This season marks a new era for the Dawgs and all of college football

One of the things I like about college football is the routine. From Labor Day to Thanksgiving, I have my Saturdays planned.

I spend my fall Saturdays one of two ways: I either sit on the couch and watch football until my eyes bleed, or I party in the parking lot of the Dairy Science Building and watch football until my eyes bleed and then walk to Sanford Stadium to watch live Dawgs games, not to mention the occasional wedding or family gathering.

This sport, which I love in part because it’s so commonplace, has gone through tremendous changes in recent years. The fact that players get paid and can move around virtually freely through the transfer portal has fundamentally changed the way the sport works. But those changes didn’t happen on the field and had no impact on how we view the game from Saturday to Saturday.

This year, however, the Saturday experience will be different. First, this is the first year of the recent realignment boom. Now there are schools from California, famously with a non-Atlantic coast, in the Atlantic Coast Conference. In our area, that means the addition of Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC and the elimination of divisions in favor of a “top two records” conference championship format.

That leads us to our other big change: the 12-team playoff. For years, I’ve stressed that Georgia must go undefeated or at least reach the SEC Championship game to earn a playoff spot. In a 12-team playoff world, we have room to maneuver. One loss — heck, even two — doesn’t mean a death sentence for a team’s title hopes like it has in the past. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing, I’ll leave to your judgement.

The extra breathing room this new format gives us couldn’t have come at a better time either, as Kirby Smart and the Dawgs face the toughest schedule of his tenure. The season begins on neutral ground in Atlanta against Clemson. The Tigers may not have reached the heights of the Watson/Lawrence years, but they’re still dangerous, especially in Week 1 when you don’t know exactly what to expect.

The elimination of divisions has created a refreshing but dangerous SEC schedule for the Dawgs. In late September, we travel to Tuscaloosa to see if we can avenge last year’s SEC Championship Game and beat the Tide in our first meeting of the post-Saban era. In October, we head to Austin for an inaugural SEC game against the Texas Longhorns, who look like potential title contenders in their first season in a new league. Then in November, it’s back on the road, this time to Oxford, where Lane Kiffin might be getting Ole Miss ready for its best shot at an SEC title since the days of Archie Manning. That’s about the most dangerous road schedule you could ask for. (On the bright side, we get Alabama, Texas and Ole Miss in Athens next year.)

So, yes, it’s going to be a tough one. But as we all expect, we have some real GUYS on our list.

Leading the way on offense will be Carson Beck. The bookies have him as the favorite to win the Heisman, which has less to do with him being really, really good than with him being the starting quarterback on the team that’s considered the favorite to win the title. But he’s also really, really good. He’ll be working behind an offensive line that, on paper, looks to be Smart’s best since returning to Athens.

At the skill positions, Beck is supported by a strong receiver corps led by Dominic Lovett, Dillon Bell, Anthony Evans III and Oscar Delp, and bolstered by new additions London Humphreys (transfer from Vanderbilt) and Michael Jackson III (transfer from USC). Trevor Etienne (transfer from Florida) could be the high-powered tailback we’ve sorely missed in recent years if he lives up to expectations.

The defense… well, it’s a Kirby Smart defense. It will be outstanding and loaded with future NFL talent. Malaki Starks is the best safety in college football and he will be a perfect role model for Ellis Robinson IV and KJ Bolden, two of the most promising freshman defensive backs in the country. Mykel Williams has been training more as an outside linebacker to add more firepower to the defense. As always, our group of inside linebackers, led this year by Smael Mondon and CJ Allen, are the envy of college football.

Editor’s Note: Cy Brown is retiring from flag football this year for family reasons, but Flagpole is considering continuing the column. Anyone interested in taking it over is invited to send writing samples and a cover letter explaining the direction they would like to take to City Editor Blake Aued at . [email protected].

Georgia football schedule 2024

August 31: against Clemson in Atlanta, 12:00 on ABC

September 7: vs. Tennessee Tech; 2 p.m. on SEC Network+

September 14: in Kentucky; 7:30 p.m. on ABC

September 28: in Alabama; 7:30 p.m. on ABC

Oct. 5: against Auburn; time to be announced (Homecoming)

Oct. 12: vs. Mississippi State; time to be announced

Oct. 19: in Texas; time to be announced

October 26: against Florida in Jacksonville; 3:30 p.m. on ABC

Nov. 9: at Ole Miss; time to be announced

November 16: against Tennessee; time to be announced

November 23: vs. UMass; 12:45 p.m. on SEC Network

November 29: against Georgia Tech; 7:30 p.m. on ABC

Like what you just read? Support Flagpole with a donation today. Every dollar you give helps fund our ongoing mission to provide Athens with high-quality, independent journalism.