If the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff has proven anything, Georgia isn’t going anywhere despite an earlier than expected exit from the postseason.

The Bulldogs fell short against Notre Dame 23-10 in the quarterfinals of the playoffs on Thursday. Georgia’s success, relative by their standards, shouldn’t surprise anyone. With former coach Nick Saban’s departure from Alabama, Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart is the king of the sport – and it’s probably going to get worse, especially for other SEC teams.

It’s hard to imagine that Smart won’t lead Georgia to another national championship at some point. He already has two titles in his eight seasons in Athens and could have a couple more if it wasn’t for that Saban character. 

Georgia had a subpar season by their standards and still made the CFP quarterfinals before being eliminated. The Bulldogs were without their star quarterback Carson Beck.

How many other teams could hold onto an SEC Championship without their starting quarterback as Georgia was forced to do in Atlanta last month? Which team with a quarterback problem be competitive against the No. 7 team in the nation, as Notre Dame was entering the matchup? Talent throughout the roster. Pure and simple.

Georgia’s seat at the head of the college football table doesn’t seem to be in danger anytime soon even though its season is over. Smart’s drive, in-state talent and plenty of financial support should keep Georgia relevant as long as Smart wants to coach. 

There are also up-and-coming programs, like Texas, that seem championship bound, and there are programs like Clemson that may have just a little more oomph left in a championship program. The Vols aren’t like either of those programs, and they’re certainly not like Georgia. Those programs simply have more to sell to prospects that might be considering Tennessee, which makes me wonder just what the Vols will be selling when they match up against Georgia in recruiting.

Tennessee coach Josh Heupel has prided himself in selling a positive culture, and that has worked. Georgia, on the other hand, has a questionable off-field run recently with a bevy of traffic incidents, some of which have been very serious. If I were Heupel, I’d use that against him. However, that certainly won’t be Heupel’s only recruiting pitch. The Vols also sell a high-power offense, which sputtered this season. Is that still an advantage?

Heupel and his coaches shouldn’t struggle to land top defenders after the season in which Tennessee’s defense just had. The Vols have proven they can develop highly effective defensive players, and the 2025 NFL Draft should only further prove as much.

Herein lies the strangest aspect of Heupel, who just completed his fourth season. His perceived strengths appear negligible, and his weaknesses have actually turned into strengths. Heupel was supposed to be an offensive-minded coach that might struggle with defense and recruiting. He’s proved adept at the concerns surrounding his hiring. Meanwhile, it actually looks as if college football has, at least, partially caught up to Heupel’s offensive approach.

That’s what makes Georgia’s standing in college football so troublesome. At some point, Tennessee will almost certainly have to beat Georgia to prove the Vols are a championship program. Certainly, Tennessee could avoid the Bulldogs in future playoffs, but that seems kind of hollow. 

The problem for the Vols is it looks like Tennessee will have to beat Georgia at its own game. The Vols took a step back offensively since their breakout season in 2022. If Tennessee is a defense-first and win-with-talent program, then the Vols play right into Georgia’s hands.

Tennessee faced a similar foe in the 1990’s and early 2000’s. The Vols certainly didn’t dominate the Gators during that time. However, Tennessee won games that were championship-setting in 1998 and 2001. The Vols turned a Florida win into a championship in 1998 before falling short in the SEC Championship Game in 2001 the week after beating the Gators.

Will UT fans be happy with a similar run against Georgia? Former Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer was 4-9 in his last 13 games against his UF. That isn’t a great record against a rival, but it would be a vast improvement if the Vols could approach that level of success against Georgia.

Heupel has lost each of his four games against the Bulldogs. The troubling aspect is that none of the games have been particularly close. The rivalry is a bit reminiscent of the Florida-Tennessee rivalry of years gone by as UT has lost painful game after game 

If it’s Georgia on the schedule, the Vols have to beat a team that will likely have better talent, that will always have solid coaching and can match Tennessee in most recruiting categories. That’s where Heupel has to get a bit creative. Heupel has to continue to develop, alter and sell his offense. He also has other things to sell, but there’s one problem.

Georgia is selling the same thing. As scary as it seems, Heupel is going to have to beat Smart in recruiting and personnel developments or revive that old offensive magic.  Otherwise, Heupel is playing into Smart’s strengths. That’s not great for the Vols.