In a game that might have a significant impact on the College Football Playoff race and the SEC standings, the No. 12 Georgia Bulldogs are in a must-win situation when they play the No. 7 Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday night in Athens, Georgia.

Following a disheartening loss to the Ole Miss Rebels in Week 11, many people are beginning to doubt Georgia’s status as one of the nation’s top teams.

But as history demonstrates, Georgia is no stranger to hardship. The previous time they were questioned was before their matchup with the then-number one Texas Longhorns. In response, the Bulldogs put on a strong show and won by double digits.

Every game counts as the season nears its end, and a team’s performance in those games is as important. Georgia will currently lose out on the College Football Playoff if the season ended today, even though they have a 7-2 record and the hardest schedule in the nation. This is because a conference winner receives an automatic slot that eliminates the 12 seed, which in this case would be Georgia.

That is a fact, and starting on Saturday, head coach Kirby Smart and his staff have infused the program with a new way of thinking. The Bulldogs are committed to proving to the college football community that they are on par with the top teams in the country, especially with their playoff dreams on the line.

“Prove it is the main point I’ve made. I want to play better, so prove everything you claim. I want better results-prove it. The week’s work has been done, and the atmosphere will be fantastic. We intend to pursue it.” “Smart said.”

For the remainder of the season, Georgia is in “prove it” mode.

Given everything the Bulldogs have achieved in recent years, they are in uncharted terrain. However, they still have power over everything because of the expanded College Football Playoffs.

Georgia will put themselves in a strong position to qualify for the playoffs if they can win on Saturday night. However, with three defeats and two games left that won’t significantly strengthen their schedule, a loss would make it very tough for them to have the resume to make the cut.

In college football, however, one thing is for sure, and it has been repeatedly demonstrated in recent years: when his team is facing overwhelming odds, don’t count on Kirby Smart.

Georgia shellacking is mostly the fault of the Tennessee Volunteers.

In Week 12, the No. 7 Tennessee Volunteers (6-2, 5-2 SEC) lost 31-17 to the No. 12 Georgia Bulldogs (8-2, 6-2 SEC) in what may be considered a de facto elimination game for the College Football Playoffs. Does the Vols’ chance of making the College Football Playoffs end with this loss?

Nothing is set in stone for any program at this time because it is uncertain how the CFP committee will rank teams. With two losses, Tennessee now joins a congested field of SEC clubs, but the 12-team field can only hold so many positions.

The Vols had an opportunity to exact revenge for a previous defeat to Arkansas and secure their spot in the SEC Championship Game. But Georgia continued to dominate the rivalry, defeating Tennessee for the seventh time in a row, a feat head coach Josh Heupel has not yet accomplished since coming to Knoxville.

A rush of blame and sadness for what started as a promising season accompany this setback. However, who is at fault? Let’s examine.

Against Georgia, Tennessee’s defense struggles.

Tennessee’s defense, which has been praised throughout the season for its exceptional defensive efforts, put on its poorest performance of the year against Georgia when it mattered most. The Vols had not given up more than 19 points in a single game prior to Week 12. When they played the Bulldogs, that story fell apart.

The 31 points Tennessee gave up included two passing and two running touchdowns, both of which were defense-firsts for the season. They also surrendered season-highs of 25 first downs and 453 total yards. The Vols’ defeat to Arkansas was the last time they let up more than 400 yards of offense.

The fact that Georgia quarterback Carson Beck, who came into the game with the most turnovers in the SEC over the previous four weeks, did not commit one was even more unexpected. Instead, he completed 25 of 40 passes for 347 yards and three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing), displaying the poise that once made him a projected first-round NFL pick.

Arian Smith’s fumble in the second quarter cost Tennessee their only turnover opportunity, but Georgia bounced back and scored six plays later to increase their lead to 14–10.

With the setback to Georgia, Josh Heupel’s road troubles continue.

Josh Heupel came to Knoxville to find the Tennessee football team in utter chaos. After losing 3-7 in Jeremy Pruitt’s final season in 2020, the Vols were coming off one of their worst seasons in program history. It goes without saying that Tennessee is in much better position currently, but Heupel has left some of the program’s long-standing problems from the previous 20 years in place.

Heupel has yet to conquer the challenge of defeating Georgia. He has a 0–4 record versus the Bulldogs in his four seasons with Tennessee. Given Georgia’s program’s dominance at the time, this flaw isn’t totally shocking, but Heupel still needs to exceed it if he wants to lead the Vols to the next level. The advancements gained under Heupel’s direction are demonstrated by the fact that Tennessee can now compete with a major power like Georgia.

But winning on the road, especially against rated teams, is Heupel’s toughest obstacle. Five of Tennessee’s six losses in the last two seasons have occurred away from Neyland Stadium. The only exception was the home loss to Georgia the previous season. Since taking over in Knoxville, Heupel has a 7-9 road record and a 2-6 record when playing ranked opponents on the road.

Tennessee needs to figure out a method to win big-name road games on a regular basis if they want to advance as a program. That coveted hump will stay just out of reach till then.

The inability of Nico Iamaleava to score a touchdown

This season, Tennessee’s offense hasn’t performed as well as many had anticipated under rookie quarterback Nico Iamaleava. Iamaleava was listed as questionable going into the match versus Georgia, raising even more doubts about his participation. Iamaleava has displayed glimpses of promise, although his season has been inconsistent. He was still Tennessee’s top quarterback choice for this crucial game, though.

In a challenging environment at Sanford Stadium, Iamaleava faced the tough task of outperforming Georgia’s Carson Beck but fell short of making enough big plays to lift the Volunteers. It marked the third time this season he failed to score, with no passing or rushing touchdowns. Iamaleava managed just 24 rushing yards and completed 20 of 33 passes for 167 yards, making it his eighth game of the season with fewer than 200 passing yards.

Tennessee needed a spectacular effort from their rookie quarterback in a game that had to be won. Iamaleava didn’t play badly, but on a night when the Vols needed more, Beck just performed better, and he was understandably upset about it.

There is a great deal of anger and frustration. We worked really hard to win this game, and yes, we lost. We didn’t play well in the second half, and it will hurt,” the quarterback stated, according to ESPN. “We must allow it to hurt and simply take this as a lesson.”

Tennessee needed a spectacular effort from their rookie quarterback in a game that had to be won. Iamaleava didn’t play badly, but on a night when the Vols needed more, Beck just performed better, and he was understandably upset about it.

There is a great deal of anger and frustration. We worked really hard to win this game, and yes, we lost. We didn’t play well in the second half, and it will hurt,” the quarterback stated, according to ESPN. “We must allow it to hurt and simply take this as a lesson.”