Kirby Smart didn’t sound like a coach savoring a signature win after Georgia handled Florida on Saturday. He sounded like a man who has turned the rivalry into routine.
Asked about not celebrating the victory over Florida “like he used to,” Smart made it clear that the emotion around this game has changed inside Georgia’s program.
Smart said, “It’s not like ‘oh it’s more sweet because it’s Florida.’ It’s sweet because it’s another SEC win and it gets us closer to a goal.”
That’s the clearest sign yet of how far Georgia has come under Smart. There was a time when beating Florida meant the season had a different feel entirely for the Bulldogs. Now, after years of control in the rivalry, the win carries weight, but not in a way that calls for a special reaction.
Georgia’s 27-8 win on Saturday fit that reality. Smart treated it the same way he would any other SEC victory, because in his mind that’s exactly what it is: another step toward the bigger targets Georgia is chasing.
Of course, nobody in Athens is pretending Florida is just another name on the schedule. It remains one of the biggest games Georgia plays every year.
Even if the Bulldogs won 100 straight, the 101st meeting would still matter. But the emotional edge that used to come with this matchup has faded.
That’s what a decade of dominance does. Beating Florida used to be the kind of result that defined a strong regular season for Georgia.
If the Bulldogs got past the Gators, the year usually felt like a success. That isn’t the standard anymore.
The last two seasons make that point even clearer. Georgia beat Florida in the regular season and still went on to win the SEC, yet some fans still called those years disappointments because the Bulldogs didn’t win a College Football Playoff game. That’s how high the bar has climbed.
So while Florida still matters, it no longer carries the same kind of emotional punch it once did. At this stage, it functions much more like every other SEC game Georgia has to win if it wants to chase the conference title and get back to the playoff.
Smart has made sure of that. Georgia is expected to beat Florida now, and when that happens, it doesn’t feel like a breakthrough anymore. It feels like business as usual.
In Other News...
Georgia's First CFP Spot Could Set An Early Bulldogs Debate
The first College Football Playoff rankings of the season arrive Tuesday night, and Georgia is positioned to be part of the early conversation whether the Bulldogs like the attention or not. Miamis narrow win over North Carolina is expected to put the Hurricanes at No. 1, but the rest of the top of the board should be messy enough to keep the selection committee busy, with Ohio State, Georgia and a cluster of other contenders all waiting to see how the opening snapshot shakes out.
For Georgia, the intrigue is less about where the Bulldogs land on one November night and more about what it says about the road ahead. The committee will spend the next month sorting through a crowded field that includes Utah, UCLA, Indiana, Kentucky, BYU, Notre Dame and several SEC teams, with recent results and strength of schedule likely to carry plenty of weight. The final rankings come Dec. 6, when the 12-team field is set, so this first release is really just the start of the debate. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Heads Into Oxford With Everything Suddenly Feeling Less Certain
Georgias trip to Oxford arrives with both teams carrying momentum, but not much room for error. Ole Miss has been dealing with uncertainty around tailback Kewan Lacy because of a shoulder injury, while Georgia is monitoring Ellis Robinson IV after a lower-leg injury, and those absences could shape how this SEC matchup unfolds on both sides of the ball.
For Georgia, the stakes go well beyond one Saturday in the regular season. With the SEC Championship race and College Football Playoff picture both in play, this is the kind of game that can sharpen a rsum or complicate it in a hurry, especially against an Ole Miss team that has already made itself part of the conference conversation. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Exposed A Georgia Problem That Could Still Matter Later
Georgia came out of its bye week and handled Florida 27-8, leaning on a defense that forced four turnovers and helped fuel the scoring margin. The Bulldogs did enough offensively to control the game, finishing with 318 yards, but the passing attack never really found a rhythm, and Gunner Stocktons 13-for-23, 101-yard day reflected how much Georgia relied on everything else around it.
Kirby Smart did not hide from the issue afterward, acknowledging the passing game has to improve as the schedule turns toward opponents with more capable quarterbacks. For a team that can usually survive a sluggish day through defense and field position, that is the part worth watching now, because the next stretch may not be as forgiving if Georgia keeps leaving too much on the table through the air. [Read more 🡒]