UGA mulls scheduling once Sooners, Longhorns join SEC

Georgia football has scheduling issues to work out, including the Oklahoma home-and-home series slated for 2023 and 2031, regardless of the proposed model the SEC decides on.

“That’s something we are working on right now,” UGA Athletic Director Josh Brooks said when asked if the Sooners’ joining the SEC in 2025 could affect the series.

Georgia is scheduled to play Oklahoma in Norman on Sept. 9 in the second game of the 2023 season, with the Sooners due to make a return trip to Sanford Stadium in 2031.

Brooks, talking at the SEC spring meetings at the Sandestin Beach Hotel, said there are several ways to handle the scheduling complications that are unavoidable with Texas and Oklahoma joining the league in 2025.

“When you get into those situations, sometimes you can move a game forward, move it to another year; sometimes you outright drop it,” Brooks said. “So sometimes, if it’s a home and away, you can drop; sometimes you can buy it out; sometimes you can move it forward.”

Brooks shared that Georgia coach Kirby Smart has gotten involved in scheduling to add value to the schedule for the athletes and fans. “I think when coach Smart really got into putting his thumbprint on the schedule, he was intentional about getting bigger games, playing P5s, (Power 5) teams like Oregon,” Brooks said.

Georgia opened its national championship season with a 10-3 win over Clemson in Charlotte. The Bulldogs open this season against Oregon on Sept. 3 at Mercedes-benz Stadium, and Georgia is scheduled to open the 2024 season Aug. 31 with Clemson in Mercedes-benz Stadium as well.

Brooks conceded future schedules face challenges, particularly if the SEC goes with the 3-6, nine-game schedule model being discussed. The 2026 UGA schedule, for example, already has four nonconference games scheduled: UCLA, Western Kentucky, Louisville and Georgia Tech.