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Georgia Football: Another year, another bowl game for the Dawgs

By Matt Green

MEMPHIS, TN - DECEMBER 30: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs lifts up the Liberty Bowl Trophy after they defeated the TCU Horned Frogs at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium on December 30, 2016 in Memphis, Tennessee. The Georgia Bulldogs defeated the TCU Horned Frogs 31-23. (Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TN - DECEMBER 30: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs lifts up the Liberty Bowl Trophy after they defeated the TCU Horned Frogs at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium on December 30, 2016 in Memphis, Tennessee. The Georgia Bulldogs defeated the TCU Horned Frogs 31-23. (Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images) /
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We are 20 days away from college football season, and today we’re talking about an SEC football team that’s been a model of consistency.

Georgia football has been widely criticized for being good, but not great. All you have to do is look at Mark Richt‘s tenure in Athens. Richt led Georgia to a 145-51 record in record in his 15 years in Athens, including nine 10-win seasons, five SEC championship appearances, and two SEC titles.

Despite all his success, there was one glaring hole on Richt’s resume. Zero national championships. It’s not an indictment on a head coach to not win a national championship, unless you’re in the SEC. In Richt’s time in Athens, Georgia watched LSU, Florida, Auburn, and Alabama all win national titles, while the Bulldogs didn’t even make a title game appearance.

And that leads us to no. 20 on the Southbound and Down College Football Countdown.

Georgia Bulldogs have made 20 straight bowl appearances

Southbound and Down Countdown: 21: Gators stoned Dawgs in 2016

You have to go all the way back to 1996 to find the last time Georgia didn’t make a bowl game. 247sports did a story a couple months ago, listing the 11 longest active bowl streaks in college football. Georgia’s 20-year bowl streak is the longest in the SEC, and the third longest streak in the nation. Only Virginia Tech (23) and Florida State (35) have a longer active bowl streak than the Bulldogs.

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LSU was the only other SEC school that made the top 11. The Tigers made their 17th consecutive bowl appearance last season.

While the bowl streak is impressive, it’s growing less impressive by the year. Last season, there were 41 bowl games, meaning 82 of the 128 FBS schools made a bowl game, that’s 64 percent of teams making the postseason. What is this, the NBA Playoffs?

But the bowl streak doesn’t do them justice for just how consistent the Georgia football program has been. During their 20-year streak, they’ve gone 181-64, and average of 9.1 wins and 3.2 losses per season.

Only Alabama (9.3), Florida (9.25), and LSU (9.2) have averaged more wins than Georgia over the last 20 years. Alabama is 186-74 over the last 20 seasons, an average of 9.3 wins and 3.7 losses, and that’s with their 11.9-1.9 average during Nick Saban’s tenure.

Next: LSU loses 4-star defensive back commit

Georgia will likely make it 21 straight this season, but they have their sights set much higher than merely making a bowl game. If we’re talking about the Bulldogs making a bowl game as an accomplishment at season’s end, Kirby Smart has much bigger problems on his hands.

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