I asked junior defensive tackle Jeff Owens how good this year’s Bulldogs will be. After showing the usual preseason optimism, he shrugged his shoulders and said, “Why not Georgia? Anybody else can do it. Why not us?”

That’s an intriguing question. When put to me, I always answer it the same way- — Georgia has as much of a chance to win the SEC title as any of the league’s best teams.

That’s important because as teams like Florida, LSU and Tennessee have shown, an SEC championship is the best preparation a college team can have to contend for a national title.

On ESPN.com, six of its 12 college football experts picked Georgia to win the SEC East, more than Florida and Tennessee.

In terms of talent, the Bulldogs have it at every position.

Sophomore Matt Stafford is only going to get better at quarterback, as he led Georgia over ranked opponents Auburn, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech.

If Stafford can continue to make plays and manage games, the offense should score early and often and keep the pressure of a young and inexperienced defense.

The return of a healthy Sean Bailey should help solidify a shaky receiving corps.

After a recent scrimmage, senior tailback Thomas Brown said, “The receivers were making plays. They’ve received a lot of criticism in last season and in the spring about not being able to catch the ball. But they’ve made a lot of great steps.”

The key to the season is going to be the defense and how the front four performs.

They will have to find players to replace guys like Charles Johnson and Quentin Moses, so they will be able to stop the run and get pressure on the quarterback.

If this unit achieves, then Georgia will contend for the SEC East.

You can have the talent of LSU and the plethora of All-Americans at USC, but you also need luck to win championships.

If Florida had not blocked three kicks in their game against South Carolina last season, they probably wouldn’t have won, and we probably would not be calling them defending national champions.

You’ve probably noticed there are a lot of “ifs” in this column. That’s because there a lot of “ifs” associated with every team at the beginning of the season.

You can say whatever you want before the season starts, and I’m saying- Why can’t Georgia be one of the best teams in the country?

“If we put it together, there’s no reason why we can’t be on top,” Stafford said.

The schedule Georgia has is tough, but not that tough. If they can win their home games, the Bulldogs’ biggest tests will be away from Athens, with games at Alabama, Tennessee and against Florida in Jacksonville.

Every game on Georgia’s schedule is winnable, especially Florida.

Though the Bulldogs only have won one of their last nine games in Jacksonville, the last five games have been decided by seven points or less.

“No doubt we’ll be in every game, and we’ll need some balls to bounce our way. Those things have to happen to get to the national championship game,” Stafford said.

So when Jeff Owens asks “Why not Georgia?” I agree with him. If the Vols and Gators can win a BCS title, why can’t the Dawgs?

Though my extreme optimism may be unwarranted, it’s better than being realistic and watching the Gators repeat.