Welcome to Tuesday, Bulldog fans! And a somewhat unexpected game week Tuesday, thanks to the antics of Arch Manning, and Aggies facing a competitive SEC team. Yet no thanks to Auburn, who could have done the funniest thing, in hindsight the funniest thing ever, by beating Alabama and putting Ole Miss into the SEC Championship Game alongside us. Instead, Georgia makes another conference championship, matched up with the Crimson Tide in Atlanta for the umpteenth time, a game not everyone is excited about.
A matchup of historically good programs? Check.
A matchup of SEC heavyweights? Check.
A matchup of currently ranked top 10 teams? Check.
But a matchup that plays into some of the Alabama/Georgia fatigue, with teams dealing with injuries forced into a physical contest that might inflict real damage on any plans beyond said SEC banner? Check and mate.
So beyond the TV numbers this game will produce, the fanbases are conflicted. Bama fans want to keep their dominance over Georgia coach Kirby Smart yet realize a loss could be perilous to CFP rankings, Bulldog fans want to get the red elephant off Kirby’s back and also know beating Daddy is no easy feat. No matter which side you fall on, you’re not the only ship adrift on this ocean. Ladies & Gentlemen… The Rolling Stones!
At least Coach Smart is excited about the opportunity. At his weekly press conference, he reiterated the importance of the SEC title for the program and the fans. The theme this week: Everyone is good at utilizing skillsets – both teams, and both UGA coordinators, and pretty much everyone else. I was hoping for some injury updates, but those were apparently covered on the Sunday evening conference call.
You and I both saw the latest Clean Old Fashioned Rockfight. Almost all of the position groups played well overall, but there were significant lapses that appeared. The Red & Black graded each group, and those lapses were both accounted for and, in many instances, excused.
The penultimate CFP rankings come out Tuesday night. Georgia will likely slide up into the #3 spot vacated by the Fightin’ Elkos, but where will Texas A&M drop down to? Will it be above or below Ole Miss, now with Extra Golding and Less Kiffykins!? Will Alabama hold onto the #10 spot, possibly just enough to absorb a possible SECCG loss and still make the playoffs? Will Miami leap Notre Dame and inch a little closer to a playoff berth even without a championship game appearance? Only next week matters, but this ranking sets the stage for what happens with the losers of UGA/Bama and Texas Tech/BYU. Which then dictates if an ACC team gets in at all, and how much Steve Sarkisian begs in front of microphones the next 5 days.
Wednesday is the start of the official signing period, which used to mean something. Georgia currently sits at #2 in 2026 recruiting class rankings, and looks to sign upwards of 30 players. That quantity and quality is rumoured to change, depending on Wednesday’s signing ceremony at Nashville (TN) Christian. That is the day the nation’s #1 recruit, QB Jared Curtis, will reveal if he sticks to his committment to the G or has been swayed by local Dr. Evil impersonator and newly minted multi-millionaire Clark Lea at Vanderbilt.
Don’t be fooled into thinking this is basketball season, unless you’re Florida or Auburn or South Carolina or Kentucky. With that said, the Georgia roundball teams are ballin’. The Women’s team is still undefeated, having easily dispatched Butler this weekend, and the men’s team has but a single blemish on the record after heaving up 43 three-pointers (made 21) and racking up 123 points on Tennessee Tech. Both squads face Florida State this week in the SEC/ACC challenge before a slight break for exams.
That should get your Tuesday started. I for one, have to focus on limiting my Munsoning to a piddlin’ 3 things. These first world problems are ones I can absolutely get behind, and here is hoping yours are just as inconsequential. Have a great Tuesday, and as always…
GO ‘DAWGS!!!
