Kirby Smart Talks Georgia's Experience in the College Football Playoff

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart talks about his team's prior experience in the college football playoff and the overall experience his team has gained this season.

Jonathan Williams | Dec 30, 2022

Coming off of a year in which Georgia was fresh off of a national championship, the Bulldogs now find themselves in the same position that they were in this time last year. They are just two wins away from being crowned national champions. Similar to the 2021 season, Georgia will face off against a Big Ten opponent in the first round of the playoff, only this time against Ohio State.

This is Georgia's third time making it to the playoff with all three appearances coming with Kirby Smart as the program's head coach. Needless to say Smart has some experience in regard to playing in the playoffs as well as knowing what it takes to win these semifinal games as he is 2-0 in those games. With Georgia's last postseason appearance being so recent, it also means a solid amount of Smart's players have experience in the playoffs.

Smart talked about that experience and how much his team overall has gained throughout the season during Thursday's press conference. Here is what he said:

"The guys that came into this season as leaders that have played quite a bit, they've been that way throughout. I don't know that it's been any different from the 28 days since our last game. They certainly have a lot of experience. I don't know that there's an Ohio State player or Georgia player right now that doesn't have experience that's played in 12 or 13 games. The season is your experience. Coming into the season against Oregon, I would have said we're an inexperienced team, but we have experience now and so do they. So you draw on those experiences in playing your interconference rivals, and both teams have done that."

Considering Georgia lost 28 total players via the NFL draft and the transfer portal this season, many expected there to be a drop-off in production for the Bulldogs this season due to the lack of experience. However, that would not wound up being the case. Smart and his team still managed to be one of the top defenses in the nation this year while pairing that up with one of the most productive offenses in the country

Now they sit as the top team amongst the final four teams remaining and the odds-on favorite to take home the national championship for the second time in a row.

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