Kirby Smart made one of his most questioned calls this offseason when he gave Mike Bobo a contract extension, but through four games, the Georgia offensive coordinator has given the Bulldogs very little room for complaint.
The biggest thing Bobo has on his side right now is production. Georgia owns the No. 1 scoring offense in the country, putting up 54.75 points per game, just ahead of Florida. That kind of output would stand out in any season, but it feels even louder considering the Bulldogs have traditionally played plenty of opponents they were better than without turning those matchups into this sort of scoring avalanche.
Yes, the schedule has helped. Georgia’s first four games came against three bad teams and an Oklahoma squad that has not lived up to expectations.
Still, plenty of teams get soft spots on the schedule and never come close to this level of efficiency. Georgia has not just won those games - it has done it in a way that has left nobody slowing them down for a full 60 minutes.
A big part of that success has come from the way Bobo has handled a young receiver room that entered the year with real questions attached to it. Georgia brought back quarterback Gunner Stockton, plus a running back group and tight end group with more depth than they probably needed, and the offensive line also returned with plenty of experience. Wide receiver, though, was a different story.
The Bulldogs lost six of their top seven pass catchers from last season, including Zachariah Branch, who set the single season receptions record. That left Bobo with the task of replacing a massive chunk of production with inexperienced talent, and so far he has pulled it off. Sophomore Talyn Taylor and true freshman Craig Dandridge are leading Georgia in receiving, and if that holds, they would be the first freshman-sophomore duo to lead the Bulldogs in receiving since Brock Bowers and Jermaine Burton in 2021.
That matters because it shows Bobo has not only found the young playmakers, but gotten them ready to contribute right away.
Even with all of that, the larger test still sits ahead. Georgia’s offense is rolling, the Bulldogs are being projected to win every game left on the schedule, and Bobo has checked every box that can be checked this early in the season. But the one thing that still hangs over him is the same one that has followed him since his return to Athens: Georgia has not won a College Football Playoff game in three years.
That fact is not all on Bobo, and the criticism has not always been fair. But until Georgia breaks through in the playoff, the questions are not going away. If the Bulldogs go another year without a CFP win, the noise around him will only get louder.
For now, there is nothing concrete to criticize. The only real way for Bobo to quiet the doubters for good is to help Georgia win in the College Football Playoff this season.
In Other News...
Georgia Vanderbilt Week Just Got More Complicated Than Fans Expected
Georgias buildup to Vanderbilt took a familiar turn this week, with the focus shifting as much to the Commodores quarterback situation as to the matchup itself. Jared Curtis has been listed as questionable because of injury, and the timing matters because Georgia is trying to get ready for an opponent whose offensive ceiling could change depending on who is available under center. The betting line has already nudged in Georgias direction, a sign the market is reacting to the uncertainty as much as the matchup on the field.
There was also some off-field clarity for Bulldogs fans on the recruiting front. Five-star running back Kemon Spell publicly reiterated that he remains committed to Georgia, pushing back on reports tying him to other programs. For a fan base that is tracking both the immediate schedule and the next wave of talent, it is a welcome update even as the Vanderbilt week carries a little more intrigue than expected. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia May Make The Easy Call With Nate Frazier
Nate Fraziers status is shaping up to be one of Georgias bigger pregame storylines this week after the starting running back missed the previous game against Oklahoma and is now listed as questionable for Vanderbilt. The Bulldogs have enough bodies in the backfield to get by without rushing him back, which gives the staff some flexibility as it weighs whether there is any real need to push him before he is fully ready.
With Alabama and a tougher stretch looming, Georgia may decide the smart move is simply to protect Frazier and keep the larger picture in mind. His availability against Vanderbilt is expected to come down to a game-time decision, and for a team with depth at the position, that could make the easy call even easier. [Read more 🡒]
Kirby Smart Mourns A Georgia Figure Who Meant More Than Fans Knew
Ray Lambs presence around Georgia football stretched across generations, long after his days as a high school coaching legend and later as the Bulldogs longtime coordinator for high school relations. He died at 90, and Kirby Smart took time to reflect on the man whose ties to the program went well beyond a job title, noting Lambs loyalty to Georgia and the reach of his influence within the sport.
Smarts remembrance also underscored how deeply rooted Lambs family remains in football, with multiple generations of coaches working at the high school and college levels. For Georgia, his passing is a reminder that some of the programs most important figures are never the ones filling the spotlight, even as their imprint is felt in the way the Bulldogs have recruited, connected and built trust across the state for years. [Read more 🡒]