The Southeastern Conference championship game has been Georgia’s home away from home in recent seasons, with the Bulldogs making the short trip to Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium six times in the last seven seasons, including each of the last four.
Georgia wrapped up another stellar year in SEC play Saturday night, with its 35-10 thumping of Texas inside Sanford Stadium completing a 7-1 slate, and the No. 4 Bulldogs are closing their regular season Saturday (12:45 p.m. on the SEC Network) against visiting Charlotte and next Friday afternoon against No. 15 Georgia Tech inside Mercedes-Benz.
Only Texas A&M has a better league record at 7-0, with Alabama and Ole Miss each 6-1. The Bulldogs lost 24-21 to Alabama back on Sept. 27, thus yielding the head-to-head tiebreaker to the Crimson Tide should that come into play, but Georgia would clinch another trip to Atlanta with an Auburn upset of Alabama on Nov. 29 inside Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Georgia could also snag a berth with Texas defeating Texas A&M in Austin on Nov. 28. A four-way tie involving Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss and Texas A&M would result in a Tide-Bulldogs rematch.
“It’s not a difficult position,” Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said Monday during his weekly news conference. “We’re worried about Charlotte, right? We’re focused on them. We’re getting ready for those guys. That’s who we’ll prepare for.
“Next week, we’ll have a plan for the following week in terms of people breaking things down, but it’s not a difficult time in terms of that. We’re just worried about getting better.”
Charlotte is 1-9 overall this season and 0-7 in American Athletic Conference play with seven double-digit losses. The only win for the 49ers this season came at the expense of Monmouth, 42-35.
The Bulldogs won last December’s SEC title game over Texas 22-19 in overtime. That victory came at an expense, however, as starting quarterback Carson Beck suffered a season-ending elbow injury on the final play of the first half.
Gunner Stockton replaced Beck and led Georgia to the conference crown, but his first start was the Sugar Bowl quarterfinal against Notre Dame, with the Bulldogs dropping that contest 23-10.
Should Georgia defeat Charlotte and Georgia Tech to finish 11-1, the Bulldogs likely would be among the top four seeds in the 12-team College Football Playoff even if they didn’t make the SEC title game. Smart made clear Monday that he wants to be playing in early December.
“There would be no way I would ever look at not playing in that game,” he said. “You’ve got to look at the opportunity to go play and win a conference championship that has eluded more programs and has been as rare to win in some cases as a national championship. I’m a kid who grew up in the SEC footprint and thinks that’s one of the most important games.”
Said senior tight end Oscar Delp: “The SEC is the best conference in the country, and to be able to play in that game is super special. It’s one of the most-watched games across the country as well.”
The immediate assignment is taking care of the 49ers and collecting that 10th triumph in what might be the final game this season at Sanford Stadium. Georgia’s fifth-year seniors are 62-6 with two national championships, while the fourth-year seniors are 48-5 with one national title.
“There were a lot of seniors last year, so this class has been unique in that this season has been different,” Smart said. “They’ve been part of this new culture. Malaki (Starks) and Mykel (Williams) were part of this class and are gone (to the NFL), but when you look across the board, the fourth-year seniors were kind of the first in the NIL stage in phases.
“I’m proud of them, and I love them like I do the others. I want to continue for them to grow.”
Heisman attention
Smart and Delp each made a push Monday for Stockton to be among the finalists for this year’s Heisman Trophy.
“He embodies everything about that award — resiliency, character, determination,” Smart said. “All those words that embody a Heisman trophy winner, Gunner has it, and he’s done it on the biggest stages in front of the biggest audiences against some of the toughest competition at a really high level. He’s playing well, and he’s playing to make the people around him better. His value to our team is immense.”
Said Delp: “It’s kind of crazy that he’s not talked about more. I don’t know what goes into that or who makes those decisions, but if I’m turning on the tape, he’s one of the guys I’m inviting.”
Bulldogs bites
Georgia has been playing football since 1892, while Charlotte is in its 13th season. … The Bulldogs have made 36 trips into the red zone this season and have come away with 32 touchdowns. … When asked about a pair of injured players from the Texas game, Smart said that redshirt freshman running back Chauncey Bowens will be day-to-day and that junior inside linebacker CJ Allen will be week-to-week. … Junior tackle Monroe Freeling was named Monday as SEC offensive lineman of the week for the second time this season. Freeling graded out at 80% against the Longhorns and had five knockdown blocks.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.