been building a great program.
“The (UGA) whole program – everybody involved – knows what’s at stake, especially with a week like this and a great SEC opponent like this in Kentucky (with) an explosive offense and playing well on defense. Everybody knows what has to be done and what we’ve got to do this week.”
