Why Georgia Fans Don't Need to Panic About the Bulldogs' Defense

Why Georgia fans don't need to panic about the Bulldogs' defense following the Tennessee game.

Sep 13, 2025; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive back Joenel Aguero (8) celebrates after a play with teammates during the second half against Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Alan Poizner-Imagn Images | Alan Poizner-Imagn Images

Why Georgia fans don't need to panic about the Bulldogs' defense following the Tennessee game.

The Georgia Bulldogs walked out of Neyland Stadium this past weekend with a tough-fought win. It looked like the Volunteers were going to earn their first win over the Bulldogs in eight years, but instead, Georgia scored a walk-off touchdown in overtime to extend the streak to nine straight.

The Dawgs' offense was a bright spot as Gunner Stockton threw for over 300 yards and scored three total touchdowns, but the defense didn't look like the typical Kirby Smart defense fans have seen when playing against Tennessee. Up until Saturday, Josh Heupel and his offense had never scored more than 17 points against Georgia. Saturday, they scored 41 points.

Some fans walked away from Saturday concerned about the defense, especially considering Georgia has a matchup against Alabama coming up after the bye week, but history under Coach Smart would indicate fans shouldn't worry too much.

Since 2017, Georgia has allowed 30 or more points scored 13 total times. However, Georgia is allowing just an average of 17.3 points per game, and Coach Smart has a record of 11-2 in games after allowing an opponent to score 30 or more points. The last time Georgia lost a game after allowing 30 or more points was in the 2018 Sugar Bowl against the Texas Longhorns. In nine of those games, opponents failed to score more than 20 points.

It certainly doesn't guarantee anything for Georgia heading into their matchup against the Alabama Crimson Tide. Still, it does provide some confidence that the Bulldogs' defense tends to respond well after a rather poor showing.

Alabama will make its first trip to Athens since 2015. It will be Georgia's third home game of the season and the team's first conference home game of the year. The Crimson Tide has not yet played a conference game this season and won't until they matchup against Georgia.

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