Over the past two seasons, Georgia has come agonisingly close to reclaiming the national championship title. In 2023, the lost the final game against Alabama, as defenders of the 2022 title. And in 2024, Georgia was knocked out of the playoff bracket itself. It’s surprising because Smart’s roster is a frequent championship contender. They won the SEC championship game, after all. However, there is one key flaw that derailed the Bulldogs last season. If Kirby Smart wants to close that fateful gap this season, he has to make sure it doesn’t creep up again.

In the HC’s 9-season-long career, Georgia has been to a championship game (CFP/SEC) 7 times. That’s the consistency of the Bulldogs’ football. Come what may, Kirby Smart’s team is bound to feature at the top. And in these 9 years, Smart has 2 National Championship wins already in the bag. But in the 2024 season, Smart registered 3 losses. A particularly problematic pattern started building up that year, which also played its part in Georgia’s loss to Notre Dame in the CFP quarterfinals. This year, Georgia is back with an elite roster. On3’s J.D. PicKell says for Smart to succeed, he has to steer clear of this danger.

“What we know about Georgia is they handle missteps and, dare I say, adversity, the correct way. The adversity that was last year, in a year where they still won the SEC, and they were nowhere near their expectation of what they should be on the line of scrimmage,” PicKell said in a May 21 video on On3. Georgia’s offensive show saw a lot of misses despite its hits. Slow offensive starts were something that became frequent enough in the season. Running the ball, too, was something they struggled with.

“They ran for right around 200 yards a game on the ground and allowed less than 100 yards on the ground a game both seasons. That was their MO. You were not running on them, and they would run on you,” PicKell noted, comparing 2024 to the previous two seasons. After the Ole Miss loss, Georgia’s offense dropped from 4 in 2023 to 48 in 2024, when it came to yards per play. “Last year, Georgia ran for right around 120 a game. Not great,” the analyst pointed out. And not to mention, those missed catches and turnovers also proved costly.

“It’s just not up to par with what Georgia expects and what they have been at their best.” That’s what sums up the entirety of Kirby Smart’s 2024 run. They did win the SEC championship, but past campaigns have had better results. Kirby Smart built a program so strong that it gave Nick Saban’s Alabama a run for their money towards the end of the latter’s career. In 2025, he has to put forward a better one to be able to remove those blemishes left behind by 2024.

On the academic front, however, Georgia won big. But analyst David Pollack remained skeptical, making some strong comments about the dark side of NIL dealings. And we know Georgia is no stranger to what money can do.

Kirby Smart’s academic achievement comes under fire

Smart may have everything to talk about his boys’ football, the talents they bring, and other related aspects. But that’s only about what the team does on the field. In the classroom, however, Smart’s boys were not faring well. Georgia, around the time of its 2024 graduation, ranked towards the end of the list of graduation rates in the program. Last year, 10 Bulldogs were able to graduate from Georgia. This year, the Academic Progress Rate report mentioned that Georgia, with an APR of 979, stood 8 in the SEC. That’s a significant rise for the program from the past, where it placed far lower.

It indicates that student-athletes were able to balance their career and academics. But David Pollack threw light on a particularly dangerous aspect. With student-athletes com NILs. And that money can get them far more than what they think. “You know what they’re doing in school? They’re paying people to do their work. A 100%. They’re taking their money, which they’re earning and can choose to spend their money they want. They pay to go get somebody to write their paper,” Pollack highlighted.

These claims might not have a relation to Georgia, but the situation in general seems very plausible. The NILs have proven to be a distraction. Sure, these kids are making money, but it won’t be very surprising to see Pollack’s claims someday finding the truth. Academically, Kirby Smart is seeing a major improvement after a long, long while. But football-wise, the HC should work on getting rid of those offensive problems for a better 2025 season.