ATHENS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart has not been able to stress enough how eager he is for his football team to get back on the field and get better by playing.
The No. 12-ranked Bulldogs (4-2) are on the outside looking in on the SEC Championship Game for the first time in nearly four years, and the offense and defense have been major disappointments this season.
RELATED: 5 things to look forward to, JT Daniels at quarterback
Georgia fans were hoping Smart could cash in on a championship defensive roster returning and capitalize on the hiring of a former NFL offensive coordinator.
When Smart said the COVID-19 pandemic offseason and season would favor the team that adjusts the best, many assumed that would be the Bulldogs, with all their talent and accomplished and well-compensated coaching staff.
A front-loaded schedule certainly didn’t help, nor did the misfortune of injuries on and off the field.
Other teams, such as Florida, seemed to catch a break with some of the SEC’s rescheduling, the Gators getting two weeks off at one point while UGA had its bye week shifted at the last moment.
The end result was both Florida and Georgia had to play a game the week before the teams met, rather than the Bulldogs catch a break with an off weekend before the annual rivalry game in Jacksonville.
Georgia moves forward with a soft schedule, hoping to gather some offensive momentum that will carry over to the recruiting trail and show prospects Smart is in deed serious about putting more points on the board.
Here’s a look at an unscientific Twitter poll run for fans over the past week, with frustration level gauged, team issues identified and coaches and players evaluated.
First, the good news!
Fans have not lost faith in Smart, with 63.1 percent believing the Bulldogs will not lose another game:
RELATED: Updated Georgia football injury report heading into this week
As things stand, with Florida winning three of its final four games to clinch the SEC East Division, Georgia’s remaining schedule would look like this:
• Nov. 21 Mississippi State (home)
• Nov. 28 at South Carolina
• Dec. 5 Vanderbilt (home)
• Dec. 19 at Missouri
• Current projected bowl: Peach, vs. Cincinnati
Obviously, this isn’t the way Georgia fans hoped things would look, which explains the results of the frustration level poll:
Smart has always said that the head coach and the quarterback typically get more of the credit and blame when things go wrong.
It’s no different this season, as former walk-on and fourth-string quarterback has been pressed into action on account of one high-profile transfer opting out, and the other not being medically cleared at the start of the season.
Georgia fans are among the most loyal in the nation, however, and they love their Bulldogs.
Indeed, more than a few players have managed to have great individual seasons even as the team has struggled in some areas.
Amazingly, the ‘Team MVP’ vote ended in almost a dead heat and will surely need to be recalculated after the season is complete.
Finally, there were those splashy offseason hires that Smart made.
The truth is, it would be hard to question any of them when one puts the microscope on the team issues.
Todd Monken has in fact drawn up some great players to get receivers and running backs open, and UGA’s reloaded offensive line has performed well enough for the team to win every game.
Even the special teams units have been solid in all three phases of kicking, returns and coverage.
The fans took note, spreading their love — intentionally or unintentionally — in the final category:
