The road to the tournament

When Mark Fox was hired, he said it takes "5 or 6 years" to build a program.  With that in mind, I'd like to officially welcome you to year 6 of the Mark Fox regime.

I know it makes some Georgia fans uncomfortable to harbor any sort of expectations for the men's basketball team, but it's time to make the NCAA Tournament.  Period.

As a fanbase, we have been (relatively) patient as Fox has built the team his way, and now is when that has to pay off with a 2015 tournament bid.  Here are three ways that can happen:

1. Win every home game.  As a season ticket holder, I wouldn't hate it if this is the route they went.  There are 16 home games on the schedule, and sweeping all 16 would give Georgia wins over Seton Hall, Colorado, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Florida.  At that point, Georgia would only need 3 or 4 road or neutral site wins to punch their ticket.  Before you dismiss this as ridiculous, remember that Georgia was 14-2 in Stegeman last season, and one of those losses was the baffling choke job against Vanderbilt.
2. Avoid bad losses.  Barring anything disastrous, Georgia will likely be favored in close to 20 games this season.  Yes, that is a reflection on the conference as much as it is on Georgia, but by winning all of these games, Georgia avoids the dreaded "bad loss" blemish on the resume.  Mix in one or two upsets, and it becomes hard to leave the Dawgs out.
3. Win the SEC tournament.  The nice thing about playing in an automatic bid conference is that it's truly never over until it's over.

There's nothing revolutionary there at all, and if Georgia does go dancing, it will likely be due to a combination of #1 and #2.  My point is that it's there for the taking.  The team is sprinkled with veterans and the schedule really couldn't be better.

Don't be afraid of expectation and don't be afraid of hope.  The season is here and that, in and of itself, is reason for excitement.

Go Dawgs!