For the first time under Kirby Smart, the Georgia Bulldogs have been picked by the media at the SEC media days to win the SEC.

The Bulldogs received 181 first-place votes, making them a runaway favorite to win not just the SEC East but the league as a whole. Georgia also received 265 votes to win the SEC East.

This is the first time since 2004 that Georgia has been the preseason pick to win the SEC. The Bulldogs did not even win their division that year, as Tennessee went on to play Auburn in the SEC championship.

Alabama was the predicted choice to win the SEC West, while receiving 62 votes to win the conference. LSU received 31 votes to win the SEC, and finished second in the SEC West.

Georgia has won the SEC East in five of Smart’s seven seasons in charge of the program, including the last two times. The Bulldogs won the SEC last season, the second time Smart has done so at Georgia. He also accomplished the feat back in 2017.

The Bulldogs have won the last two national championships and aim to do so for a third time in 2023. Smart knows the task won’t be easy — Minnesota was the last team to do so back in the 1930′s — but he’s more focused on other issues regarding his team.

“The threat for us is complacency. The first thing you have to do is acknowledge that it’s a threat,” Smart said. “Like if you acknowledge the complacency is a threat, it’s the first step towards stomping it out.”

Georgia will have a new offensive coordinator in Mike Bobo, as well as a new starting quarterback. Carson Beck is the favorite for the job but Smart did not outright name him as the guy when asked at SEC media days.

The Bulldogs do have to replace 10 NFL draft picks but bring back talented players such as tight end Brock Bowers, center Sedrick Van Pran and cornerback Kamari Lassiter. All three players represented Georgia at media days in Nashville this week.

Since the SEC introduced the SEC championship game back in 1992, only nine of the 31 preseason picks have gone on to win the SEC in that season. Below you can see the full voting results for the 2023 SEC preseason poll.

2023 SEC Predicted Order of Finish

WESTERN DIVISION

SEC CHAMPION