UGA-Vandy Kicks off on SEC Network at 7:30

ATHENS - Georgia’s start of the college football season will be on the road at night. 

ESPN announced Thursday that UGA’s opening game with Vanderbilt will kickoff on the SEC Network at 7:30 PM EST on August 31. 

ESPN controls all home SEC contests that CBS doesn’t select. That also includes all SEC home games in the first two weeks of the year. CBS has already announced its selection of the Alabama at South Carolina game for Week 3 of the year as well as Georgia-Florida in Jacksonville. 

ESPN also took the extraordinary step of putting the Bulldogs on ESPN or ESPN2 in televised games against non-power foes Murray State (Sept. 7; 4PM on ESPN2) and Arkansas State (Sept .14; Noon on ESPN or ESPN2). 

There’s not much question about what network the Bulldogs will play on a week later when Notre Dame comes to town. In another move from what has been the case this past decade, CBS has moved its day-night doubleheader weekend to the weekend the Irish come to Athens - all but certainly guaranteeing Georgia will play its first game in primetime on that network in decades (if ever). The night CBS game has gone to the LSU-Alabama game of late, but that network wasn’t willing to turn its back on what could be the biggest TV game of college football’s regular season. 

A look at UGA’s 2019 schedule

Aug. 31 - Georgia at Vanderbilt - 7:30 SECN
Sept. 7 - Murray State at UGA - 4 PM ESPN2
Sept. 14 - Arkansas State at UGA - Noon ESPN/2
Sept. 21 - Notre Dame at UGA - 8 PM CBS (hasn’t been announced formally)
Oct. 5 - UGA at Tennessee - TBA
Oct. 12 - South Carolina at UGA - TBA
Oct. 19 - Kentucky at UGA - TBA
Nov. 2 - Georgia vs. Florida - 3:30 CBS
Nov. 9 - Missouri at UGA - TBA
Nov. 16 - UGA at Auburn - TBA
Nov. 23 - Texas A&M at UGA - 3:30 CBS (hasn’t been announced formally)
Nov. 30 - UGA at Tech - TBA
Dec. 7 - 2019 SEC Championship - 4 PM CBS