In the last two seasons under Kirby Smart, Georgia has accumulated an abundance of blue-chip talent, dominated the SEC East, taken Alabama to the wire twice, won an SEC Championship and a College Football Playoff semifinal. The 2017 and ’18 Bulldogs teams are ones UGA fans won’t forget any time soon, but Phil Steele says the 2019 squad is even better.

“That’s a Georgia team that I think it’s the best team that they’ve put on the field under Kirby Smart. so far,” Steele said in a recent appearance on the SEC Radio Network. “They’ve got six returning starters on offense, six on defense – an improved team over last year.”

Calling the 2019 squad the best team does not guarantee the best record or best finish, but considering what we’ve seen from Smart’s three squads full of players now on NFL rosters, this is high praise from one of college football’s leading experts. It’s especially encouraging for the Georgia faithful with some media members questioning how the Dawgs will be impacted by and coordinator changes and replacing multiple leading receivers.