National media shares its thoughts on Georgia football at the midpoint of 2022 season

ATHENS — Kirby Smart doesn’t care all that much about national title odds or favorites to this point. He spends very little time worrying about them, instead focusing on this week’s opponent, the Vanderbilt Commodores.

“I wouldn’t have cared. I don’t trust the source,” Smart said. “I don’t really care.”

Georgia was actually passed this week by Ohio State as the betting favorite for most sports books. Still, it is the Bulldogs who sit at No. 1 in the AP Poll through the first six games of the season.

Many in the national media see Georgia as one of the top teams in the country. Though the Bulldogs aren’t without flaws, as we’ve seen in recent weeks, the totality of Georgia’s season has them well-positioned for another run to the College Football Playoff.

“There’s no clear distinction between Alabama and Georgia at this point,” ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura wrote. “But the defending champion Bulldogs have the best win (Oregon 49-3) and played better this week (beating Auburn 42-10), which is good enough to give them the edge for now.”

Oregon is the No. 12 team in the country, the highest-ranked team with a loss on its schedule. The Ducks have been rolling since their early season loss to Georgia, boosting the Bulldogs’ resume.

Georgia though does have some questions given its recent performances against Kent State and Missouri.

Chief among the current concerns has been the play of the passing game. Quarterback Stetson Bennett has been dealing with some shoulder soreness dating back to the Missouri game. That would explain some of the accuracy issues over the past two games.

“Georgia’s slow starts and a total lack of big-play passing -- Stetson Bennett over the past three games: 10.8 yards per completion -- do concern me a bit,” ESPN’s Bill Connelly. “The Dawgs sure did turn it on against Auburn in the second half, though.”

The Bulldogs did go on to outscore Auburn and Missouri 35-10 in the past two fourth quarters, thanks to some success in the running game. Daijun Edwards and Branson Robinson both had strong games for the Bulldogs against Auburn. Georgia ran for a season-best 292 rushing yards in the win over its rivals.

Another reason for the recent struggles in the passing game can be chalked up to the lack of healthy receivers.

“Halfway through the 2022 season, Georgia still seems to be figuring out who it is on offense,” ESPN’s Mark Schlabach’s wrote. “Coach Kirby Smart wanted to open up the passing game in the opener against Oregon, and the Bulldogs were firing on all cylinders. But then receiver Adonai Mitchell joined Arian Smith on the injured list, and the Bulldogs couldn’t produce many explosive plays down the field.”

Smart provided an update on Mitchell when he spoke to reporters this week. The talented wide receiver did return against Auburn but played just four snaps in the win. It was his first game since injuring his ankle against Samford.

“Adonai has looked better, but he hasn’t probably looked as good as I thought he did in pregame last week,” Smart said. “I really thought he looked good in pregame and hasn’t quite been to that mark. I don’t know if it was the adrenaline, or the rush, I thought he looked pretty good in pregame and thought we might be able to use him more, but it didn’t work out. He didn’t really tweak it again, but he’s not 100%. He’s been very similar this week as he was last week.”

The Bulldogs take on Vanderbilt this Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET. Ohio State is off this week while No. 3 Alabama visits No. 6 Tennessee. That final game will have a massive impact on the college football season.

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