Morning, y’all!
Let me start off by saying WOW, did y’all have some awesome “goosebump game” contributions.
Thank you to everyone who sent in their thoughts, and if anyone has one they’d like to add, you can send it to sarah.spencer@ajc.com. Tomorrow, I’ll send these out, plus the submissions from our most athletic/impressive play feature.
Today, we’ll have a more newsy newsletter, since we’ve got to start getting prepped for SEC Media Days next week (that’s right, talkin’ season has arrived).
Here we go:
Georgia makes surprising choice for SEC Media Days player representatives
The SEC announced the player representatives for all 16 schools ahead of next week’s SEC Media Days. The event, which will be held in Tampa, Florida, begins Monday and concludes Thursday.
When Georgia meets with reporters on Tuesday, quarterback Gunner Stockton, offensive lineman Drew Bobo and linebacker Raylen Wilson will speak for the team.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart will also address reporters, as he previews the upcoming season.
It’s of little surprise that Georgia will send Stockton to the event. He returns as the team’s starting quarterback. He threw for 24 touchdowns last season, while rushing for another 10. He finished seventh in Heisman Trophy voting and will look to be a more consistent player this coming fall.
On the defensive side, Wilson will lead a defense that looks to be one of the best in the country. Wilson is in his fourth year in the program. He’ll be tasked with taking on a more vocal leadership role in 2026, as the Bulldogs do have to replace CJ Allen. Wilson was third on the team in tackles last season while adding 6.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
It is somewhat surprising that Georgia is bringing Bobo to the event, though not for Bobo’s lack of ability. He was a Second Team All-SEC selection last season. Georgia got a better understanding of how critical Bobo is to the team’s success when Bobo suffered a season-ending foot injury against Georgia Tech. The offense took a noticeable step backward when Bobo was out of the lineup in the SEC championship game and College Football Playoff.
Bobo did not participate in Georgia’s spring practice as he continued to recover from his foot injury. He’ll likely be able to provide an update on his recovery when he meets with reporters.
You can read the rest of Connor Riley’s story on SEC Media Days here.
Georgia may have weakest SEC schedule in 2026, but it will be far from easy
On paper, this upcoming Georgia football schedule doesn’t seem as daunting as past iterations.
It’s been a talking point for months. The fact that ESPN ranked Georgia’s strength of schedule as the weakest in the SEC for the upcoming season has only provided more fuel to the idea.
The Bulldogs still have games against 2025 College Football Playoff participants in Oklahoma, Alabama and Ole Miss. But Ole Miss is a major question mark with Pete Golding stepping in for Lane Kiffin, while Oklahoma and Alabama didn’t exactly have strong finishes to the season.
Georgia will likely be favored in every game this fall. That’s one of the benefits of not facing LSU, Texas or Texas A&M on the schedule. Georgia plays only four games this coming season outside the state of Georgia, as the Bulldogs benefit from this year’s Georgia-Florida game being played in Atlanta.
Yet that easy schedule doesn’t mean what it used to in the SEC. With the conference adding a ninth conference game, the Bulldogs have swapped out a lesser program for another SEC foe that is at least somewhat closer to being on even footing.
Missouri, South Carolina and Auburn may not be College Football Playoff contenders this coming season, but they all have real talent on their rosters with Dylan Stewart, Ahmad Hardy and Byrum Brown.
Last year, Florida went 4-8. By record, they were a bad football team and thus one of the worst teams in the SEC.
Yet that team still had seven players taken in the 2026 NFL draft. That’s one fewer than Georgia had and tied with CFP teams in Oklahoma and Oregon. That helps explain why Florida was able to play Georgia so tight.
Smart has long talked about the difficulty of winning week in and week out in the SEC. It’s why “humility is just a week away” is one of his favorite phrases.
Smart understands better than anyone in the league the cost and difficulty that comes with playing a ninth conference game. When you factor in the SEC championship game, the Bulldogs have played nine SEC games in each of the previous five seasons.
So when Smart speaks on the wear and tear that comes with playing nine conference games, he does know what he’s talking about.
“I mean, the coaches in our league are concerned about it, very concerned about it,” Smart said after beating Alabama in the SEC championship game. “I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t speak my piece and say it’s concerning … It was tough, physical out there tonight. They were wounded. We were wounded.”
Georgia won’t be the only team adapting to an extra conference game during the regular season, as it will be a leaguewide talking point.
One of the reasons Georgia’s schedule, per ESPN’s College Football Power Index, isn’t as high as some of its contemporaries is because the Bulldogs can’t play themselves. Georgia is the No. 2-ranked SEC team in that predictive system, sitting behind Texas.
The highest-ranked team in the ESPN FPI that Georgia plays is No. 8 Alabama. The Crimson Tide are the only top-10 team Georgia is set to face this coming season in that rating system.
Georgia has the No. 20-ranked strength of schedule, per ESPN’s FPI. That still ranks above fellow College Football Playoff hopefuls like Oregon (No. 26), Miami (No. 45) and Notre Dame (No. 56). Texas Tech has the No. 71 strength of schedule entering this upcoming season.
Read more of Connor Riley’s story on Georgia’s strength of schedule here.
Trivia section
In Georgia’s 2022 national championship win against TCU, the Bulldogs smothered the Horned Frogs’ ground game. How many net rushing yards did Georgia give up?
- 20-30
- 30-40
- 40-50
- 50-60
Georgia defender could become a ‘household name’ during key third season
Justin Williams has not yet had the chance to show why he was the No. 1-ranked linebacker prospect in the 247Sports Composite rankings for the 2024 recruiting cycle.
The Georgia linebacker room has consistently been one of the best position groups in the country. That will likely be the case once again in 2026, even with the Bulldogs having to replace All-American linebacker CJ Allen.
With Allen now playing for the Indianapolis Colts, Williams has a chance to really show what he can do. Cooper Petagna of CBS Sports expects Williams to not only become a well-known name throughout the sport this fall but also validate his 5-star recruiting ranking.
“A 6-2, athletic second-level player with excellent range, the Texas native figures to be a key part of the Bulldogs’ defense this upcoming season,” Petagna said. “Although the sample size is still somewhat limited, don’t be surprised if Williams makes the most of his opportunities this fall and becomes a household name in the middle of Glenn Schumann and Kirby Smart’s defense.”
Williams worked his way into the linebacker rotation last season for Georgia, as the now-junior was able to play in every game for the Bulldogs.
When Allen suffered a November knee injury against Texas, Williams took on a larger role in the late stages of the season. In 2025, Williams finished with 36 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss and a pass breakup.
While Williams will look to make a name for himself this upcoming season, he is not the only talented inside linebacker on Georgia’s roster.
Raylen Wilson enters his fourth season with the Bulldogs. He’s seen just about everything during his time in Athens. Georgia expects Williams to be a more vocal leader this fall, in addition to being a wrecking ball in the middle of its defense.
Wilson was tabbed as one of Georgia’s three player representatives at SEC Media Days in Tampa, Florida, next week.
Then there is Chris Cole. Like Williams, he signed as a 5-star prospect in the 2024 recruiting cycle.
Cole led Georgia in sacks last season with 4.5. On early downs, Cole will line up next to Williams. But in passing situations, he will move out to an edge rusher at times, with the hope of giving Georgia a more powerful pass rush.
As the Bulldogs look to up their sack total from a season ago, expect Cole to play a bigger role in that regard for the Georgia defense. That should create an even bigger opportunity for Williams this coming fall.
Read the rest of Connor’s story on Williams here.
Trivia answer
2. Georgia held TCU to 36 net rushing yards in the infamous 65-7 win.
