Georgia football: 3 biggest offseason questions facing the Bulldogs in 2021
By John Buhler
Kirby Smart and his Georgia football team have some big questions to answer this offseason.
The Georgia Bulldogs were once again on the outside looking in at the College Football Playoff picture in 2020.
As they say, two conference losses to the two best teams you will face all your will do that to you. But despite falling on the road to the Alabama Crimson Tide and to the Florida Gators in Jacksonville, the Dawgs rallied to finish the year 8-2 with an impressive bowl victory over the Cincinnati Bearcats. Georgia football fans are very optimistic about the upcoming season ahead.
While Dawg Nation’s favorite season has always been next season, seemingly forever, 2021 could might maybe be the year that will make us forget about 1980 once and for all. Then again, any Dawg worth his weight in salt knows he will certainly spend some fall Saturdays crying in front of his Dooley/Munson/Walker shrine. Before it happens, we have some questions we must answer.
3 biggest offseason questions for the Georgia Bulldogs
3. Is this the year Kirby Smart finally puts it all together?
Kirby Smart has his supporters, as well as his detractors. Many in Dawg Nation love the fact he is one of them and that he is the antithesis of Mark Richt. In Smart’s first five years leading his alma mater’s program, Georgia has won three SEC East crowns, one SEC Championship and played in one national championship game. However, the big prize has eluded Smart up to this point.
Smart’s biggest critics harpoon him over his inability to get the quarterback position right. He had two five-stars transfer from his program in Jacob Eason to Washington and Justin Fields to Ohio State, as he road the “hot hand” of Jake Fromm. Last year saw Smart pick D’Wan Mathis and Stetson Bennett IV over JT Daniels for the bulk of the season. Eventually, he saw the light.
Daniels is a former five-star himself, as he made his way to the Classic City by way of the transfer portal. The former USC Trojans starter electrified in his first four starts in Georgia uniform. With him returning to school for his redshirt junior season, Daniels gives the Dawgs it best hope offensively since Aaron Murray was a record-setting passer Between the Hedges.
Georgia will enter 2021 as one of the five best teams in the country. Though they lost a ton of talent on the defensive side of the ball to the NFL Draft, every starter from the Peach Bowl will be back in Athens to take care of some unfinished business. The early question is if the stars will finally align for Smart in Athens. Can he take his alma mater’s program to the promised land?