Open The Paddock

Smart and Stoops are similar in their dedication to playing
a physical brand of football, which equates to another stellar
battle between the Cats and Dawgs on Saturday in Lexington
JEFF DANTZLER
@jeffdantzlerTV
When Georgia and
Kentucky square off
Saturday afternoon on
a cold Fall Saturday, it
will be a matchup of two of the most
physical teams in college football.
Head coaches Kirby Smart and Mark
Stoops pride themselves on physicality
at every level offensively, defensively
and on special teams. Especially on the
line of scrimmage.
Stoops first. With a famous first
name, the brother of longtime highly
successful Oklahoma legend Bob Stoops,
has built Kentucky into one of the most
stable programs in the Southeastern
Conference. Operating in the shadow
of regal Kentucky basketball, ripe with
those eight national championships,
the Wildcats football program has
often been an afterthought. Both in the
Southeastern Conference and within the
Kentucky fan base.
But not under Stoops’ watch.
Yes, John Calipari and Big Blue are still
king of the mountain. Stoops though
has built a consistent winner. The steady
growth and consistent success has made
a mark in, yes, both the SEC and with the
Wildcat faithful.
It started in 2013 with a record of 2-10.
The next two years, the Wildcats went
5-7. Now that wouldn’t have cut it in
Athens, Tuscaloosa or Baton Rouge or at
Rupp Arena. But Kentucky was patient,
and it has paid off. The SEC East’s longest
tenured coach has led Kentucky to a
bowl for six straight years, and this
season will be the seventh postseason
trip in a row for the Wildcats. The only
losing season over that stretch came in
the Covid 2020 campaign. The highlights
have been a pair of 10-3 records in
both 2018 and 2021. In the Stoops
era, Kentucky has notched signature
wins over Tennessee, Penn State and
Iowa, while turning the tables against
Florida. From 1987-2017, the Gators
beat Kentucky an astonishing 31 times
in a row. Some of those games, it was
just incredible how they got away from
Kentucky. But since 2018, Stoops has led
Kentucky to three wins in the previous
five meetings with Florida, including the
last two in a row.
Now, if Kentucky can beat Georgia and
in-state rival Louisville, the Wildcats
would be bowling with a shot at another
9-4.
That would also end another streak.
Back in 2016, favorite Georgia son
Kirby Smart recorded one of his first
signature victories as the head coach at
his alma mater. A last second Rodrigo
Blankenship field goal delivered a 27-24
win in Lexington. That was a building
block win for a program on the fast track
under Smart’s watch.
Since 2017, the second year of the
Smart era, Georgia has been one
of the most dominant programs in
college football. The Bulldogs won
the SEC championship and played
for the national title that year. Last
season, Georgia won the National
Championship. This year, the Bulldogs
are heading to their fifth trip to the SEC
Championship Game with a regular
season record of 11-1 (2017, 2018, 2019)
or better (2021).
Thinking back to some hard times
daddy - cue The American Dream Dusty
Rhodes - there was a stretch mainly
covering the 1990s when Georgia lost
nine straight times to Tennessee and
went 1-11 against Florida teams coached
by Steve Spurrier. For this spirited 50-
year old scribe, from 1983-1990, the
Bulldogs lost seven times in eight games
against Auburn.
Well, Georgia has won five of the
last six against the Gators, who are
on their third head coach during that
stretch. The Bulldogs have won six
straight against Tennessee, which
is on its third head coach over that
period. And, dating back to the 2017
SEC Championship Game, Georgia has
beaten Auburn, now on its third head
coach of the Smart era, six times in
a row. That’s strong stuff against the
Bulldogs biggest SEC rivals.
For the record, Georgia is also 4-0
against the Yellow Jackets - outscoring
“The Enemy” 180-35 - since 2017. There
was no game between the in-state foes
in 2020. The North Avenue Trade School
is also on its third head coach of the
Smart era.
Georgia has also won 12 straight
against Kentucky, running the decade
of the 2010s under Mark Richt and
Smart.
While there has been such turnover
amongst the Bulldogs old and ancient
foes, Kentucky has been a constant
since Stoops got his program going in
Lexington.
He and Kentucky certainly look at
beating Georgia before what promises
to be an electric atmosphere at
Commonwealth Stadium / Kroger Field.
Back in 1988, Kentucky upset Georgia
in Lexington, derailing SEC title dreams
in Vince Dooley’s final season as the
Bulldogs head coach. I’d gladly trade
one of the wins in a mediocre season
during this current 12-game winning
streak for that one in ‘88. It’s one of the
most painful losses in Georgia history.
The legendary Dooley told me once that
one stood out perhaps more than any,
because he would have loved to “go out
… as a champion.”
So here are the Wildcats trying to play
spoiler and derail the Dogs dreams
of a second consecutive national
championship.
While Kentucky dropped a bad one in a
nooner against Vanderbilt, the Bulldogs,
after back-to-back victories over the
Gators and Volunteers, were in Starkville
and now visit Lexington. Directly in the
crosshairs.
What a test this will be for the Bulldogs.
Smart has implored his team all year
to be the “hunter,” vowing that the
reigning national champions would not
be hunted.
And in what promises to be one of the
most physical games of the year, the
Bulldogs must pack their best punch and
strongest chin.
BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 10 ISSUE THIRTEEN • KENTUCKY