No, Longhorns. You’re not playing Kansas anymore. Georgia continued its ownership of Texas on Saturday night, surging to a 35-10 win under the lights at Sanford Stadium.
Here are ten thoughts from the win.
1. If you have listened to any post-game radio call-in shows from Athens, you have probably heard Jeff Dantzler requote a line from the late, great Dan Magill – “If you’ll give a win by one point now, I’ll take it.”
The bottom line is this. The key above all else is winning. Any form of domination or throat-punching is icing on the cake. Georgia didn’t just win, it did it in style. Be honest. How many of you a week ago would have predicted that Georgia would win minus CJ Allen in the second half AND would be rotating reserves in late?
2. With a win like this, it’s hard to pinpoint one exact thing that makes you the most excited. But the way that Georgia simply imposed its will by rolling the dice has to be near the top. It was not so much that Georgia scored and got the ball back…its that it did so by doing a rarity – an onside kick. Kirby Smart is not a riverboat gambler. That’s what made that call stand out the most…in the same span of a game where Georgia went for it not once, but twice on fourth down on a single scoring drive. Georgia’s identity is to take risks, but only when they make sense. Even still, they have to work. What if those fourth downs don’t work? What if the inside does not get executed? As Erk Russell famously said, “no deposit, no reward!”
3. So, full disclosure. I was not able to be there in person on Saturday. Life happens, sometimes. But from a 30,000-foot social media view, it appears that this is not a heated SEC rivalry…yet. And that’s ok.
You saw a lot of posts similar to last year’s trip to Austin, in which you had a lot of fun back and forth, but also a high level of respect from fans on both sides. There’s no inferiority complex like that trade school from Atlanta or an East Alabama college. Both fans seem to respect what the other is. It’s a lot like a story that Bobby Bowden told about when FSU would play anybody, even on the road, and once beat Nebraska and got a standing ovation. As the late coach noted, they wouldn’t have gotten that same courtesy at Nebraska from Oklahoma fans. Is Texas a true SEC Blueblood? No. But that does not mean it’s not already become a fun matchup each time.
4. Much like the Alabama game, this one felt like an event with a football game built in. Between all the celeb appearances, feeling that the Redcoats are not good enough to perform the national anthem, and sideline access somehow includes two people dressed as avocados, it had a bit of a circus feel. As someone else on this site once mused, “I don’t believe Dan Magill done it this way.”
In the midst of that, Georgia HAD to win this game. If not, the perception would be that it could win games, but not when the primetime lights were on.
5. Let’s go back a few years, shall we? Talent-wise, was Stetson Bennett the best quarterback in a multi-player race? No. But was he the right fit for what Todd Monken wanted? Yes. And now comes this year. Coming into the season, were there way too many ill-informed takes questioning how good Gunner Stockton was, especially when a guy like Carson Beck had some measurables that prior to a crashout made him a high-level NFL draft prospect.
Stockton is simply this – the right guy for what Mike Bobo wants to do on offense. It was the same for Stetson Bennett, and it rings true to Stockton. The key to an offense with this position is not best guys, it’s the right ones. Georgia has that with the Bobo / Stockton combo.
6. Speaking of Stockton, it was good to hear Kirk Herbstreit stump for his Heisman candidacy on Saturday. The Downtown New York Athletic Club needs to do right by this state and invite quarterbacks from both Georgia and Georgia Tech.
7. If there’s a black mark on this game, it’s the way that Georgia allowed Texas to get back in it. Look, the Longhorns are a good team, and you can’t give them chances in your own territory with the talent that they have. That’s exactly what happened, not just on Stockton’s rare interception, but also a defensive holding. Georgia eventually countered in a big way, and the way that it answered the ebb and flow in that stretch of the game is why the Bulldogs won.
8. Yes, Brett Thorson did not have his best night. But is there any better illustration of this team taking over late than having a bad night of punting than to perfectly pull off the onside kick? Hopefully, Georgia can find ways to punt against Charlotte so that Thorson can iron out whatever is amiss.
9. If there was ever a better time for college football in this state, I’d love to hear an argument. Both Georgia and the trade school are in line to possibly play for a conference title. One, if not both are on track to be in the CFP. But it goes past that. Kennesaw State is going bowling, Mercer has won the SoCon again, and Valdosta State just raked in another Gulf South title.
10. Hey, so it seems like the Crimson Tide does not like others celebrating on their home field. That’s interesting because…
Go Dawgs!
