As Kirby Smart savors skepticism, Georgia thrives against Texas. Is it time to start questioning the Longhorns?

 

AUSTIN, Texas — Kirby Smart may claim he doesn’t pay attention to the ESPN pundits, but he certainly seemed aware of their comments about his team this week.

Most notably, they predicted that Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs wouldn’t stand a chance against No. 1 Texas.

Georgia took that skepticism and transformed it into motivation.

"Our whole program was being doubted," Smart remarked Saturday after No. 4 Georgia’s 30-15 win that silenced the critics. "Did you watch the show this morning?"

The show he referred to is ESPN’s "College GameDay," which had a unanimous vote of 5-0 in favor of Texas winning the game.

Smart mentioned that he kept himself occupied with morning meetings and didn’t catch "GameDay," but he received "8,000 texts about it."

"Somebody was doubting us," he said.

In fact, many people were.

That’s when Georgia excels.

"No flinch," Smart stated regarding his team. "They’re not backing down."