2016 Georgia Bulldogs football team

2016 Georgia Bulldogs football
Conference Southeastern Conference
Division Eastern Division
2016 record 7–5 (4–4 SEC)
Head coach Kirby Smart (1st year)
Offensive coordinator Jim Chaney (1st year)
Offensive scheme Pro-style
Defensive coordinator Mel Tucker (1st year)
Base defense 3–4
Home stadium Sanford Stadium
(Capacity: 92,746)
2016 SEC football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
East Division
No. 20 Florida xy   6 – 2         8 – 4  
Tennessee   4 – 4         8 – 4  
Georgia   4 – 4         7 – 5  
Kentucky   4 – 4         7 – 5  
South Carolina   3 – 5         6 – 6  
Vanderbilt   3 – 5         6 – 6  
Missouri   2 – 6         4 – 8  
West Division
No. 1 Alabama x$^   8 – 0         13 – 0  
No. 17 Auburn   5 – 3         8 – 4  
No. 19 LSU   5 – 3         7 – 4  
Texas A&M   4 – 4         8 – 4  
Arkansas   3 – 5         7 – 5  
Mississippi State   3 – 5         5 – 7  
Ole Miss   2 – 6         5 – 7  
Championship: Alabama 54, Florida 16
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
As of December 4, 2016; Rankings from AP Poll

The 2016 Georgia Bulldogs football team represents the University of Georgia in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bulldogs play their home games at Sanford Stadium. They are members of the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference. They are led by first-year head coach Kirby Smart.

Previous season

The 2015 Georgia Bulldogs football team was the favorite to win the Eastern Division. The Bulldogs started off the season 4–0 with SEC wins over Vanderbilt 31–14 and South Carolina 52–20, where quarterback Greyson Lambert set a NCAA record for completion percentage in a game with 96% (24/25). On October 3, the #13 Alabama Crimson Tide came to Athens and defeated the Bulldogs 38–10. The next week the Dawgs traveled to Knoxville to face the Tennessee Volunteers. On Georgia's first offensive play of the game, Bulldog's running back Nick Chubb was tackled on the sideline and suffered a season-ending knee injury as Georgia loss their second game of the season. Three weeks later, the Bulldogs suffered their third loss of the season during the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida to the Florida Gators 27–3, where third string quarterback Faton Bauta started. The Bulldogs finish the regular season on a four-game winning streak including road wins over the Auburn Tigers 20–13 and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 13–7. The day after the Georgia Tech game, head coach Mark Richt was fired after 15 seasons of head coach. Richt had a record of 145–51 as head coach of the Bulldogs. Georgia finished the season with a win over the Penn State Nittany Lions in the Taxslayer Bowl 24–17 under intermediate head coach Bryan McClendon in Jacksonville. The bowl win gave the Bulldogs a final 2015 season record of 10v3, which gave the senior class a total of 40 wins.

Coaching changes

After the 2015 regular season, Georgia's athletic director Greg McGarity fired head coach Mark Richt after 15 seasons with an overall 145–51 record. Richt was replaced with former Georgia football player Kirby Smart, who, at the time, was Alabama's defensive coordinator. Smart played for the Bulldogs from 1995 to 1998 for coaches Ray Goff and Jim Donnan and was defensive coordinator at Alabama from 2008 to 2015 under head coach Nick Saban. Jeremy Pruitt, who was defensive coordinator for Georgia from 2014 to 2015, accepted a position as the defensive coordinator for Alabama to replace Smart.

2016 recruiting class

National Signing Day was on February 3, 2016.

Schedule

Georgia announced its 2016 football schedule on October 29, 2015. The 2016 schedule consists of 6 home, 4 away, and 2 neutral site games in the regular season. The Bulldogs will host SEC foes Auburn, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt, and will travel to Kentucky, Missouri, Ole Miss, and South Carolina. Georgia will go against Florida in Jacksonville, Florida.[1]

The Bulldogs will host three of their four non–conference games, which are against Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the North Carolina Tar Heels both from the Atlantic Coast Conference, Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns from the Sun Belt Conference, and Nicholls State Colonels from the Southland Conference.[2]

Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Result Attendance
September 3 5:30 p.m. vs. No. 22 North Carolina* No. 18 Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA (Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game) ESPN W 33–24   75,405
September 10 12:00 p.m. Nicholls State* No. 9 Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA SECN W 26–24   92,746
September 17 7:30 p.m. at Missouri No. 16 Faurot Field • Columbia, MO SECN W 28–27   57,098
September 24 12:00 p.m. at No. 23 Ole Miss No. 12 Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS ESPN L 14–45   65,483
October 1 3:30 p.m. No. 11 Tennessee No. 25 Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA (Rivalry) CBS L 31–34   92,746
October 9[a] 2:30 p.m.[3] at South Carolina Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, SC (Rivalry) SECN W 28–14   77,221
October 15 12:00 p.m. Vanderbiltdagger Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA (Rivalry) SECN L 16–17   92,746
October 29 3:30 p.m. vs. No. 14 Florida EverBank Field • Jacksonville, FL (Rivalry) CBS L 10–24   84,681
November 5 7:30 p.m. at Kentucky Commonwealth Stadium • Lexington, KY SECN W 27–24   62,507
November 12 3:30 p.m. No. 8 Auburn Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA (Deep South's Oldest Rivalry) CBS W 13–7   92,746
November 19 12:00 p.m. Louisiana–Lafayette* Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA SECN W 35–21   92,746
November 26 12:00 p.m. Georgia Tech* Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA (Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate) SECN L 27–28   92,746
*Non-conference game. daggerHomecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.
^[a] The game between Georgia and South Carolina had been originally scheduled for October 8, 2016, but was postponed due to Hurricane Matthew and played on October 9, 2016.

Game notes

vs North Carolina

1 2 3 4 Total
#22 Tar Heels 0 10 14 0 24
#18 Bulldogs 7 7 9 10 33
Overall record Last meeting Result
16–12–2 1971 UGA, 7–3

Nicholls State

1 2 3 4 Total
Colonels 0 7 7 10 24
#9 Bulldogs 7 3 16 0 26
Overall record Last meeting Result
First meeting

at Missouri

1 2 3 4 Total
#16 Bulldogs 7 14 0 7 28
Tigers 10 10 7 0 27
Overall record Last meeting Result
4–1 2015 UGA, 9–6

at Ole Miss

1 2 3 4 Total
#12 Bulldogs 0 0 7 7 14
#23 Rebels 17 14 14 0 45
Overall record Last meeting Result
32–12–1 2012 UGA, 37–10

Tennessee

1 2 3 4 Total
#11 Volunteers 0 7 7 20 34
#25 Bulldogs 7 10 7 7 31
Overall record Last meeting Result
21–22–2 2015 TENN, 38–31

at South Carolina

1 2 3 4 Total
Bulldogs 7 7 0 14 28
Gamecocks 0 0 7 7 14
Overall record Last meeting Result
48–18–2 2015 UGA, 52–20

Vanderbilt

1 2 3 4 Total
Commodores 7 0 3 7 17
Bulldogs 3 3 7 3 16
Overall record Last meeting Result
55–19–2 2015 UGA, 31–14

vs Florida

1 2 3 4 Total
Gators 7 7 7 3 24
Bulldogs 7 3 0 0 10
Overall record Last meeting Result
49–42–2 2015 FLOR, 27–3

at Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total
Bulldogs 7 6 3 11 27
Wildcats 7 7 7 3 24
Overall record Last meeting Result
55–12–2 2015 UGA, 27–3

Auburn

1 2 3 4 Total
Tigers 7 0 0 0 7
Bulldogs 0 0 7 6 13
Overall record Last meeting Result
56–55–8 2015 UGA, 20–13

Louisiana–Lafayette

1 2 3 4 Total
Ragin' Cajuns 0 7 0 14 21
Bulldogs 14 7 7 7 35
Overall record Last meeting Result
1–0 2010 UGA, 55–7

Georgia Tech

1 2 3 4 Total
Yellow Jackets 7 7 0 14 28
Bulldogs 7 7 13 0 27
Overall record Last meeting Result
65–40–5 2015 UGA, 13–7

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Final 
AP 18 9 16 12 25 RV RV NR NR  
Coaches 16 9 13 11 20 RV RV NR NR  
CFP Not released Not released

References

  1. ↑ "Bulldogs' 2016 Football Schedule Announced" (Press release). University of Georgia Department of Athletics. October 29, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
  2. ↑ "2016 Georgia Bulldogs Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
  3. ↑ Georgiadogs.com
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