After one of the best seasons is Georgia football history, Sports Illustrated's Chris Johnson believes the Bulldogs "seem likely to backslide" from their standout performance in 2017.
In Kirby Smart’s second year at his alma mater, the Bulldogs won the Southeastern Conference championship and the Rose Bowl before falling to Alabama in the national title game.
“The program that beat the Bulldogs in the national title game has spent every preseason this decade as a no-questions-asked national championship contender. Georgia is clearly trending upward under Kirby Smart, but unlike Alabama, it needs to string together multiple seasons like the one it had in 2017 before it can be trusted to reload and compete at the sport’s highest level no matter how extensive its personnel turnover,” Johnson wrote.
The Bulldogs are entering uncharted territory right now. Most of its playmakers on offense and defense are off to pursue NFL careers, and Smart is left with many starting holes to fill on his team.
“The Bulldogs’ most notable loss comes from a defense that ranked sixth nationally in points allowed per game last season. Roquan Smith, who amassed 137 tackles and won the Butkus Award given to the nation’s top linebacker in his junior season, announced earlier this month that he would enter the 2018 NFL draft. Defensive tackle Trenton Thompson made the same call,” Johnson wrote. “Other departures on that side of the ball include linebackers Lorenzo Carter and Davin Bellamy, and Georgia is also losing ace running back tandem Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, starting left tackle Isaiah Wynn and leading wide receiver Javon Wims. Getting fellow wideout Terry Godwin and cornerback Deandre Baker back for another season will help the Bulldogs cope, but it won’t change the harsh reality that a good number of the players who made major contributions to the program’s best season in a long time are headed out the door.”
The Bulldogs also get back quarterback Jake Fromm, who turned in a solid rookie season in Athens. It was so good, Fromm was named the SEC Freshman of the Year.
Georgia also brings in a stacked 2018 recruiting class. With six five-star recruits and 12 four-stars, the Bulldogs have the No. 2-rated 2018 class according to 247Sports.com.
Much like Smart’s former employer, the talent continues to file into his program. Now, Smart has to take what he learned at Alabama and develop that young talent to ensure Georgia stays at the top of the college football world in the coming years.
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