1976 Georgia Bulldogs football team

The 1976 Georgia Bulldogs football team represented the University of Georgia as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. Led by 13th-year head coach Vince Dooley, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 10–2, with a mark of 5–1 in conference play, and finished as SEC champion.^[1]

1976 Georgia Bulldogs football
SEC champion
Sugar Bowl, L 3–27 vs. Pittsburgh
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 10
AP	No. 10
Record	10–2 (5–1 SEC)
Head coach	Vince Dooley (13th season)
Defensive coordinator	Erk Russell (13th season)
Base defense	4–4
Captain	Ray Goff
Home stadium	Sanford Stadium
Seasons ← 1975 1977 →

1976 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 10 Georgia $	5	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 11 Alabama	5	–	2	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
No. 20 Mississippi State	4	–	2	–	0			9	–	2	–	0
Florida	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
No. 18 Kentucky	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
LSU	3	–	3	–	0			6	–	4	–	1
Auburn	3	–	3	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Ole Miss	3	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Tennessee	2	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Mississippi State later forfeited all 1976 wins due to NCAA violations. Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 11	No. 15 California*	No. 16	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA		W 36–24	47,000	[2]
September 18	at Clemson*	No. 9	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC (rivalry)	ABC	W 41–0	41,000	[3]
September 25	South Carolina*	No. 7	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA (rivalry)		W 20–12	59,935	[4]
October 2	No. 10 Alabama	No. 6	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA (rivalry)		W 21–0	60,200	[5]
October 9	at Ole Miss	No. 4	Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS		L 17–21	36,471	[6]
October 16	Vanderbilt	No. 11	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA (rivalry)		W 45–0	59,100	[7]
October 23	at Kentucky	No. 10	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY		W 31–7	57,733	[8]
October 30	No. 20 Cincinnati*	No. 7	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA		W 31–17	49,500	[9]
November 6	vs. No. 10 Florida	No. 7	Gator Bowl Stadium Jacksonville, FL (rivalry)	ABC	W 41–27	70,314	[10]
November 13	at Auburn	No. 7	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL (rivalry)		W 28–0	63,912	[11]
November 27	Georgia Tech*	No. 4	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA (rivalry)		W 13–10	60,500	[12]
January 1, 1977	vs. No. 1 Pittsburgh*	No. 5	Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl)	ABC	L 3–27	76,117	[13]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1976 Georgia Bulldogs football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class OT 66 George Collins Jr WR 80 Steve Davis Sr QB 10 Ray Goff (C) Sr RB 36 Willie McClendon So RB 39 Kevin McLee Jr TE 85 Ulysses Norris So G 67 Joel Parrish Sr RB 43 Al Pollard Sr G 60 Kirk Price Jr QB 17 Matt Robinson Sr TE 89 Wally Tereshinski Jr WR 82 Gene Washington Sr WR 8 Mark Wilson Sr OT 77 Mike Wilson Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 87 Dicky Clark Sr DE 92 Lawrence Craft Sr CB 32 Johnny Henderson Jr DL 99 Jeff Sanders Sr DL 78 Ronnie Swoopes Jr LB 44 Ben Zambiasi Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class P 4 Bucky Dilts Sr K 9 Allan Leavitt Sr	Head coach Vince Dooley Coordinators/assistant coaches Erk Russell (DC) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "1976 Georgia Bulldogs Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
2. "Roth gets Cal off fast, Georgia steals it, 36–24". The Los Angeles Times. September 12, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Ninth-ranked Bulldogs rout Clemson, 41–0". Florence Morning News. September 19, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Bulldogs rally, tip Gamecocks". The Tampa Tribune. September 26, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Georgia defense shackles Crimson Tide wishbone". The Selma Times-Journal. October 3, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Ellis is redeemed by leading Ole Miss to big win over Georgia". The Courier-Journal. October 10, 1976. Retrieved October 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "'Dogs junk Vandy". The Pensacola News-Journal. October 17, 1976. Retrieved October 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Georgia chills Kentucky 31–7". The Tennessean. October 24, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "UC's lights go out in Georgia, 31–17". The Cincinnati Enquirer. October 31, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Georgia ruins Florida hopes". Sunday Journal & Star. November 7, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Bulldogs blank Auburn 28–0". The Sunday Ledger-Enquirer. November 14, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Georgia struggles by Tech". The News and Observer. November 28, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Pitt: How sweet it is!". The Pittsburgh Press. January 2, 1977. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.