Georgia Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart tells ESPN's College Gameday: "We Push Each Other"
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ATLANTA - The No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs and coach Kirby Smart are getting ready for a big-time showdown with the LSU Tigers in the 2022 SEC Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. And ESPN’s popular College Gameday had this to say about the Dawgs.
Kirby was asked by the Gameday crew about his team, and he said that the No. 1 Dawgs have been resilient all year long. He went on to add that the program tries to structure to the offseason so that the team is ready physically and mentally for the fall.
“They push each other and hold one another into account,” Kirby told the Gameday crew. “I have been proud of that so far this year. They have been able to do a nice job.”
Responding to a question about team buy in, Kirby said the program tries to force players to communicate.
“(We spend) at lot of time in the offseason. We do a lot of structuring - making guys talk. Make guys understand what the guys before them sacrificed. We make it about the team,” he said.
The Bulldogs are No. 1 in all major polls heading into the final weeknd of college football before a break before the bowl season. Should the Bulldogs beat LSU in Atlanta they would likley stay home for the holidays and play in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Eve.
“We are worried about the next game - not the last game,” Kirby said. “They are worried about the team not the individual. We sell that really hard in the offseason. I don't know if there is a perfect remedy... we have our issues, too. But our kids have been resilient.”
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SEC TITLE ON THE LINE SATURDAY
Top-ranked Georgia (12-0, 8-0 SEC) will be looking to capture its 14th SEC title when it meets No. 11 LSU (9-3, 6-2 SEC). The Bulldogs will be making their fifth appearance in the SEC Championship Game (SECCG) in the Kirby Smart era that began in 2016. Georgia’s last SEC title came in 2017 when the sixth-ranked Bulldogs beat fourth-ranked Auburn 28-7. In 2018 and 2021, Georgia fell to Alabama while in 2019, LSU defeated Georgia on its way to a perfect 15-0 season. TheTigers along with Clemson in 2018 are the only teams to go 15-0 in the modern era (1937-present).
Georgia’s 13 conference titles rank the second most in the SEC. The Bulldogs are 3-6 all-time in the SECCG, including 1-3 versus LSU. The teams have met with an SEC title on the line in 2003, 2005, 2011 and 2019. Georgia’s only win came in 2005 when the 13th-ranked Bull- dogs upset No. 3 LSU 34-14. Georgia’s first appearance in the SECCG came in 2002 when it beat Arkansas. That Bulldog squad posted a 13-1 final mark.
LSU leads the overall series 18-13-1 including 2-0 against Smart’s Bulldogs. During the 2018 regular season, second-ranked Georgia was upset 36-16 by 13th-ranked LSU in Baton Rouge. The Bulldogs finished 11-3 that year. The only other meeting came in the 2019 SECCG. Georgia completed that campaign 12-2.
Georgia’s Record In SECCG: 3-6
2002: #4 Georgia d. #22 Arkansas 30-3
2003: #3 LSU d. #5 Georgia 34-13
2005: #13 Georgia def. #3 LSU 34-14
2011: #1 LSU d. #12 Georgia 42-10
2012: #2 Alabama d. #3 Georgia 32-28
2017: #6 Georgia d. #4 Auburn 28-7
2018: #1 Alabama d. #4 Georgia 35-28
2019: #2 LSU d. #4 Georgia 37-10
2021: #3 Alabama d. #1 Georgia 41-24
SENIORS MAKING HISTORY
With the 37-14 win over GeorgiaTech last Saturday, the Bulldog senior class established a school record for most career victories.The 2022 Bulldog seniors are 46-5 and that included just nine regular season games and a bowl triumph during the COVID-shortened season of 2020. The 2021 Bulldog class that finished their career as national champions tallied a 45-8 mark.
Also of note, the 2022 Bulldogs became the first Georgia squad to post back-to-back perfect 12-0 regular seasons. There now have been only six teams in school history to finish a regular season undefeated. These came in 1896 (4-0), 1946 (10-0), 1980 (11-0), 1982 (11-0), 2021 (12-0) and 2022 (12-0). Georgia’s single season record for wins is 14 set by the 2021 national champions (14-1).
DID YOU KNOW?
Georgia collected its fifth SEC Eastern Division title in the Kirby Smart era this season. The Bulldogs previously have won it in 2017-19 and 2021. In school history, the Bulldogs have won 12 Eastern Division crowns and 13 SEC titles. Georgia last won the SEC Championship in 2017 when it defeated Auburn.
RUSHING TO A CONCLUSION
The Bulldogs are tied for third nationally with 35 rushing touchdowns (The school record is 42 set in 2017). Eight different Bulldogs have scored a rushing TD this year. Senior RB Kenny McIntosh has a team-leading eight. He had 182 all-purpose yards in the latest win over GT. Georgia is averaging 203.0 yards per game and 5.5 yards per carry.
Georgia’s offensive line features C Sedrick Van Pran (27 consecutive starts), RT Warren McClendon (team high 36 consecutive starts) and RG Tate Ratledge (made 11 of the 12 starts this season) along with LT Broderick Jones (12 consecutive starts) . LG Xavier Truss (started 11 of the 12 games) missed the game versus No. 1 Tennessee due to a toe injury. RSo. Devin Willock got his first career start against the Vols for Truss and then started for Ratledge at Kentucky. The unit is a Joe Moore Award semifinalist as one of the country’s top offensive lines. The versatile Warren Ericson (17 career starts) relieved an injured Ratledge for the final 14 games of 2021. He can play all five spots along the line. Amarius Mims is lining up at either tackle position. They have helped Georgia pile up 38.2 points/game and 488.8 yards/game thus far.
Georgia ran for a season-high 292 yards and six touchdowns in their 42-10 win over Auburn. The Bulldogs averaged 7.5 yards/carry against the Tigers. Georgia’s rushing tally versus Auburn was the most since 2020 against Missouri (316). The six rushing scores were the most for Georgia since the 2018 contest versus UMass.
PILING UP THE POINTS
Georgia is averaging 38.2 points/game, which is 12th nationally.
The Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 459-136 this season, including 244-60 in the opening half.
The Bulldogs are 64 of 66 in the Red Zone (a national leading 97 percent) this year with 43 touchdowns and 21 field goals.
Georgia jumped out to a 24-6 halftime lead on 306 total yards versus No. 1 Tennessee and eventually posted a 27-13 victory.
Georgia’s offense generated 49 points against No. 11 Oregon in the 2022 season opener. The Bulldogs tallied 571 yards of offense on 62 plays, scoring touchdowns on their first seven possessions. Georgia had a season-high 579 yards of offense vs Vandy.
Georgia’s leading receiver against the Ducks was Kenny McIntosh (9-117-0). Also of note, WR Ladd McConkey scored receiving and rushing touchdowns in the same game for the second time in his career (@ Vanderbilt, 2021) versus Oregon as WR AD Mitchell also snagged a touchdown catch. McConkey accomplished the feat yet again at Mississippi State this season. Mitchell has been limited to four games in 2022 because of an ankle injury.
McConkey is a team co leader with 46 catches for 606 yards (13.2 avg.) and four scores. He had a career-long 70-yard touchdown run at Mississippi State. McConkey is also the primary punt returner with 17 for 197 yards, including a career-long 39 yarder versus Georgia Tech.
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