This is an opinion column.
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Tim Tebow made me laugh on Wednesday night because I know how much he dislikes Georgia.
The former Florida Gators quarterback doesn't really hate anything in this world except maybe a day of rest outside of the gym, but Georgia is at the top of his game.
A new day has arrived for the Southeastern Conference and Tebow helped unveil the league's schedule for the 2024 football season during a live broadcast on the SEC Network. Oklahoma and Texas are joining the fried Dixieland circus, but that's not what really caught my attention in the big reveals. Tebow was right where I was, and I give him credit for casting a subtle shadow on Georgia's way on national television.
Georgia had the easiest schedule of any national title contender this season, and the Bulldogs were then exposed by Alabama in the SEC championship game. Next season, the SEC will move to a one-division format. The league's Eastern and Western divisions are history. The schedule difficulties will be weighted fairly, and Georgia will face the level of competition that Alabama, Auburn and all the old SEC West teams faced for three decades.
Something tells me the Bulldogs will play Vanderbilt and South Carolina every season.
RELATED: Alabama's 2024 schedule released
RELATED: Auburn's 2024 schedule released
RELATED: View the complete weekly SEC schedule
Georgia has one of the toughest schedules in the SEC next year. The league office didn't do coach Kirby Smart any favors. The Bulldogs open at Kentucky and then play at Alabama before a home game against rival Auburn.
Georgia then hosts Mississippi State before traveling to Austin for a game against Texas. The Longhorns are 4-1 against the Bulldogs.
Georgia ends its SEC slate with a tough trio: its rivalry against Tebow's Florida, at Ole Miss and then at home against Tennessee. In addition to their difficult conference schedule, the Bulldogs open the season against Clemson in Atlanta.
The SEC's new schedules aren't perfect, but they are fair in a way that the old two-division system never could be. I would be shocked if Georgia survives this gauntlet. The good news for the Bulldogs is that two losses along the way shouldn't completely derail their chances of making the new 12-team playoffs.
Despite Georgia's grueling path in 2024, Tebow still delivered a gentle blow against the Bulldogs when breaking down their Week 14 group of SEC games. It's rivalry week in college football, and while Texas takes on Texas A&M, Auburn heads to Tuscaloosa and Florida visits Florida State, the weary Georgia Bulldogs finally get a break from rival Georgia Tech.
Not the hardest way to end the season, Tebow noted.
There are many ways to analyze and break down these new schedules. Start with overall fan appeal. Texas and Oklahoma take the SEC's reputation to new levels. The SEC will remain the most compelling conference in college football despite the presence of the new Big Ten from coast to coast.
As I looked at the matchups, a few things first caught my attention. Most notably, Alabama plays Oklahoma and Auburn hosts Texas A&M before the Iron Bowl. These are significant wrinkles for the Tide and the Tigers.
Another observation: LSU has the easiest schedule of all. The Tigers begin conference play against South Carolina and still have open dates ahead of Ole Miss and Alabama. In addition to those breaks, LSU has Vanderbilt before ending the season against Oklahoma.
Based on the schedule, LSU is one of my early picks for the 2024 SEC Championship Game.
Texas and Oklahoma believe they are ready for the hell that awaits them in the college football heaven known as the Southeastern Conference.
You are not.
But welcome to the party. In the SEC, every game feels like a combination of live concert, cookout, fashion show, family reunion, whiskey drinking and state fair all rolled into one. The league office did OU a favor by allowing the Sooners to host LSU for their final game of the season. Next year? Prepare accordingly for the road trip to Baton Rouge, OU. And by “prepare appropriately” we mean don't go there with children or without an escape plan that includes either pepper spray or someone familiar with the Israeli martial art of Krav Maga.
And by the way, that only applies to day games. Completely different rules apply to night games at LSU's Tiger Stadium.
The big winner of the new timetables? It could be Auburn. The Tigers begin conference play with home games against Arkansas and Oklahoma and then face Georgia after the Bulldogs' trip to Tuscaloosa.
The big loser? Hands down it's the Bulldogs. Georgia can't hide anymore.
It's not all bad for the Dawgs, however. At least this way, the rest of the league will finally begin to recognize their coach's win percentage against conference opponents as a legitimate statistic.
Oh, and there's always Georgia Tech.
Joseph Goodman is the lead sports columnist for Alabama Media Group and the author of the most controversial sports book of all time, “We Want Bama.” It's a love story about wild times, togetherness and rum.