#Clemson takenote pro#

#Clemson takenote pro#

Georgia coach Kirby Smart (L) and New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick converse during Georgia Pro Day on March 20. It’s something he’s achieved for 2028 (Florida State, at Texas, Georgia Tech) and 2029 (Texas, at Clemson, at Georgia Tech).įrom 1992-2001, besides a lone meeting with Clemson in 1995, Georgia’s only non-conference opponent from a major league was Georgia Tech. “I’m not afraid of that,” Smart said last month. The goal: three Power Five non-conference opponents per year, preferably with all games played in on-campus facilities, to go along with eight SEC games. Georgia also hosts Notre Dame this year.Īccording to Smart, he’s looking for even more top non-conference opponents as he eschews no-name and lower-division opponents. There are also one-offs in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium with Virginia (2020), Oregon (2022) and Clemson (2024), as well as the annual game on alternating campuses with Georgia Tech of the ACC. It follows last month’s announcement of a home and home with Florida State for 2027-28. On Monday, Smart announced his latest scheduling deal - a home-and-home series with Oklahoma (at Norman in 2023, at Athens 2031).

It’s reason enough for every college football fan to not only salute Smart, but hope that the trend extends (if it hasn’t already) to their own head coach and athletic director. In doing so, he’s flipping the script on the Bulldogs’ long-standing practice of doing little more than the minimum in non-conference play while leaning on the power of the SEC for its strength of schedule. Whatever it is - and it’s likely a combination of the above - Kirby Smart has decided to turn Georgia football into a scheduling aggressor. Maybe he has, like most fans, gotten sick of staring at college football schedules and seeing a bunch of mismatches and blowouts.

Maybe it’s the fact that he’s stuck, geographically, between Alabama and Clemson, the two kingpins of college football, and needs to do something to stand out.