Bulldogs expect to be in playoff hunt annually

photo Quarterback Hutson Mason hands the ball off to Running back Nick Chubb during Georgia's game with the Florida Gators at Everbank Field on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014 in Jacksonville, Fla.

ATHENS, Ga. - The Georgia Bulldogs never played in the Bowl Championship Series title game during the 16 years of its existence.

This is the first season of the four-team College Football Playoff, and the Bulldogs just last week had 7-to-1 odds to win the inaugural title. That, of course, was before they surprisingly were shredded defensively in a 38-20 loss to Florida in Jacksonville.

"We had two great weeks of practice, and if you had told me we would come out and lay an egg, I would have been very shocked," quarterback Hutson Mason said. "But that's what happened."

The Bulldogs, who are 6-2 overall and 4-2 in Southeastern Conference play, are now 33-to-1 long shots to win the inaugural playoff. Playing Saturday at Kentucky, they are only half a game back of Missouri in the SEC East race, but their playoff hopes are all but obliterated given that their two losses are to teams -- South Carolina and Florida -- who are a combined 8-8 overall and 5-8 within the conference.

"We knew if we won out we would most likely be there," receiver Michael Bennett said. "Obviously Florida hit us in the mouth, and now it's about winning the East. We can still do that, and that's what our focus is."

Winning the East has long been the primary focus of coach Mark Richt during his 14 seasons, and it's something his Bulldogs have done better than anyone else. Georgia has won five East titles since his arrival, compared to three by both Florida and Tennessee and one each by South Carolina and Missouri.

Two of Georgia's five SEC title-game appearances resulted in victories, the second of those wins coming in 2005.

"That is still an unbelievable goal to accomplish," Mason said. "Any time you are in that game or you win that game, it is definitely considered a successful season. We know we're kind of right there, but the only thing we can control right now is how we play against Kentucky."

Georgia's best record under Richt occurred in his second season, when the 2002 Bulldogs went 13-1, but a loss to Florida coupled with undefeated regular seasons by Miami and Ohio State took them out of the BCS title picture. The Bulldogs finished No. 2 nationally in 2007, when LSU and Ohio State were selected in the BCS title matchup, and they were 5 yards shy of knocking off Alabama in the 2012 SEC championship game.

The Alabama-Georgia winner two years ago was set to play Notre Dame for the BCS crown, and the Crimson Tide followed their 32-28 escape of the Bulldogs with a 42-14 rout of the Irish.

"We want to win the East every year and play for the SEC championship," Richt said. "I feel like if you win that, then you've got a pretty good chance of being in the playoff. That's what I think, but who knows? We'll have to see."

While Georgia made some noise in the BCS era, the other five members of the SEC's historical big six all came away with hardware. Tennessee topped Florida State 23-16 at the Fiesta Bowl to win the inaugural 1998 BCS title, and Alabama, Auburn, Florida and LSU each wound up playing for the crown at least twice.

Auburn won the 2010 national championship and played for it again last season, when the Tigers needed a miraculous finish to defeat the Bulldogs. The Tigers lost to Georgia in the two seasons in between by a combined 83-7.

"This is the University of Georgia, and it's a premier place to play college football," Mason said. "It's got a lot of history, and when you think of big-time programs, you think of Georgia. The state of Georgia is a hotbed for recruiting, and I know in the four or five years I've been here that the expectations have been high to win a championship every year.

"There isn't anything else we talk about except winning a championship. First is the SEC championship, and we know if we're playing in that game and win it, history shows you're probably going to be playing for a national championship."

Michigan and Penn State were the only historical powers in addition to Georgia that did not reach a BCS title game. In 1997, the year before the BCS birth, the Wolverines shared the national championship with Nebraska.

The BCS era came and went without Georgia getting an invitation, but the four-team playoff has created two more seats at the table. After last week's lost to the Gators, the Bulldogs likely have missed out on the first go-around.

"We have the resources and the program and the players and the coaches," Bennett said, "and we should be in the talk for it every year."

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.

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