Joel Klatt Says '2.5' SEC Teams Could Beat Georgia This Season

Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs may be the back-to-back defending national champions. But they're not as untouchable as previous years, according to FOX Sports' Joel Klatt.

Speaking on the latest episode of his self-titled show, Klatt believes "2.5" teams within the conference have a decent-to-good shot of beating the Bulldogs come fall.

Who are the teams in the SEC that could potentially knock off Georgia? I think it's only 3, maybe like 2.5. Sorry, Tennessee, Tennessee gets half a nod.

The CFB analyst began his argument with Nick Saban and Alabama, fearing that doubt about the Crimson Tide going into the year could fuel a revenge tour.

You gotta start with Alabama. They're being doubted. That's a scary place to be. Doubting Nick Saban is not how you make money in this industry. Nick Saban has recruited as well as anybody… This is going to be a deep team that should be very good defensively. I think they're going to be a hungry team, I like the culture of that team.

But Klatt doesn't believe the Tide are the biggest threat to Georgia in the SEC. That title belongs to Brian Kelly's LSU Tigers:

Now we come to the team that I actually think I'm like 'This is a team that actually could beat Georgia,' that's LSU. LSU has depth, they've now gone through a season and transitioned to Brian Kelly. They were No. 2 in the transfer portal, mostly on the defensive side. They've got their QB back. They've got WRs on the outside… I think LSU has some serious potential. I think they beat Florida State early and then we see what this team can develop into as the season goes along.

UGA opens the season as the preseason No. 1 in the AP Poll. They face No. 12 Tennessee on Nov. 18 before potentially meeting Bama or LSU in the SEC Championship.