ATHENS — Reality hit Sanford Stadium last Saturday when Georgia went into halftime trailing South Carolina by a 14-3 count.

The 2023 Bulldogs rallied for the 24-14 win and are still undefeated and ranked No. 1, but they are a long way off from how Georgia football looked as it trotted off the field in the CFP Championship Game with a 65-7 win over TCU.

Coach Kirby Smart said he wants to dominate opponents as much as anyone, but new offensive coordinator Mike Bobo can only play the hand he has been dealt, as former LSU star and ESPN analyst Jacob Hester pointed out during the On the Beat Show on Monday night.

“The offense right now is not the sexiest, but it’s efficient,” said Hester, the tailback on LSU’s 2007 BCS Championship Team before playing in the NFL for the San Diego Chargers and Denver Broncos.

“I realize a lot of Georgia fans are like, is this going to work when we play the better opponents? Are all these slip screens going to continue to work after we call them time and time again when we play a better opponent?

“We don’t know that, but we know there’s a quarterback who was highly efficient. I think Carson Beck graded out 88 percent overall against South Carolina, he put his team in a position to win.”

Smart has emphasized that he has been pleased with the offense outside of its issues in the red zone against South Carolina and a couple of missed field goals.

Hester said the UAB game, at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Sanford Stadium, should give the Bulldogs an opportunity to make more explosive plays — something that has been lacking with dynamic receiver Ladd McConkey out so far this season with back issues and defenses keying in on All-American tight end Brock Bowers.

" I’d like to see them maybe put more on (Beck’s) plate, see if they can open up a little bit ….,” said Hester, who now hosts the ‘Off Campus’ show on Sirius XM Radio. “Let’s see what you can do, push the ball down the field, get your receivers more involved, you need to see more from that room, you need to see more playmakers.”

Hester ranked his Top five SEC teams and shared his opinions on Deion Sanders, Alabama football and his personal experience with Kirby Smart when Smart was on the LSU staff and tried to coach him up.