Time wounds all heels. It's been several days now, so I can finally talk about the Georgia Bulldogs 39-34 Sugar Bowl loss to the Ole Miss Rebels in the CFP Quarterfinals.
First, what a game! I haven't been that on edge for three hours since Uncut Gems. Five lead changes. Two Gunner Stockton rushing TDs in the first half, and then a Georgia scoop-and-score just before halftime. The Dawgs coming back from a 10-point, fourth-quarter deficit to get the ball to the Ole Miss 3-yard line with 1:04 left.
A touchdown would have won the game there, but Georgia had to settle for a game-tying field goal and hope for OT. But then Ole Miss kicked the game-winning FG. And then, there were the last, totally insane 0:09 seconds that saw the trophy stage rolled onto and then off the field again twice, a safety, and a crazy Georgia play in the last 0:01 that include a pass and 11 laterals for 30 yards, but that last second finally expired and that was that.
Can't say they didn't try. The Dawgs lost a rematch game to a team with an explosive offense, a dynamic, running QB who played out of his mind in a probably career-defining second half, and a kicker who nailed 55- and 56- yard field goals. Georgia missed a 55-yarder, and that made all the difference in the game.
If Georgia had won, if they just made those last three yards in that last minute or hit that 55-yard FG, the game would have been an all-time classic, come-from-behind victory. But Ole Miss simply played a bit better and got the win. It was as simple as that.
The Dawgs played their hearts out and despite having several players injured and one DQ'ed for a questionable targeting call, they still managed to score 10 unanswered points in the fourth to tie it up. They gave it their all and lost by only five points, not 23 or 35 like some other CFP teams this season (cough, Alabama, cough, Texas Tech, cough).
Despite the loss, Georgia is still the repeat SEC Champion. They were 12-1 during the regular season and avenged the one loss in the title game, beating Alabama by three scores. They finished the season ranked No. 3 in the country and made the CFP for two consecutive season - it could have been three, if the Selection Committee hadn't dissed them in 2023.
They will come back better and stronger next year. We fans should be reveling in every single one of these games coached by Kirby Smart. These are the golden years of Georgia Bulldogs football. There are the years fan will look back on fondly for decades. This is the standard future teams and coaches will be measured against.
No, we didn't win the National Championship this year, but we've won two of the last five and there's no other team that can say that.
Go Dawgs!
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