No. 17 UCLA | No. 19 Louisville | Top 25
No. 18: Georgia
Last Season: 10-3 (5-3 SEC East)
Georgia's main concern is at running back, with Nick Chubb coming off knee surgery and Sony Michel likely missing all of August with a broken arm. Both rushers have registered 1,000-yard seasons, so their health will be paramount to the Dawgs' offense. Georgia has just three SEC home games this year but is an underdog in only one game -- a visit to Ole Miss (+7). Alabama drops off the schedule, and if the Bulldogs take care of business at home against Tennessee, they could end up in the SEC title game for the first time since 2012. New head coach Kirby Smart, who ran the nation's best defense over the past eight years at Alabama, inherits six returning starters from a unit that allowed just 16.9 points per game last season. They have my seventh-best offensive line and are solid at receiver with Terry Godwin and Reggie Davis. With true freshman Jacob Eason, a top quarterback recruit, Georgia is a dark horse playoff contender.
Georgia's chances to win each game
09.03 vs. North Carolina (Georgia Dome): 61.9%
09.10 vs. Nicholls State: 99.9%
09.17 @ Missouri: 77.3%
09.24 @ Ole Miss: 37.7%
10.01 vs. Tennessee: 44.2%
10.08 @ South Carolina: 79.7%
10.15 vs Vanderbilt: 87.1%
10.29 Florida (Jacksonville): 61.4%
11.05 @ Kentucky: 81.9%
11.12 vs. Auburn: 67.5%
11.19 vs. Louisiana Lafayette: 97.9%
11.26 vs. Georgia Tech: 86.1%
New coach Kirby Smart has a lot of unanswered questions going into the season, but Nick Chubb will get back to form and Jacob Eason will take over the quarterback reigns midseason during Smart's 9-3 debut in Athens. -- Edward Aschoff
Questions along the line of scrimmage, questions at quarterback and receiver and uncertain health in the backfield? It seems strange to hand a top-20 ranking to a team with that many questions to answer. Georgia's schedule is not especially difficult, but an 8-4 record seems likely in Smart's debut season with much better results coming in the future. -- David Ching
With a new staff in place it'll take at least a year before they're ready to be SEC East champs. While 9-3 may not have been enough to save Mark Richt last year, it's a solid start for Smart this season. -- Sam Khan
A new coach. A true freshman quarterback. Fans might be disappointed at 8-4, but this is a year of transition for the Bulldogs. -- Greg Ostendorf
Repeat it with me: True freshmen quarterbacks always struggle. Always. Eason will show flashes of talent, but inconsistency will be an issue as Georgia learns to play a new style under Smart, finishing 8-4. -- Alex Scarborough
No. 17 UCLA | No. 19 Louisville | Top 25
