The Georgia Bulldogs (4-1, 2-1 SEC) are ranked No. 10 in the AP poll. The Auburn Tigers (3-2, 0-2 SEC) are unranked and have lost back-to-back games. Despite this, the Bulldogs opened as 4-point favorites over the Tigers in Week 7. You might be shocked to see such a small spread, but Kirby Smart isn’t.
Smart spoke about Auburn on Monday afternoon, ahead of their Oct. 11 matchup. He knows Auburn isn’t on the College Football Playoff radar anymore, but believes they’re a “great team” who has fallen victim to their schedule.
“They’ve got a great football team. They’ve played 2 really, really, really hard road games,” Smart said. “[Their losses are to] 2 of the premier teams in our league right now. They’re playing really good defensively. [They’re] playing really good defensively, [have] a lot of weapons on offense… and do a great job on special teams.”
Auburn’s 2 losses are to Oklahoma 24-17 (Sept. 20) and Texas A&M 16-10 (Sept. 27). The Sooners (No. 6) and Aggies (No. 5) are both unbeaten and are among the top teams in the Week 7 AP poll. With a few good bounces — or a couple of whistles — the Tigers could very well be entering this matchup holding only 1 loss, like the Bulldogs.
Smart has made a habit of complimenting his opponents ahead of their contests. He sung the praises of Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar and labeled Alabama’s Ty Simpson the “hottest QB in college football” before they battled Georgia in Weeks 3 and 5, respectively. Whether the Bulldogs will beat the Tigers (7:30 p.m. E.T., ABC) this weekend remains to be seen, but Smart is making sure they won’t have any bulletin board material before kickoff.
