SEC Powerhouse Emerges as No. 1 Team in Post-Spring Ranking

The Georgia Bulldogs were once thought to be the new dynasty in college football.

The Bulldogs won the national championship in 2021 and 2022. They started the 2023 season ranked No. 1 and remained undefeated until they faced Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide in the SEC Championship Game.

They would lose that game and then not make the College Football Playoff that year.

Many thought that would just be a blimp on their resume, and they would get back to being the program many thought they were destined to be.

While they have won two straight SEC championships, the Bulldogs have yet to win a playoff game since winning their last national championship game.

Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart celebrates after a touchdown. | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

However, this year could be the year that changes. On3's J.D. PicKell even ranked the Bulldogs No. 1 in his post-Spring rankings for the 2026 season.

"Georgia at number one, after seeing the spring game and just realizing how deep they truly are, not saying having them at number one is based solely on the spring game, but it did make it a little bit more in my face as to how deep this football team is... You also would be foolish to not factor in the Kirby Smart effect as well when it comes to ranking these teams in the preseason," PicKell said.

As PicKell mentioned, it's hard to overlook arguably the best coach in college football. Smart has been excellent since taking over, and typically, Georgia has physical, defensive-oriented teams with him at the helm.

Also, as PicKell mentioned, they are a deep team, and they also return star quarterback Gunner Stockton. He threw for 3,482 yards, 24 touchdowns and just five interceptions in his first year at the helm.

Teams that win national championships usually have experienced quarterbacks, strong defenses and win at the line of scrimmage. The first two, Georgia absolutely has this season. The last part is the question mark. Last season, Georgia ranked No. 35 in rushing offense. In the Bulldogs' College Football Playoff loss last season against Ole Miss, they ran for just 124 yards.

That is something they are going to have to fix this upcoming season: get back to dominating on the ground and take some of the pressure off Stockton.

If they can do that, not only is Georgia a legit national championship contender, but it could also prove PicKell's opinion right by the end of the season.

Add us as a preferred source on Google