Boy, that “Kirby Smart is a shitty game manager” narrative got a few holes shot through it last night.
Daily Archives: January 1, 2023
Sixty-minute men
As the fourth quarter began, Georgia was trailing by 14, with momentum and overall play on both sides of the ball close to a lost cause. Bennett was struggling. The defense couldn’t get to Stroud. The clock was moving.
And yet:
“I never doubted that. It’s a four-quarter game, we’ve proved that all year,” linebacker Jamon Dumas-Johnson said. “A team has to beat us for four, not just for two.” ($$)
One of the more stunning changes in this program’s evolution is how Georgia has changed the perception of itself from being a team that could play with anyone for 58 minutes in big games — think 2012 SECCG, 2017 National Championship or 2018 SECCG, for starters — only to come up short in the end to the team that others have to play for the entirety of a game to have a chance to win. It takes a special kind of mindset for that, a rare mental toughness. Just ask Sedrick Van Pran.
“We went through something very similar at Missouri, a situation where we had to keep pushing. Really it was more of us just understanding that we were in a funk and playing lackluster. Football happens and people make plays. I’m proud of our guys for all they did.”
I alluded to it yesterday, there’s an argument to be made that Georgia’s most significant regular season win was at Missouri. Maybe that’s a slight exaggeration, but this team knows what it takes to prevail over the long haul, including the times when you don’t have everything clicking.
Filed under Georgia Football
Conspiracy theory
I’ve never quite been able to figure out whether this Nick Adams dude on Twitter is serious, or is running a hilarious Three Year Letterman-type spoof on folks. Either way, this is pretty funny:
And now you know.
Got ‘yer explosive right here
This may be the weirdest combination of stats in a Georgia game I’ve ever seen:
Georgia piled up 455 yards on 17 big plays (rushes of 10+ yards and completions of 15+ yards)… Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett was 8-10 on deep passing (15+ yards) and completed 11 of his final 13 passing attempts… This is worth repeating: Ohio State lost a game despite scoring 42 points and holding their opponent to 2-10 on third down (and 0-5 on third down in the second half)…
Ohio State only scored 41, but you get his point. “On the night, Georgia averaged a ridiculous 8.88 yards per play, setting a new record for an Ohio State opponent.” Incredibly, that’s despite only gaining a total of 32 yards in the third quarter.
Filed under Georgia Football, Stats Geek!
TFW you need to fish for some clicks
Dude.
“I felt like there was a 30-minute period where I just played bad football,” Bennett said. He took some bad sacks, made some risky throws, and at one point threw a lateral while in the Red Zone that Ladd McConkey had to fall on for a big loss, turning a touchdown drive into a field goal.
“Freaking, I threw a lateral,” Bennett said in the postgame press conference, and next to him Smart closed his eyes for several seconds, painfully reliving that bad moment. “Stupid.”
But once again, the undersized former walk-on, who is one of the great Cinderella stories in the sport’s history, rose to the occasion under incredible pressure and delivered.
Here’s guessing they’re good.
Fun, fun, fun
Yeah or nah?
It’s like trying to choose between your children. I’ll settle for cherishing them both.
Then again, I’m not biased. 😉
Filed under Georgia Football
The most perfect play of 2022
Beautiful design, timely call and marvelous execution got us Georgia’s first touchdown last night.
Like I said, perfect.
Filed under Georgia Football, Strategery And Mechanics
Season’s greetings
Oh, yeah — in all the excitement, I almost forgot…
Hope everyone has as good a year as Keef probably will.
Filed under GTP Stuff
Had it all the way.
Dawgs outscored Ohio State 18-3 in the fourth quarter. Basically, the Missouri game on steroids.
How can you not be proud of this team? They just don’t quit.
I’m wiped out.
Filed under Georgia Football
Get The Picture 