Georgia football fans likely did a double take when seeing former rival Gus Malzahn was selected to influence UGA’s postseason fate as a member of the College Football Playoff selection committee.

Indeed, former Auburn coach Pat Dye once said that if he were ever on a CFP committee, he would certainly not treat Alabama the same as other programs if he were on such a panel.

It was less than 10 years ago that Malzahn, then Auburn’s head coach, triumphantly walked off the field after a 40-17 win over UGA in 2017 proclaiming, “We whipped the dog crap out of them.”

Georgia responded by winning the next four games against Malzahn by a collective score of 98-37, leading up to his firing in December 2020.

UGA’s win streak in the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry stands at nine games.

Georgia’s rivalry with Malzahn aside -- Kirby Smart has since praised the former coach and referred to him as a “good friend” -- the SEC is hoping for some relief with a former SEC coach now on the 13-member voting panel.

Smart also recently revealed a growing sentiment in the league that the SEC championship game “probably needs to go” if the College Football Playoff expands to 16 or 24 teams -- which, it’s worth noting, Smart told The Atlanta-Journal Constitution he favors.

“Where we are right now with 12 teams (in the playoff), I don’t necessarily agree that it needs to quit being played,” Smart told Chris Low. “But if it gets to 16 or 24 and we’ve got to move the end of the season up and we’ve got to get everything done by the second week of January, then I’d say it probably has to go.

“The important thing is we need to gain something, meaning we’re playing that weekend in the first round of the playoff when the SEC championship game is normally being played and playing the season out like an NFL playoff system. But if we’re going to leave it where it is now, with 12 teams in the playoff, I’m not for removing the SEC championship game.”

There’s no doubt, the College Football Playoff conversation will heat up sooner than later with respective Power 4 conference spring meetings fast approaching.

The SEC presidents, athletic directors and head coaches will meet May 26-28 in Miramar Beach, Florida.

College football is currently moving forward for a third year with a 12-team playoff after the SEC and Big Ten were unable to reach an agreement on a new format.

But many expect the CFP field to expand to 16 or 24 games, with valuable television package dollars on the table.

The CFP selection committee will be more important than ever, as their members, which now includes Malzahn among the annual turnover of three staff members beginning three-year terms --will set the order of the field.

Former Cal coach Jeff Tedford and Louisiana-Lafayette athletic director Bryan Maggard were also added to the 13-member committee, which sets the 12-team CFP field with its rankings each year.

There has been some trepidation from SEC coaches with the league going to a nine-game schedule this season. Smart told the Athens Touchdown Club last month the SEC is eating its own with the new scheduling model.

Smart also repeated his messaging from last year’s spring meeting on how the nine-game schedule affects aggressive nonconference scheduling.

ESPN’s recently released annual SP+ rankings — which attempt to rank the teams based on returning talent and recent success — demonstrate why Smart and other SEC coaches have become more bullish on the concept of playoff field expansion to 16 or 24 teams.

Comparing last season’s schedule to the 2026 slate, Georgia drops a home game with Charlotte — ranked 138 of 139 — for a game at Arkansas, which comes in at No. 47.

Smart, along with Tennessee coach Josh Heupel, has acknowledged the merit of the CFP expanding from 12 to 16 — or perhaps 24 — teams.

“I think 24 teams is good for the fan bases,” Smart told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in February. “I think when coaches and ADs look at it, we’re looking at our fan bases having an expectation that they want to be in the playoffs. It’s playoffs or bust.”

Smart explained how the college football bowl system that once satisfied fans by rewarding teams for good seasons no longer exists.

“They really just want to make the playoffs,” Smart said of college football fans. “And I’m hearing some athletic directors scream and yell that they can be much more financially efficient if their fan base is rewarded with the playoffs.”

The analytics, however, suggest the Big Ten’s version of a nine-game schedule is not on par with the SEC’s because of the depth of competition in the latter.

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey made that point with great clarity at the league’s spring meetings last May.

“We can go through the analytics and show the rigor of our schedule is different than anyone else’s, period,” Sankey said. “… If you play the top-ranked team and the 130th-ranked team, those two games average out to 65.5. If you play 65 and 66, they average out to 65.5. So the adviser said, you’re just as well playing 65 and 66."

Here’s a look at the recent preseason ESPN SP+ rankings, with the SEC and Big Ten teams pulled out to provide clarity on the difference in quality depth:

ESPN SP+ rankings

(SEC in bold)

1. Ohio State

2. Oregon

4. Georgia

5. Indiana

6. Texas

9. Texas A&M

10. LSU

11. Alabama

12. Oklahoma

13. USC

14. Michigan

15. Tennessee

16. Ole Miss

17. Penn State

19. Florida

20. Missouri

21. Washington

22. Iowa

23. South Carolina

26 Auburn

31. Vanderbilt

33. Illinois

37. Nebraska

45. Minnesota

46. UCLA

47. Arkansas

49. Northwestern

52. Mississippi State

53. Kentucky

55. Maryland

61. Wisconsin

62. Rutgers

67. Michigan State

82. Purdue

2026-27 CFP Selection Committee

Bryan Maggard

Gus Malzahn

Jeff Tedford

Mark Dantonio

Mike Riley

Troy Dannen

Mark Harlan

Chris Massaro

Carla Williams

Hunter Yurachek

Ivan Maisel

Randall McDaniel

Wesley Walls