If you ask any Georgia Bulldogs fan why expectations weren’t met in 2025, everyone would point to none other than Mike Bobo and his outdated run-first offense in the Sugar Bowl loss. Many analysts believe predictable run plays and screens have prevented the Bulldogs from reaching the semifinals in the last three years, especially against Ole Miss in this year’s playoffs.

Despite the public outcry, Mike Bobo came forward to explain his actions. On January 7, Radi Nabulsi of UGA Sports had a word with Mike Bobo and didn’t hesitate one bit to ask what every Bulldogs fan wants to ask Bobo personally:

“When I see you run, guys, we’re gonna run Josh McCray B Gap. He picks up two yards. They’re like, damn it, Mike, why’d you do? Mike Bobo didn’t mince words.

One is to set up the ace. And two, we run that guy through the B gap in the fourth quarter. They’re not gonna wanna tackle because it’s a screen down, but the next drive is third and seven, and we bumper screen and go, and it’s a touchdown.”

The core of Bobo’s philosophy is that you need to stick with your game plan to force the opponent into a predictable situation later on. By running the ball repeatedly, even when it’s not gaining much yardage early, he conditions the defense and essentially picks them apart, little by little.

He then literally mentions how the physical toll of a continuous run game can wear a defense down by the fourth quarter. The “screen down” or run play serves a dual purpose. It is basically to set up another, more explosive play (like the “bumper screen” for a touchdown) and also to physically and mentally fatigue the defense over time, especially late in the game.

All in all, Bobo’s message is that every play call has a reason that extends beyond the current down and distance. You have to commit to your strategy and be patient. The early struggles of running the ball may look like Georgia’s RB corps is struggling, but in reality, Mike Bobo was playing checkers and not chess.

The real question is: Is it actually effective as Mike Bobo made it sound? Let’s examine the effectiveness of this strategy.

Mike Bobo’s “setup” strategy has been playing out during the 2025 season, showing both its strengths and its problems. This approach has led to some exciting late-game comebacks, like the one against Ole Miss in October.

Georgia’s late-game surge, with 17 points in the fourth quarter, was a result of wearing down the defense with challenging runs earlier in the game, which everyone found difficult to defend.

But this approach has its own glaring flaws.

Flaws in Mike Bobo’s case

The massive problem this season is how Georgia often finds itself behind at halftime. In focusing so much on a future payoff, the team struggles to score early points. This puts some pressure on the defense and makes every misstep more costly.

If the “big play” they’ve been setting up for doesn’t work out, they end up losing games they might have won with a more aggressive start. This approach sometimes makes the offense look slow and predictable when it needs to score quickly.

Likewise, the Bulldogs’ offense tallied 355 total yards but struggled on third downs, converting only 3 of 13 attempts. The offense was also inconsistent, going for long stretches without scoring or moving the football effectively.

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The offense’s use of timeouts and clock management at the end of both the first and fourth quarters was a significant point of contention after analysts dissected the loss.

By the time Georgia played the Ole Miss Rebels in the playoffs, the Rebels had pretty much figured everything out in the second half. The Bulldogs couldn’t run for first downs to put themselves in a position to win, and the Rebels’ defense didn’t look fatigued the way Mike Bobo wanted it to be.

This strategy probably only works great when Georgia has better players than their opponents. Then they can simply out-muscle them for four quarters. But against top-tier opponents, this hasn’t always been the case.

If the defense is just as top 15 or even top 10 and doesn’t get tired, all those early runs that only gain two yards become wasted opportunities.

Although Mike Bobo initially claimed his methods were to blame for the loss, most fingers remain pointed at him.