I guess you can add one more name to the list of national media not buying into another throwaway year for Georgia football.
USA Today’s Dan Wolken is ready to write off Kirby Smart if the Bulldogs don’t win the SEC East in 2017.
“If Kirby Smart doesn’t win the East next year, he’s a clown,” Wolken said on “Dukes and Bell” on SportsRadio 92.9 The Game in Atlanta on Thursday. “I’m sorry. Point blank. They are so far above the rest of that division in terms of talent right now with the players that they’ve got coming back.
“Give me a break. The expectation for Georgia next year should be winning the East, point blank—period. If they don’t get that done, then I have to seriously question whether Kirby can coach.”
Wolken gives Georgia a pass for the 2016 season, considering it was lacking depth at key positions, but he still believes Smart already has recruited well enough to beat their opposition in the division.
“We’re talking about winning a terrible division where we’ve got teams like Vandy, Missouri. South Carolina is definitely improving, but they’re not ready for prime time,” Wolken said. “Tennessee’s a joke, Florida’s not very good right now. Look at the teams they’re competing against.
“They have no excuse not to win this division next year when you’ve got Nick Chubb coming back, you’ve got Sony Michel. Jacob Eason has got to take a step forward. You’ve got guys defensively; I think they’re pretty loaded on that side of the ball. I’m sorry, they are so much more talented than the rest of that division right now. I don’t want to hear it — I don’t want to hear any excuses.”
Jeff Dantzler strenuously objects, but what about you? Outside of a replay of the 2013 injury plague, are there reasonable excuses for Georgia not to finish the drill as the divisional favorite this season?