OPINION: Why Playing At Alabama In 2024 Is A Good Thing for The Georgia Bulldogs
Through all the "cupcake" talk about Georgia's 2023 schedule, the talk about Georgia's 2024 schedule being released led to many mixed reviews. The headlines of these reviews are how in 2024, Georgia will have to play away games at Texas and Alabama. These two away games are good for the Bulldogs in the 2024 season.
With a very strong schedule for the Dawgs in 2024, many fans seemed excited to play a game in Austin, TX, and introduce one of the newcomers of the SEC to what the conference is about, the Texas Longhorns. But many fans were displeased with the fact that the Bulldogs would have to play at Alabama again, as they did in the 2020 season.
The fans have every right to be upset, missing out on an opportunity to pack one of the best stadiums in college football and create havoc against a team many have considered the Bulldgos "bigger brother." Sure, this is very disappointing; who wouldn't want to intimidate a team many critics have considered superior to you and beat you at your home stadium in 2015? But it isn't as much of a loss as many may think.
A fear of any coach who has built a championship-level program is his players being complacent with where they are already. If your players get too comfortable and aren't challenged, they start taking opponents less and less seriously. Who could blame them for feeling that way when no one beats you? Kirby Smart doesn't want that to happen within his program. He wants his Dawgs to stay hungry for more.
To continue to grow as a program, you must be challenged. It makes you stronger not only mentally but as a team as well. It fortifies all 11 players on each side of the ball into one solid unit. But it also allows you to take that next step as a program and reach heights the Bulldogs football program hasn't seen before. The 2020 season provided us with a glimpse of that.
The Alabama Crimson Tide fans bring an intimidating environment to their home games, which causes issues for many teams who face off against the Tide in Tuscaloosa. With a consistent national championship contending team that Nick Saban provides, this will be one of the biggest challenges the Bulldogs have faced since their run toward back-to-back national championships.
In 2020, Smart led his team into Tuscaloosa, with Stetson Bennet taking charge of the offense. It was #2 vs. #3, with a chance for the Bulldogs to officially solidify themselves as a force to be reckoned with in college football. The first half showed a lot of promise as the Dawgs went into halftime up 24-20, then what many considered a "Georgia sports curse" struck the Dawgs, as they were shut out in the second half and lost the game 41-24. Although it may have been a loss, it was a crucial step into building the following national championship seasons.
The 2021 national championship win over Alabama provided closure for the 2018 national championship loss, but the 2020 game has sat in the back of Smart's mind for seasons. You can see the billboard material for this game already, "Revenge." Kirby Smart will want to get his revenge for the 2020 game and ultimately put the final nail in the coffin that will hold Alabama's dynasty. Even though it would be spectacular to host Saban and Alabama in Sanford Stadium, playing at Alabama in 2024 is more than a good thing for Georgia.
Other Georgia News:
- BREAKING: Georgia's 2024 Schedule has Been Released
- Elite 11 Finals Preview: Who's Going to Win?
- Kirby Smart, NIL and Transfer Portal Make it "Excruciating" on Coaches
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