A bye week can be tough.

It’s a good respite from the typically stressful (or sometimes uneventful) Saturdays watching your team play, but all you really want to do is get through the rest of the regular season and see whether you’re playing for hardware or not.

That’s where Georgia is this weekend. At 7-0 and ranked No. 1, the Bulldogs still have every goal within reach. And all of their high-profile matchups are in front of them. While they undoubtedly appreciate the rest, I have to imagine they’re ready to show the country they deserve the top ranking.

I’m just so excited to see what happens, I’m going to pull out the crystal ball for a sneak peek. And, boy, it’s a wild finish in the SEC.

This is your spoiler alert. Final season results are below. Read on at your peril.

vs. Florida (in Jacksonville, Fla.), Oct. 29

There are a number of things at play here. First and foremost, it’s the Georgia-Florida game and that means anything can happen.

Yes, Georgia is the better team. Yes, Florida has struggled to find consistency through the 2022 season. On paper, it should be an easy win for the Bulldogs after a bye week.

But you do wonder what will happen with Tennessee on the horizon. That game the following weekend between the Dogs and the Vols, currently ranked No. 1 and No. 3 in the country, sets up as one of the biggest at Sanford Stadium in recent memory and perhaps the most consequential game of this regular season.

Can Kirby Smart keep his young squad zeroed in on the Gators and avoid a look-ahead upset?

I think he can.

Georgia overcomes a slow start in this one to pull away for a double-digit win in the second half.

Prediction: Georgia 35, Florida 17

vs. No. 3 Tennessee, Nov. 5

I’m going back and forth on this game.

On one hand, I feel like Tennessee is ready to unseat Georgia this season. It has the feel of past national champions like Auburn with Cam Newton’s, Florida Stare with Jameis Winston or LSU with Joe Burrow – programs that experienced a perfect storm with an elite quarterback and spent the next couple of years chasing that plateau.

On the other … man, it’s hard to imagine the Vols not slipping up at some point. That is probably 15 years of inadequacy influencing my thinking and not the reality of the team, though.

So, who do you take? The defending national champions who will, at this point, have won 23 consecutive regular season games if the above prediction holds up? Or the upstart offensive powerhouse that only won 7 games a year ago?

I’m going with my gut and my gut says it’s a special season for Tennessee. Georgia’s defense is elite, but its struggles to get to the quarterback finally come home to roost against a quarterback that can absolutely make it pay.

Prediction: Tennessee 35, Georgia 31

at No. 24 Mississippi State, Nov. 12

Mississippi State is a solid team. Quarterback Will Rogers is going to pass for 4,000 yards and around 40 touchdowns this season, and works with a variety of playmakers. The team is scoring more than 40 points a game in its wins and about 35 a game overall.

But in losses to LSU and Kentucky, State showed vulnerabilities in failing to reach 300 total yards in either contest and averaging 16.5 points.

There’s the potential for a hangover game here if Georgia tops Tennessee the previous week, but the feeling here is that this is too much of a mismatch.

Prediction: Georgia 38, Mississippi State 14

at No. 19 Kentucky, Nov. 19

There is a scenario, however unlikely, in which Kentucky could be in the SEC East race by the time the teams reach Lexington. Here’s how:

  • Kentucky upsets No. 3 Tennessee on Oct. 29
  • Georgia defeats Tennessee the following week on Nov. 5
  • The Bulldogs suffer a hangover against Mississippi State on Nov. 12

In that case, Kentucky and Tennessee each have 2 losses, Georgia has 1 and the Wildcats have a chance to knock the Bulldogs down a peg.

Possible, but not likely.

Look, I still really, really like this Kentucky team. After back-to-back losses to Ole Miss and South Carolina, the Wildcats got quarterback Will Levis back and picked up a big win against Mississippi State. They have a balanced offense and a strong defense. They can give Georgia problems in a home atmosphere in what might be chilly weather.

Kentucky slows Georgia in this one, but the Bulldogs prove to be too much in the end.

Prediction: Georgia 28, Kentucky 17

vs. Georgia Tech, Nov. 26

In Georgia’s game against its in-state rival, it could be a short game for the first-teamers. A ton of words aren’t necessary to express just how uneven this game is.

The Bulldogs can pick a score. We’ll give the Yellow Jackets 7 points because … why not?

Prediction: Georgia 49, Georgia Tech 7

What happens after that?

With the regular season in the rearview, Georgia will be in a precarious position regarding the national title chase. If Alabama wins the rest of its regular season games and meets Tennessee in the SEC Championship, the Bulldogs will need the Vols to knock off Nick Saban and Co. again to have a shot at the top 4.

I’m going in a different direction, though.

In the spirit of chaos, here’s a series of bold predictions:

  • Tennessee finishes the regular season 12-0
  • Ole Miss knocks off Alabama on Nov. 12 and wins out to finish 11-1
  • Tennessee tops Ole Miss in the SEC Championship, improving to 13-0
  • Georgia sneaks into the playoff as the No. 4 seed, where it faces No. 1 Ohio State. Its national title defense comes to an end in a close loss
  • College football gets the high-powered offensive finale it deserves as the nation’s top two offenses, Ohio State and Tennessee, square off in Los Angeles. The Buckeyes take the crown in the highest-scoring championship game this century.

This might be less likely after Mississippi’s 45-20 loss to LSU on Saturday. But why not have some fun?

Let the debates commence.