On Sunday, Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart and his Bulldogs saw their chances of a historic three-point come to an end when it was announced that they will not be competing in the College Football Playoff next month. Georgia went undefeated this regular season; however, Smart's former mentor, Alabama football head coach Nick Saban, got the best of his ex defensive coordinator during the SEC Championship Game, ending Georgia's bid for history.

That sets up Georgia for an Orange Bowl matchup against Florida State, who was also controversially snubbed by the selection committee despite finishing undefeated this year, and recently, Seminoles head coach Mike Norvell had some lofty praise for Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs ahead of the matchup.

“This is the team that has really set the standard over the last three years,” said Norvell, per Maria Martin of 11Alive News on X. Norvell also referred to the Bulldogs as “the best team in college football over the last three years.”

In any other year, both Georgia and Florida State football would have gotten into the playoff with no questions asked. This season's deep field has raised a debate about whether there is a difference between the “best” and “most deserving” four teams, and the fact that both Florida State and Georgia found themselves snubbed would seem to indicate that the committee didn't fully apply either approach in their decision.

The difficult truth is that Georgia would be comfortable favorites over three out of the four teams that made the Playoff ahead of them, and that will be a tough pill for Bulldogs fans to swallow.