ATHENS - There's nowhere to hide for Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs.
Even after crushing Arkansas, Vanderbilt and Oklahoma, then taking down the Crimson Tide on the road, the Bulldogs still couldn't hide.
The Dawgs were up 14-0 on the Auburn Tigers. In Athens. Trying to win their 10th consecutive game in the series. Then they tried to hide, and the Auburn Tigers found them, scoring 24 unanswered points and capitalizing on Georgia's costly mistakes.
They were the No. 1 team in the country and appeared to have the game on cruise control. But they took their foot off the gas and found a way to lose. It doesn't mean they're a bad team. It means that after four physical SEC games, the Dawgs just didn't bring their best for four quarters. And right now in the SEC, if you don't bring your best, even at home against an unranked opponent, you could find yourself in a really bad spot.
"There is nowhere to run and hide in this league," Smart told reporters Saturday night after Georgia's tight loss to Auburn. "Nowhere. You just have to find ways to get better and try to win the next moment.”
There's not a single SEC team left unbeaten in the conference right now. The Dawgs have one conference loss along with Kentucky, Tennessee and Ole Miss. All three of those teams are playing well at the moment with big wins on their resume. The Gators have two losses and have been as up and down as any team in the league this year.
Missouri has looked really good at times, but they're coming off a blowout loss to the Rebels. The LSU Tigers are coming off a big win after early losses to Ole Miss and Kentucky. The Sooners are falling apart with Arkansas and Vanderbilt towards the bottom of the league.
Teams are eating losses, and the Dawgs just ate their first. Now it's back to work as they prepare to take on the Gators in Atlanta on Halloween. This has turned into a must-win game for the Bulldogs who could have some real trouble securing a playoff spot with two or more losses.
"They'll respond and they'll work," Smart said about his team following their loss to Auburn. "They'll listen and they'll work, and we gotta go to work. We're not, we're not much better than other people. We don't beat ourselves usually. We don't beat ourselves usually, and we did tonight. But we're not some exceptionally just way better people. We have to execute, play with discipline, don't turn the ball over, and be efficient."
Georgia had not faced adversity at all this season until they went to Tuscaloosa. They battled through it and left town with a win. They faced even more adversity against the Tigers, and while they did fight back, too many mistakes down the stretch cost them the game. Look for the Dawgs, who are normally a disciplined, efficient team in all phases, so get back to their standard the next time they hit the field.
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