College Football
Week 20 – Vegas has Dawgs a +375 favorite to win next year
A dynasty is
established in Athens,
as Uga barks,
“Repeat”
And what a bark it was. It was more than a bark; it was a bite – a Dawg bite. It was more than a bite; it was a butt whippin.’ It could not have been any worse. Well, yeah it could have. If Georgia kicker Jack Podlesny did not miss his last extra point kick, the score would have been 66-7, instead of 65-7.
Yes, Georgia beat TCU, 65-7, in the College Football Playoff championship game. Froggy’s magic twanger lost its twang before it could get plunked. Froggy never saw the Dawgs coming.
Georgia had six possessions in the first half and the Dawgs scored on all six of them – one touchdown, one field goal and four touchdowns – in that order. TCU had seven possessions in the first half and the Frogs scored on one of them. The halftime score was 38-7.
Georgia’s first half touchdowns included two runs by quarterback Stetson Bennett, two passes by Bennett and a run by Kendall Milton. After Georgia scored on its first two possessions, the score was 10-0 midway through the first quarter. It looked as though a rout might be on. However, TCU scored two minutes and six seconds later, on its third possession, and just like that the score was 10-7. For a few brief moments, we thought we might have a ballgame after all.
However, just two minutes and two seconds later, Georgia scored again. And the Dawgs scored again, and again, and again. TCU couldn’t stop them.
On TCU’s seven first half possessions, the Frogs punted twice, fumbled once, and were intercepted twice. They scored once and time expired on them on their last possession in the first half.
In short, TCU’s defense couldn’t stop Georgia, and TCU’s offense couldn’t move on Georgia.
The second half was a continuation of the first half – misery for TCU; pleasure for Georgia. On five second-half possessions, the Frogs punted three times and turned over the ball twice after going 0-2 in fourth down efficiency.
Meanwhile, Georgia continued to produce points in the second half with ease. The Dawgs scored on four of their six possessions – two more Stetson Bennett passes and two runs by Branson Robinson. Georgia actually punted on its first possession in the second half. The Dawgs took a knee to run out the clock on their last possession.
When the massacre was over, Georgia had 589 total yards (32 first downs). TCU had 189 total yards (9 first downs). The Frogs only had 36 yards rushing and were just 3-for-11 in third down efficiency. Georgia was 9-for-13.
Stetson Bennett finished the game 18-25-0, passing for 304 yards – four touchdown passes and two touchdown runs. Georgia coach Kirby Smart took Bennett out of the game with 13:25 to go in the fourth quarter. He was replaced by Carson Beck.
Georgia receivers Brock Bowers (tight end) and Ladd McConkey had amazing games with some spectacular catches. Bowers ended with seven receptions for 152 yards, while McConkey had five receptions for 88 yards.
Since 1990, the only other schools besides Georgia to win back-to-back national titles are Nebraska (1994 and 1995), USC (2003 and 2004) and Alabama (2011 and 2012).
After seven seasons coaching Georgia football (2016 to 2022), Kirby Smart is 81-15. That’s 11.6 wins a year. In his last six seasons, Smart is 73-10. That’s 12.2 wins a year. Even better, he is 29-1 the last two seasons – 15-0 this season. He has finished first in the SEC East Division in five of the seven seasons. He was second in the other two. Georgia has also finished in the Top 10 in the last six AP Polls.
Yes, a dynasty is established in Athens, and it has replaced the Tuscaloosa dynasty. In last year’s national championship game, Georgia beat Alabama, 33-18.
Georgia’s margin of victory – 58 points – is the largest in the nine CFP championship games. Previously, the largest margin of victory was 28 points, twice – Clemson 44, Alabama 16 in 2019 and Alabama 52, Ohio State 24 in 2021. By the way, I predicted Georgia 31, TCU 27.
Yeah, Uga barked, “Repeat,” but he had to bark it from his home in Georgia. The bulldog who serves as Georgia’s mascot, did not make the trip to Los Angeles for the game. The Seiler family, who owns Uga X, said the trip would have been too difficult for the nine-year-old dog.
TCU took a beating, but the Horned Frogs had a great and amazing season. TCU finished last season at 5-7. The Frogs were picked to finish no better than seventh in the Big 12 Conference this season. Instead, they finished first and undefeated during the regular season, before losing to Kansas State in the Big 12 title game. TCU then went on to beat Michigan, 51-45, in the CFP semifinal game. At 13-2, the Frogs had a good season.
SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, the location of the championship game, seats 71,500. Attendance at the Georgia-TCU game was 72,628.
In other news last
week, amid reports that Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has been flirting
with two NFL teams – the Carolina Panthers and the Denver Broncos – Michigan
and Harbaugh released a statement saying that Harbaugh plans to coach the
Wolverines in 2023.
Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman confirmed last week that he is transferring to Notre Dame. Hartman’s announcement had been expected. Virginia quarterback Brennan Armstrong is transferring to NC State.
Sean McDonough needs a partner….ESPN’s No. 2 college football analyst, Todd Blackledge, is set to leave ESPN to join NBC and its new Big Ten package. In his final assignment for the network, he called last night’s national championship game on ESPN Radio. Blackledge, 61, will be joining his third network. He previously called games at CBS before ESPN. Blackledge is considered ESPN’s No. 2 college football game analyst behind Kirk Herbstreit. At NBC, he will be paired with 26-year-old, play-by-play voice Noah Eagle. In the upcoming seasons, ESPN will no longer include Big Ten football. CBS will cover the 3:30 p.m. Big Ten game of the week. Blackledge and Eagle will call the Saturday evening prime time Big Ten game of the week on NBC TV. FOX and the Big Ten Network will cover other Big Ten games.
He’s back!....It will be the Jimbo and Bobby Show at Texas A&M next season. Bobby Petrino is the new offensive coordinator at Texas A&M. Petrino is a former head coach at Louisville (twice), Arkansas, Western Kentucky and Missouri State. Most recently, he was named the offensive coordinator at UNLV in early December.
In Frisco, Texas, on Sunday, South Dakota State won its first national championship. The Jackrabbits took the FCS (Division I-AA) title, beating North Dakota State, 45-21. South Dakota State finished its season at 14-1.
“If you’ll be my bodyguard, I can be your long-lost pal. I can call you Betty, and Betty, when you call me, you can call me Al. Call me Al….Swamp Mama and I watched “Homeward Bound: A Grammy Salute to the Songs of Paul Simon” on television. It was a great show with multiple, well-known singers performing Simon’s songs. We particularly liked Dave Mathews singing, “You Call Me Al.” Made us feel like we were at a Florida football or basketball game ….Na na na na, na na na na.”
Walter Cunningham, the last surviving Apollo 7 astronaut, died on Tuesday. He was one of three astronauts aboard then1968 Apollo 7 mission, an 11-day space flight that beamed live television broadcasts as they orbited earth, paving the way for the moon landing less than a year later. Cunningham, then a civilian, crewed the mission with Navy Captain Walter Schirra and Dom Eisele, an Air Force Major. A native of Creston, Iowa, Walter Cunningham was 90.
Las Vegas says Georgia is a +375 favorite to win the CFP next year. Alabama is second at +550 and Ohio State is third at +650. And so, until further notice, a dynasty is established in Athens.
Touchdown Tom
(Note: The final College Football Week of the season – CFW 21 – will be posted Monday morning, January 16.)
Week in Review
FCS (Division I-AA) Championship Game
South Dakota State 45, North Dakota State 21 – Attendance in Frisco: 18,023
Quote of the Week
“You know who I can’t stand? Stetson Bennett. I’m cheering hard against him. I don’t want Georgia to lose with Stetson Bennett throwing four touchdown passes. I want Stetson Bennett to throw four picks and cost his team a championship. He’s such a punk,” former Tennessee quarterback Eric Ainge.
“I think it shows the level of desperation when you go in the trash heap and dig out Bobby Petrino to be your offensive coordinator,” Paul Finebaum, on Jimbo Fisher hiring Bobby Petrino.
“All you need to know about Petrino is that he just took another job 30 days ago and he is leaving it,” Paul Finebaum, on Bobb Petrino leaving UNLV for Texas A&M.
“He’s always been a snake in the grass,” Paul Finebaum, on Bobby Petrino.
“Jimbo Fisher finally woke up and realized he may be down to his last swing. He’s going to go down in flames or roll the dice with someone who is, quite frankly, one of the most disliked people in modern football history,” Paul Finebaum on Jimbo Fisher hiring Bobby Petrino.
“He’s got a brashness and a swagger to him. He is completely unafraid of the consequence of failure. He’s daring. He’s swashbuckling, and he’s fearless in the right way,” ESPN’s Rece Davis, on Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett.
Touchdown Tom
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