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As the 2023 college football season begins, one of the questions that needs revisiting is, why can't Georgia play Oklahoma?
There had been plans in place for home-and-home games between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Oklahoma Sooners in 2023 and 2024. The games were part of their mom-conference games for the two seasons. The games, however, have been canceled in light of some new developments.
The SEC had announced, earlier in 2021, the admission of Texas and Oklahoma as new members of the conference. Their memberships was initially scheduled to take effect in 2025. But a special arrangement was made that saw the schools buy out their membership of the Big 12 and be able to play in the SEC as early as 2024.
When things turned out that way, the SEC stepped in and ordered them to cancel as they'd be playing in the same conference in 2024. In September 2022, the SEC released a statement to that effect. It read:
“The Southeastern Conference has directed the University of Georgia and the University of Tennessee to postpone scheduled football games versus Oklahoma because the transition of Oklahoma into the SEC will not allow for the involved institutions to fulfill their respective contractual non-conference home-and-home appearance obligations.”
Since Georgia can't play Oklahoma, what does its future in the SEC hold for the Sooners?
Following the SEC's ruling that Georgia can't play Oklahoma, focus has shifted to who the Sooners would then have to play. In the fall of 2023, they will play their last Big 12 conference schedule. But first, they will play some non-conference games.
They open the season against future SEC colleagues, the Arkansas State Razorbacks on Sept. 2. Games against SMU and Tulsa will follow. They play their first Big 12 game of the season in 2023 against Cincinnati on Sept. 23.
Familiar Big 12 foes follow, with games against Iowa State, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, and TCU all on the books. It's really not a bad schedule for what will be the Sooners' last season in the Big 12.
However, they become official members of the SEC on Jul. 1, 2024. In other words, by the start of the 2024 college football season, Oklahoma's conference opponents will be teams from the SEC.
Georgia can't play Oklahoma in 2024 as we've established. But their SEC opponent's include strongholds like Alabama, Ole Miss LSU, and Missouri.
