Checking in at No. 1 in the coaches and AP preseason polls, expectations for Kirby Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs heading into the 2024 season couldn’t be higher. Yet, College Football Hall of Famer David Pollack is either doing his best to temper them publicly, or he doesn’t believe in his Dawgs.
Georgia received 46 of the 62 first-place votes in the AP poll, finishing well clear of Ohio State and Oregon for the top overall spot. Despite missing the College Football Playoff in the final year of the four-team format, there are plenty of reasons to believe that Smart’s team, which has gone a staggering 42-2 over the past three seasons with two national titles, has a fantastic shot to win a third championship this season.
Most of all, more than the fantastic defensive line with Nazir Stackhouse and Mykel Williams, the talented young secondary, or the deepest wide receiver room that Smart has had in his time in Athens, Carson Beck is back at quarterback. Yet, even with a loaded roster and one of the Heisman Trophy favorites leading the way, Pollack is scared off by the daunting schedule laid out in front of the Dawgs.
After the release of the AP preseason poll on Monday, Pollack posted this to X.
Georgia is set to face No. 4 Texas in Austin, No. 5 Alabama in Tuscaloosa, and No. 6 Ole Miss in Oxford, not to mention a Week 1 matchup with No. 14 Clemson, and a late-season showdown with No. 15 Tennessee.
It’s fair to have questions about the possibility of an undefeated schedule with three difficult road trips, but Pollack has to start believing in these Bulldogs because as the coaches and the AP voters have told us, they’re the best team in the country.
Maybe it won’t be the No. 1 overall seed in the 12-team College Football Playoff, but anything less than a first-round bye would be a disappointment, and if the Bulldogs miss the CFP, even with a brutal schedule, that’s a flat-out failure.
Expectations are high, and Pollack may be doing his best to temper them, but they’re high for a reason. If Georgia takes care of business, then the Dawgs will finish the season at No. 1 and with ring No. 3 on Kirby Smart’s finger.
