Sitting comfortably at number two in the College Football rankings, the Bulldogs controlled their own destiny in reaching the College Football Playoff entering Week 10 of the season. But getting to the promised land will be no walk in the park for the dogs. Their remaining four games will all be against FBS teams, two of whom are ranked in the top 20. And many people believed that Georgia's matchup against the Florida Gators would be a pretty favorable one for the Bulldogs.
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Fans Erupt After Florida Nearly Upsets Georgia
But despite being the overwhelming favorites in the matchup, the unranked Gators put up a fight against the second-ranked Bulldogs. The score was tied at 20 in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter. College football fans across the country couldn't believe their eyes and expressed their surprise on social media.
"The Georgia Bulldogs struggling to beat a Florida team with a third-string quarterback is laughable. They should slide down the rankings just because of how unimpressive this win is going to be," one fan said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"Georgia bulldogs really suck if you look at them can't play defense or offense lol," another user added.
Kirby Smart Gets Honest on Freshman Quarterback Tandem
Georgia came into the matchup as double-digit favorites at -16.5. That could have a lot to do with the Gators being without their starting quarterback, Graham Mertz, who suffered a season-ending ACL tear earlier this year. But in Mertz's absence, the freshman quarterback tandem of DJ Lagway and running back Jadan Baugh have balanced the ship for Florida helping lead them to a 4-3 record. Ahead of their matchup with the Gators, Georgia coach Kirby Smart showed a lot of respect for the duo.
"Extremely physical, twitchy, really good athlete," Smart said of Baugh. "Returns kicks for them. He does it all and catches the ball out of the backfield well, and yards after contact is really high. They allow their run game to wear you down because they're committed to it."
As for Lagway, Smart has been particularly impressed by his decision-making.
"His presence, ability to navigate the pocket, decision making on when to run and pass versus scrambling around and staying in the pocket," Smart added. "His deep ball accuracy was really elite."
