Georgia won its first title in 41 years this season. The Bulldogs took time to celebrate and enjoyed the fruits of their labors. Many of the top players from last season’s team are off to the NFL, such as Nakobe Dean, Jordan Davis and James Cook.

Because of that, there are naturally questions about next season’s team. Who replaces those key names at inside linebacker, defensive tackle and running back will be something to monitor all offseason for the Bulldogs.

But that is not the biggest question that Georgia must answer, at least in the eyes of ESPN. For them, it is whether Georgia can handle the highs that come with winning a championship and avoiding a letdown.

“How do you bounce back? To beat Alabama over the long haul, Georgia has to reload rather than rebuild and avoid down seasons,” ESPN’s Alex Scarborough. “Complacency can’t creep into the locker room, no matter how talented the roster might be.“

Georgia isn’t the only team with questions, as Alabama has questions about its wide receiver position while Ohio State aims to fix its defense. The Bulldogs do bring back key players in Stetson Bennett, Brock Bowers, Nolan Smith and Kelee Ringo.

The Bulldogs also signed the nation’s No. 3 ranked recruiting class. As Bowers showed last season, Georgia knows what it’s doing in terms of finding high-upside freshmen that can contribute early. Among the signees best positioned to play early include safety Malaki Starks, cornerback Daylen Everette and running back Branson Robinson.

“We’ve got 19 midyear enrollees who’ve been very impactful in adding depth to our roster,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said last week. “As they begin to work out and go through our academics, our equipment staff, our nutrition staff, our player development staff, everybody has commented about this group. How serious they are, how well-mannered they are, and how they handle their business. That’s always good to know that you’ve got the right kind of kids in your organization.”

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Smart knows about championship hangovers from his time at Alabama. The 2010 Alabama team went 10-3 after winning its first championship under Saban. But Smart was also the defensive coordinator on the 2011 and 2012 Alabama teams, which was the last time a college football team repeated as National Champion.

The Bulldogs have a favorable schedule and should be favorites in every game next season. The only ranked foes in ESPN’s most recent way-too-early top-25 are No. 12 Oregon, No. 20 Kentucky and No. 25 South Carolina. The Oregon and South Carolina games come in the first month of the season, with the Bulldogs opening up against Oregon, led by new coach Dan Lanning, on Sept. 3.

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