2018 Georgia Bulldogs football team

2018 Georgia Bulldogs football
SEC Eastern Division champion
Sugar Bowl, L 21–28 vs. Texas
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionEast Division
Ranking
CoachesNo. 8
APNo. 7 (tie)
Record11–3 (7–1 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJim Chaney (3rd season)
Co-offensive coordinatorJames Coley (3rd season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorMel Tucker (3rd season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumSanford Stadium
Seasons
← 2017
2019 →
2018 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
No.Georgia x   7 1     11 3  
No. 12 Kentucky   5 3     10 3  
No.Florida   5 3     10 3  
South Carolina   4 4     7 6  
Missouri   4 4     8 5  
Vanderbilt   3 5     6 7  
Tennessee   2 6     5 7  
West Division
No. 2 Alabama x$^   8 0     14 1  
No. 16 Texas A&M   5 3     9 4  
No. 6 LSU   5 3     10 3  
Mississippi State*   4 4     8 5  
Auburn   3 5     8 5  
Ole Miss   1 7     5 7  
Arkansas   0 8     2 10  
Championship: Alabama 35, Georgia 28
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • * Mississippi State vacated four conference and eight total wins due to NCAA violations.[1]
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2018 Georgia Bulldogs football team represented the University of Georgia during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bulldogs played their home games at Sanford Stadium and competed as members of the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference. They were led by third-year head coach Kirby Smart.

Georgia entered the 2018 season as defending SEC champions and the previous season's national runners-up, and they were ranked third in the 2018 preseason AP Poll. The Bulldogs won their first six games by an average margin of victory of 30 points but suffered their first loss on the road against LSU. The team rebounded with victories over No. 9 Florida and No. 11 Kentucky, and secured their place in the 2018 SEC Championship Game as champions of the East Division. The game was a rematch of the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship against West Division champion Alabama, and the results of the games matched as Alabama once again came from behind to win the 2018 match-up. Georgia was left just outside the top four in the final CFP rankings, and they were invited to the Sugar Bowl to play Big 12 Conference runner-up Texas. The Bulldogs were upset by the Longhorns 28–21 and finished the year with a record of 11–3.

The Bulldogs were led on offense by sophomore quarterback Jake Fromm, who finished the year with 2,761 passing yards and 30 passing touchdowns. Fromm finished in second in the conference behind Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa in passing touchdowns and passing efficiency rating (171.3). On the ground, D'Andre Swift and Elijah Holyfield each finished with more than 1,000 rushing yards, the second consecutive year that Georgia had two 1,000-yard backs. On defense, cornerback Deandre Baker was a consensus first-team All-American and the recipient of the Jim Thorpe Award.

  1. ^ Lowery, Logan (September 12, 2024). "MSU fires Moorhead after two seasons". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Retrieved September 17, 2024. All eight of Moorhead's victories in 2018 had to be vacated after 10 football players were reprimanded by the NCAA for academic misconduct involving a former part-time tutor and an online chemistry class.