By the time the 2021-22 college football season is over, no one will be able to say that Georgia did not play anybody. This Fall, the Bulldogs will have to take on multiple Southeastern powers that will certainly give them a run for their money. That alone is impressive to look at on a schedule. However, the biggest game in their stretch (and perhaps in America) will unfold in their opening week against the Clemson Tigers.
Start The Season with a BANG
Clemson has been the king of the Atlantic Coast Conference for years now, and a top-tier adversary for all who wish to hoist up a National Championship trophy. Most teams would wish to put them off until they absolutely had to face them. But Georgia wanted all the smoke this year and had the Tigers slapped on their inaugural game for the 2021 season. This was an admirable move for several reasons, such as not only did this game beef up UGA’s out-of-conference slate, but it also revived a historic rivalry between the two powerhouses.
Potential Consequences
But while this move by the Dawgs is respectable, it is also foolish. Clemson appears to be the sole opponent on Georgia’s schedule this upcoming season that they will encounter as a true underdog. And especially when the latter is not even favored to be the best in their league, starting a stretch 0-1 is not exactly an achievement.
From a postseason standpoint, some schools are exempt from the bracket after just one loss. So if UGA were to lose their season opener, they would have to proceed to run the table in dominating fashion just to have a shred of playoff chances. And with the Alabama Crimson Tide standing in their way, how likely is that?
Top Dawgs
The 2021 Georgia Football team will undoubtedly continue to be one of the most elite programs in the country. Unfortunately, the dream of snatching a long-awaited National Title might have to be put on hold for at least one more year. The Clemson game should be as good as many hope it will be. But the playoff committee seems to not care about those sorts of factors. Losses are losses, it is as simple as that. So two defeats, even if one of them is in a conference title game, is unacceptable.
As a result, one of the games will have to favor the Dawgs here. But which one sounds more favorable in that regard: an opening game with no notches under the belt or a championship game (with a more familiar foe) following the end of an entire regular season trek?
To put it bluntly, the Clemson Tigers will be Georgia’s hardest game of 2021. If they lose that game they will have no room for error, and just might have to kiss their National title hopes goodbye, once again.
