Georgia Bulldogs: Why Football Team Declined White House Invite

The Georgia Bulldogs football team has won the last two national championships, making them the kings of college football. However, the team will not meet with President Joe Biden this year as it declined an invitation to visit the White House this summer. This week, the University of Georgia announced that it won't visit the White House due to a scheduling conflict. 

"The University of Georgia first received on May 3 an invitation for the Bulldog football team to visit the White House on June 12," the statement from the athletic association said, per ESPN. "Unfortunately, the date suggested is not feasible given the student-athlete calendar and time of year. However, we are appreciative of the invitation and look forward to other opportunities for Georgia teams moving forward."  

Georgia defeated TCU 65-7 in the College Football Playoff Championship in January, and Georgia players and fans have criticized the White House for not inviting the team sooner. The team didn't visit with Biden last year after winning the national title due to COVID-19 restrictions. 

Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart talked about not visiting the White House at the Regions Celebrity Pro-Am golf tournament in Birmingham, Alabama, and said the team can't go because it's hosting a football camp from June 6-8. "Tough deal timeline-wise, it didn't work," he said, per TMZ Sports. "Number one time for recruiting for football coaches. When you've got 600, 700 kids coming to your campus, you can't take 200 people to the White House and have no one on campus. The time just didn't work out. Nothing political about it, but I've been before. It's very educational. It's a great experience."

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Georgia congressional delegation sent a letter to the White House in January asking the team to be recognized "at your earliest convenience." The White House offered several dates earlier this year but the two parties couldn't reach an agreement. UGA spokesperson Greg Trevor told the AJC, "no date was ever provided to the university until the White House extended the offer on May 3 for a June 12 event." The Bulldogs will now focus on winning the national title for the third consecutive year and it starts on Sept. 2 when they face UT-Martin to kick off the 2023 season.