College football, whether in aspects or in personnel, has seen a lot of changes in the 2020s. Still, for Joel Klatt, the person that he thinks, and, in turn, the program that he thinks, is the standard in the sport now is an easy answer.
Klatt gave his opinion to that in a recent episode of ‘Always College Football’. Following the retirement of Nick Saban this offseason, he says Kirby Smart, and, therefore, the Georgia Bulldogs, is now who everyone else is trying to surpass and live up to in the sport, especially with what they’ve done in recent history.
“I would argue that the new standard in college football, even with Michigan as the defending national champion, is Georgia,” said Klatt. “They’re the program that is still intact. As far as a program that is a recent national champion winner, a recent 29-game win streak. They’re a few snaps away from being back in the playoff and going for a three-peat.”
A few other schools could at least make a case to be within that discussion. Still, Georgia’s resumé, specifically over the last three seasons, speaks for itself.
Since 2021, the Bulldogs sit at 42-2 overall. Just the pair of losses have been defeats in the SEC Championship to none other than Saban and Alabama. 2023’s was more costly as it kept them from making the College Football Playoff. Even so, they did win one conference title in that span while also making a pair of playoffs and winning both to repeat.
That’s not even to mention their successes before that following Smart’s first season in Athens. From 2017 to 2020, Georgia went 44-9, made three SEC Championships with one win, and made one playoff which ended in a title game loss to, again, Saban and the Crimson Tide.
Georgia has just been a machine under Smart and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. That’s why, of all the choices out there, he and the Bulldogs are the peak of the sport right now for Klatt.
“Kirby, at this point? I think it’s safe to say is the standard in college football,” Klatt stated.
EA Sports ranks Sanford Stadium as No. 5 in Toughest Places to Play
EA Sports recently revealed that Sanford Stadium will be one of the top-five toughest places to play in the game.
The home stadium of the Georgia Bulldogs ranked at No. 5 in EA’s Toughest Places to Play rankings. EA College Football 25‘s ranking of the toughest places to play factored in historical stats such as home winning percentage, home game attendance, active home winning streaks, team prestige, and more.
All of boxes are those that the Bulldogs have clearly checked and excelled in over the years. With Georgia not losing a home game since October of 2019, their ranking is hard to deny.
Sanford Stadium has a capacity of 92,746, making it the ninth-largest football stadium in the country. With that, the Bulldogs have ranked among the nation’s Top-10 in average home attendance for over two decades.
From the iconic hedges to the electric student section, all of the venue’s details are expected in the video game. That includes Georgia’s mascots, Hairy Dawg and Uga, after both made appearances in the College Football 25 Trailer.
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