College football: 10 teams that could be the next Georgia
The Georgia Bulldogs emerged as a national championship contender in 2017, but which 2018 college football teams could make a similar jump next year?
The decision to fire well-liked long-term head coach Mark Richt after the 2015 season didn’t sit well with many Georgia football fans and Year 1 of the Kirby Smart era in Athens left many of the Bulldogs faithful disappointed. The Bulldogs struggled to an 8-5 finish in Smart’s first season at his alma mater, which included losses to top rivals Florida and Georgia Tech, as well as Tennessee, a blowout at Ole Miss, and an embarrassing Homecoming upset at the hands of Vanderbilt.
Nevertheless, Smart – Nick Saban’s right-hand man at juggernaut Alabama – put the Dawgs on the right path. Though he inherited a talented roster, Smart and his coaching staff immediately raised the program’s recruiting profile. His first class (which largely included players that committed to Richt), was ranked No. 6 in the 247Sports Composite.
Smart’s first full class was ranked third in the country and included immediate impact players Jake Fromm and D’Andre Swift. The 2018 Georgia recruiting class is currently ranked No. 2, having just lost its top status, but could still finish at the top once the dust settles from the traditional National Signing Day.
More importantly, however, Smart and the Georgia coaching staff have also taken the next step on the field. The Bulldogs got back in the win column against Florida, Georgia Tech and Tennessee, and also picked up road wins over Top 25 teams, Notre Dame and Mississippi State. Georgia lost to Auburn, but got revenge in the SEC Championship Game, beat Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl and was minutes away from a national title before losing to Alabama in overtime.
“The Next Georgia?” Criteria:
- Five or more losses in 2017
- Unranked in the final CFP committee ranking and AP Top 25
Making the jump from five-loss also-ran to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game is extraordinary. Nevertheless, Georgia did it in just two years under Kirby Smart. If such a thing were to happen again in 2018 – these 10 teams are the most likely to do it.
The hiring of Dan Mullen brings a new era of Florida Gators football. Of course, this new era follows the one that began with Jim McElwain a few years earlier and the new one that began with Will Muschamp before that. From the outside, it appears the Gators are actually searching for an older era — the Urban Meyer era — and decided to bring Meyer’s protégé and former offensive coordinator (not to mention a proven head coach himself) back to Gainesville after two failed Saban mentees. So, Florida is the anti-Georgia, in a way, which fits given the rivalry.
Nevertheless, the Gators appear ready to get back on track. Mullen did the unthinkable by turning Mississippi State into a consistent winner in eight seasons in Starkville. Despite being arguably the worst job in the SEC from a talent acquisition standpoint, Mullen was able to win 69 games and set a school record by sending the program to eight straight bowl games. He posted a 5-2 record in the bowls he coached.
Mullen did his best work unearthing talented quarterbacks and developing them into dangerous playmakers, Dak Prescott and Nick Fitzgerald chief among them. There’s hope he’ll be able to rejuvenate the position at Florida, which has been an issue since Meyer left. Mullen and his coaching staff have also found and developed players at other positions, and it will be exciting to see what he can do with more resources.
And the cupboard is far from empty. Though his classes never cracked the national Top 10, McElwain recruited some elite talent during his short tenure, including Martez Ivey, CeCe Jefferson, Tyrie Cleveland and Marco Wilson. Mullen’s first Florida roster is more talented from top to bottom than any he coached at Mississippi State, which should help Florida rebound quickly from last year’s 4-7 season.