>> GEORGIA FOOTBALL
Radio broadcaster Jeff Dantzler made his annual visit to Milledgeville Tuesday night to preview the upcoming Bulldog football season, and he made no bones about his opinion of head coach Kirby Smart and tight end sensation Brock Bowers.
Dantzler – who hosts pre-and-post-game shows as well as Sunday morning brunch broadcasts during the football season – was at Duke’s Lounge and Dawg House for his ninth-consecutive annual meeting with the Milledgeville Chapter of UGA alumni and interested fans. The veteran radio announcer covered an array of topics, focusing on recent success, Smart, the year’s schedule, and the team roster.
“Going back to after the Florida loss in 2020, we have won 33 of our last 34 games,” he said. “That is amazing. We have a caller who says, ’under the watch of coach King Kirby Smart’.
“And I agree. Coach King Kirby Smart has led us to six straight years in the top 10, which is the best streak in program history. We’ve been to the SEC championship five times in the last six years with a record of either 12-0 or 11-1.
“A lot of time, what stands out to me about records,” Dantzler continued, “it’s the company you keep. When you talk about five times in six years, the other coaches who’ve done that in SEC history, you’re talking about Steve Spurrier, you’re talking about Nick Saban; now you’re talking about Kirby Smart. So, that is just amazing.”
Dantzler talked about being tested and prevailing, mentioning last year’s Missouri game on the road, in which the Bulldogs trailed late but came back to take a narrow victory.
“It was bleak; it looked like it was not going to go our way,” he said. “But, we persevered and found a way, and I am convinced we would not have beaten Ohio State (in the semifinal playoff contest) if it had not been for that Missouri game.”
Georgia trailed Ohio State at one point 38-24 before taking the lead late and won on a missed Ohio State 50-yard field goal try as time expired.
Dantzler talked about that win over the Buckeyes and the record-setting 65-7 thrashing of TCU in the national championship game, then reflected on the season.
“I thought last season was the most enjoyable season in Georgia history because we had gotten that monkey off our back, and we had the victory rides through the season to finish the way we did. It was simply incredible,” Dantzler said.
He then turned to the upcoming season and another record.
“We come into this season with a 17-game winning streak, which matches a school record set back in the 1940s from ’45 to ’47,” he said, pointing out Georgia had a 15-game streak in the ’80s and a 16-game run before losing to Alabama in the SEC title game.
“Now we’re on a 17-game winning streak starting with that win over Michigan in the Orange Bowl. So, if we beat UT Martin (Saturday), we’ll have the longest winning streak in school history. If we don’t, something terrible must have gone wrong!”
Dantzler mentioned long-time rival Auburn, pointing to the Dogs’ record of 1-7 against the War Eagles between 1983-90.
“They cost us a lot of championships,” he said. “Well, we have now won 15 of 18 against them, including six in a row. To turn that series the way we have been is incredibly impressive, starting with coach (Mark) Richt. Kirby has done a tremendous job. His record against our rivals has been outstanding,” Dantzler said.
Dantzler pointed out the 13-game winning streak against Kentucky, the 62-0 and 55-0 wins over Vanderbilt the last two years, and turned to the Florida Gators.
“The road to Atlanta (SEC title game) leads through Jacksonville,” he said. “Georgia has had back-to-back national championship seasons; Florida has had back-to-back-losing seasons. Over the last 10 years, four coaches have led them to four losing seasons” He turned to the last game of the regular season.
“Then, we end with the enemy, which, make no mistake, is always the biggest game,” Dantzler said. “There might be teams you might want to beat more, but there’s nobody it hurts to lose to more than the wretched Yellow Jackets.”
Dantzler talked about recent history with Tech, the 28-27 loss in Smart’s first season, and the current winning streak against the Yellow Jackets.
“We’ve got the multiple national titles,” he said. “But the last thing I want to see is to get nine in a row against Tech, to get the longest streak in the history of the series. That would be sweet. They could take me to Bulldog heaven then.”
Dantzler turned his attention to the players and went through the lineup position by position. One player easily stood out.
“Then, we come to tight end Brock Bowers. I think he could make the case. He is Georgia’s greatest player since Herschel Walker,” Dantzler declared to a cheering audience.
Following his detailed analysis of the players, Dantzler gave his view of this year’s team.
“I don’t know if we are going to have a shot to win the whole thing again. I think we’ll be in the mix, and it wouldn’t surprise me if we did. But,” he said, “I can tell you this. Enjoy the journey. We’ve gotten the monkey off our back.
“Now we’re the only team in the playoff era, the University of Georgia, to win back-to-back national championships.”
He named several schools that have won national titles twice in a row, then referenced Minnesota, given credit by some for three straight championships in the 1930s.
“Those weren’t consensus. It was in a poll here and there,” Dantzler said. “No team has ever won three straight national championships. Why not us?”