Georgia Bulldogs picked to win SEC East

ATHENS — If the voters are right, it could be a Georgia vs. Alabama showdown for the SEC title in December.

At this week’s SEC Media Days, the Bulldogs were named the favorites to take the East, pulling in 138 of 242 first-place votes. As far as winning the SEC title, Georgia was third choice. Alabama was the media vote favorite to win both the West and the title. Auburn was No. 2 in votes for the conference championship.

Georgia also had eight players selected to the all-SEC team, with four on first them. Those were senior tailback Nick Chubb, junior defensive lineman Trenton Thompson of Albany, sophomore tight end Isaac Nauta and junior linebacker Roquan Smith.

The Bulldogs also had another four players named to the second and third teams. Senior offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn and senior safety Dominick Sanders were included on the second team. Senior tailback Sony Michel and senior linebacker Lorenzo Carter were voted to the third team.

The Bulldogs open their 2017 campaign Sept. 2 at Sanford Stadium, where they’ll host Appalachian State. ESPN will televise the match-up at 6:15 p.m.

The Bulldogs were 8-5 in 2016, including a 4-4 record in the SEC. UGA won its Dec. 30 Autozone Liberty Bowl match-up with Texas Christian.