Georgia had a close call in Columbia against Missouri on Oct. 1. While Kirby Smart’s team eventually came away with a 26-22 win, they looked far from convincing in the process, needing to erase a rare 4th-quarter deficit to avoid their first loss of the season. That said, the pollsters knocked the Bulldogs down to No. 2 due to their below-standard performance.

Prior to the game, Smart stated that “it’s tough to win on the road in the SEC”, which ended up being quite an example of foreshadowing considering the way the Dawgs struggled with the Tigers. That said, Smart’s quote received significant pushback from FOX Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt, who ranked Georgia No. 5 in his Week 6 top 5 rankings and were in his “2nd-tier deliberations”.

“This is always the narrative. Oh, it’s so hard, it’s so hard to beat Missouri, who got absolutely crushed by Kansas State by 28 points, but it’s so hard for Georgia to go into Missouri and dominate that team. It was so hard,” Klatt scoffed. “Kent State’s not in the SEC, and you were at home, so why were you in a 10-point game in the 4th quarter with Kent State? By the way, is it easier in other conferences to win on the road? Was it easy for Michigan to go into Iowa City and win in Kinnick, when Iowa has beaten 4 of the last Top 5 teams that they’ve faced in that home stadium? I’m pretty sure that’s a better track record at home than Missouri.

“This notion that this conference has some sort of mysterious power where it’s harder to win on the road in the SEC than it is at other places is false. It’s false. That’s bias, that’s narrative, and don’t buy it. You know where it’s hard to win? At really good teams.”