National title or bust: No. 1 Georgia begins the season in a familiar spot

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Georgia begins the season in a familiar spot — No. 1 — and facing the burden that anything less than a third national title in four seasons will be a disappointment.

Pressure? Not at all.

Coach Kirby Smart has built a program that lives very much in the moment, letting others ponder big-picture issues like championships and legacies. It’s a lesson he learned very well from his mentor, longtime Alabama coach Nick Saban.

“I’ve honestly never paid any attention to it, and we don’t talk about it as a team,” said Smart, the highest-paid coach in college football after agreeing to an extension that pays him $13 million a year. “The expectation is we’re going to develop and worry about today’s day.”

The Bulldogs won consecutive national titles during the 2021 and ‘22 seasons, and came up just shy a year ago when a loss to Alabama in the Southeastern Conference championship snapped a 29-game winning streak and left them out of the four-team playoff.

Taking their frustration out on undermanned Florida State, Georgia romped to a 63-3 rout in the Orange Bowl, setting up the Bulldogs as the clear No. 1 heading into 2024.

The playoff expands to 12 teams this season. Even with a daunting schedule, there seems little doubt that Georgia will be back in the postseason mix.

With Saban having retired at Alabama, there is certainly no question about the top dog in college football. Smart has built a program between the hedges that is essentially Crimson Tide 2.0.

Of course, that’s for others to talk about.

“We still have the same standards that we’ve had here at Georgia for a long time,” senior defensive back Dan Jackson said. “We’re focused on this year, and right now.”

Cool Carson

Georgia’s championship hopes start at quarterback, where Carson Beck emerged as one of the nation’s top players in his first season as the starter after three years of waiting.

Beck completed more than 72% of his passes for 3,941 yards and 24 touchdowns, with just six interceptions. He gave the Bulldogs a huge boost when he decided to return for another season, putting off the NFL draft to 2025.

Beck is not a fiery leader by any means, letting his play on the field do the talking.

“Assertive is not necessarily something that he is,” Smart said. “He’s assertive in his checks, and he’s assertive in his decision-making. That’s certainly much more important than just what he says to the group as a whole.”

Off the field

Smart continues to deal with the perception that he doesn’t have a good handle on his players away from the gridiron.

The Bulldogs dealt with another round of off-the-field issues, most notably the arrest of receiver Rara Thomas on cruelty to children and battery charges. He was kicked off the team by Smart just before the start of fall camp.

Smart’s players have been involved in a reported two dozen driving-related violations such as DUI or speeding, including a crash that killed a player and a recruiting staffer in January 2023.

“Disappointing, I guess, is the best word,” the coach said.

On the defensive

Suffocating defenses have been a hallmark of the Smart era, and it should be more of the same in 2024 with returning stalwarts such as end Mykel Williams, linebacker Smael Mondon Jr., safety Malaki Starks and nose tackle Nazir Stackhouse.

“The guys have embraced what it means to play defense at Georgia,” said coordinator Glenn Schumann, who will be joined by Travaris Robinson after he left Alabama to become co-defensive coordinator with the Bulldogs.

New Dawgs

Smart landed the nation’s top recruiting class, which is nothing new, and also plugged some holes via the transfer portal.

Trevor Etienne arrived from Florida to take over as the lead running back, Stanford transfer Ben Yurosek should help fill the void at tight end after Brock Bowers moved on to the NFL, and receiver Colbie Young gives Beck another target in the passing game after leaving Miami.

The stellar group of freshmen includes cornerback Ellis Robinson IV, safety KJ Bolden and linebacker Justin Williams.

The schedule

If the Bulldogs claim a spot in the playoff, no one will be able to say they didn’t earn it.

Georgia opens the season Aug. 31 against No. 14 Clemson in Atlanta and has a murderer’s row of road games against three SEC teams ranked in The Associated Press top 10: No. 5 Alabama (Sept. 28), No. 4 Texas (Oct. 19) and No. 6 Ole Miss (Nov. 9).

Throw in home games against No. 15 Tennessee (No. 16) and rivals Auburn (Oct. 5) and Georgia Tech (Nov. 29), plus the Cocktail Party game in Jacksonville against Florida (Nov. 2), and there’s not question Georgia is facing one of the toughest slates in the nation.

“When you step into the shoes of a University of Georgia football player, you accept that challenge is going to be there,” Smart said. “We kind of embrace that and we love it.”

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll