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Kirby Smart and Georgia football have history on the line in the 2023 season, as the Bulldogs, winners of each of the last two national titles, can become the first team in nearly a century to win three championships in a row. Just don't tell Smart that. The Georgia football coach was asked Monday if he speaks to his team about the opportunity.
Smart's response said it all, per Mark Schlabach of ESPN.
“Absolutely not. I just don't think you can make it about that. The minute you do that, you open yourself to distractions, adding pressure. What if it doesn't happen? What are you playing for? I mean there's just so many things that I just don't believe philosophically in doing that because what the previous two teams did [has] no bearing on this team, has no bearing.”
Smart feels that talking about a three-peat will only welcome “distractions” and added “pressure.”
He added that the accomplishments of the previous two Bulldogs teams “have no bearing” on this team. While no Georgia football fan is going to think this way, Smart is right.
The ‘Dawgs, who went 15-0 en route a thrashing of TCU in the title game in 2022, would have had a hard time authoring a worthy sequel to the performance even if the team remained the same.
While Georgia football did retain most of its core from the 2022 team, a big question mark at quarterback surrounds the team, with two-time champion Stetson Bennett now in the NFL.
The unproven Carson Beck takes the reins at QB for the Bulldogs. With Bennett and other big-name contributors no longer around, why invite more pressure than there already is on this team?
That's why Smart won't be speaking about a potential three-peat anytime soon.
