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TAMPA – Kirby Smart and three of his Georgia Bulldogs will take the podium at SEC Media Days in Tampa on Tuesday, but that has not stopped them from being in the conversation on Monday.
This is talking season, and the back-to-back Southeastern Conference champions are always going to be one of the primary topics. This is what different coaches and media members had to say about the Dawgs on Monday:
SEC Nation, the SEC Network’s pregame show, was live early in Tampa right outside of Benchmark International Arena and down the road from the hotel media days is taking place at. The crew, filled by Tim Tebow, Chase Daniel, Matt Barrie, Roman Harper and Paul Finebaum, made their predictions for best offense, defense and roster in the conference for the season.
Georgia was not mentioned as much as it has been in the past, which two of them acknowledged. The crew unanimously picked Oklahoma to boast the best defensive unit in the SEC this season.
“The temptation is always to say Georgia, but I am saying Oklahoma,” Finebaum said.
Tebow then added, “It is the first time in a while that I haven’t said Georgia in the preseason because we know Kirby Smart is gonna get them right. He’s unbelievable at doing it. They have a lot of depth. Their safeties are gonna be ridiculous, but I think as a whole I’ll go to Oklahoma.”
Oklahoma and Georgia were at the top of the conference in defensive statistics in 2025, but the Sooners are getting more attention on that side of the ball.
The Dawgs were not mentioned a single time when the crew discussed the best offense and roster. Texas was the overwhelming favorite in both of those categories.
Ironically, Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables mentioned and praised Georgia’s program the same day his team received hype. He proclaimed Smart the “gold standard” and praised what has been going on in Athens.
“I think they've (Georgia) lost once in maybe 5 or 6 years at home. Georgia's been the gold standard, in my opinion, for college football for quite some time now,” Venables said.
Oklahoma will travel to Athens for the first time in program history for a game against the Dawgs in September. The better defense, at least for a day, will be decided in Sanford Stadium.
Former Georgia tight end and current SEC Network analyst Ben Watson was very complimentary of Georgia’s defense on Monday.
“But this year, those guys are older. I mean, I think about a guy like Ellis Robinson at cornerback, plays as a freshman last year, uh, gets four interceptions. He's a legitimate star now. That entire secondary is a veteran secondary,” Watson said.
Many players on Georgia’s defense last year were underclassmen and in their first season as primary contributors. The Dawgs return more than 10 players who either started or played a lot of snaps on that side of the ball this year.
His only question about Georgia’s defense is the pass rush. It was a big topic and issue throughout last season, and it now lingers as a question going into the 2026 campaign. Georgia only sacked the quarterback 20 times last year, which was a huge dip in the typical production.
Watson also commented on how Georgia is flying under the radar in a sense this year despite winning the conference in consecutive seasons and returning its starting quarterback Gunner Stockton. Texas is the team, again, that is getting the majority of the hype.
“There's this kind of quiet confidence I think that Georgia has. And, and, and, and as a player, you know this, you don't wanna be the one that everybody's talking about,” Watson said. “You wanna be the one with the substance, and Georgia has that.”
In addition to the positive remarks from several people about Smart and the defense, there seems to be a lot of faith in Stockton.
SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic named Stockton as the quarterback in the SEC that he trusts the most.
“One, I love the toughness, the physicality, just the gamer-like demeanor that he brings. You can see why his offensive linemen want to block for him (Stockton),” Cubelic said. “And I also think he improved with his touch, with his finesse, and his understanding of where to deliver the football a season ago. And you have somebody who goes out there and gets your teammates rallied the way that he does.”
He was discussing this with former Auburn head coach and current SEC Network analyst Gene Chizik. Chizik and Cubelic both acknowledged that Stockton’s return is important due to the questions surrounding a largely unproven wide receiver room.
The running back room that the Dawgs will deploy this year, along with Stockton’s ability to move the ball on the ground is not going unnoticed.
“What you didn't mention is the running back room, right? Deep,” Chizik said. “With Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens, they're very deep, right? He (Stockton) brings an element to the run game as well, Gunner does, and it's sneaky good.”
