"Carson Beck? Something's wrong": Urban Meyer details Georgia's flaws while debating latest CFP rankings
Across college football, the debates about CFP merits are red hot. Whether it's Alabama, Georgia, BYU or SMU, fans and media personnel are passionate about the merits and weaknesses of their teams. Another flare-up of that battle came in house at FOX, as Urban Meyer detailed some of Georgia's flaws while debating the CFP rankings during an episode of "The Triple Option" podcast on Wednesday.
"When you watch tape, which I was a maniac about that... I'm talking about Georgia, you watch the first half against Texas, second half against Bama, you're saying, 'That might be the best team in football.' You watch that mess last week and you say, 'SMU is a better team.' Because I watched them both, and Carson Beck, something is wrong," Urban Meyer said. [13:40 onwards]
Meyer thinks that Georgia has been performing inconsistently and implied that Beck's performance has been one of the reasons for their struggles.
Urban Meyer Speaks out for SMU over Georgia
Meyer's comments came after the podcast's host revealed that 53% of viewers had voters in a poll to take a 3-loss SEC team over a 2-loss ACC team in the College Football Playoff. Meyer's thoughts on Georgia came after their brutal 28-10 loss to Ole Miss on Saturday. Nevertheless, many favor the Bulldogs over teams like SMU.
The Case for Georgia
Georgia currently sits just out of the final spot in the playoff. Their case is simple-- UGA has played what many are terming the most difficult schedule in the nation. Five of the top 17 teams in the nation are on UGA's regular season schedule, with the fifth coming up as the Bulldogs prepare to battle Tennessee on Nov. 16.
Georgia battled back from a massive deficit to take the lead briefly over Alabama before losing but did struggle mightily in their loss to Ole Miss. They are the only team in the nation to beat No. 3 Texas (30-15) and also opening the season with a smackdown of No. 17 Clemson (34-3).
The Case for SMU
SMU is ranked 14th in the CFP rankings, right behind Georgia. The 8-1 Mustangs are in the thick of the ACC title game hunt with Miami. The biggest knock on SMU is that the Mustangs are 1-1 this season against teams currently ranked. They fell 18-15 to BYU in a field-goal kicking battle in week 3. They bested No. 22 Louisville by a score in early October.
That's it. That's the entire resume, which does create a certain amount of suspicion. While Georgia will play five teams in the top 17, SMU has just one such game (and they lost).
The Reality
Ultimately, Georgia's CFP chances probably don't hinge on SMU-- they hinge on beating Tennessee. Both SMU and a three-loss Georgia team could get left out of the Playoff field, But if Georgia defeats Tennessee, then the SEC has a multitude of two-loss teams. SMU is probably rooting for the Vols... but it's complicated for both teams and for the broadcasters and commentators.
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