ESPN predicts the Georgia Bulldogs to be the No. 4 seed in the College Football Playoff after the Bulldogs lost their first game of the season to the Auburn Tigers. Both ESPN's Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach predict Georgia to land the No. 4 seed in their latest projections. Georgia was previously predicted to be the No. 1 seed.
Much like the US LBM Coaches Poll, Georgia is behind Miami, BYU and Ohio State. The Bulldogs would still end up with a bye in the first-round of the playoff as a No. 4 seed.
Bonagura predicts that Georgia will play the No. 5 seed Utah Utes, who are off to an undefeated start, in the playoff quarterfinals (the quarterfinals are held at a neutral site). Bonagura has Georgia beating Utah and then falling to No. 1 seed Miami in the playoff semifinals (Sugar Bowl). Bonagura predicts Miami to return to the national championship for a second straight season and play No. 2 seed BYU. The national championship will be played in Las Vegas this season.
Schlabach projects Georgia to play the No. 5 seed UCLA Bruins in the quarterfinals. UCLA is off to an undefeated start in the Big Ten. Schlabach predicts the Bulldogs to beat the Bruins to play No. 8 seed Indiana in the Sugar Bowl. Schlabach has Indiana upsetting No. 1 seed BYU in the quarterfinals, but thinks Georgia will end Indiana run to advance to play No. 2 Miami in the national championship game.
Georgia's playoff hopes took a significant hit thanks to the Bulldogs' loss to Auburn. However, chaos in the SEC and across the country means that Georgia is still one of the national championship and SEC championship favorites. The Bulldogs are 4-1 in SEC play and is tied with Kentucky for the best record in conference play.
The ESPN experts both predict Georgia, Ole Miss and Tennessee will be the SEC's three teams to make the playoffs.
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This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: ESPN updates Georgia football's CFP prediction after Auburn loss
