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To many, including the Las Vegas oddsmakers, Georgia is playing the role of the big, bad SEC behemoth in Monday night’s national championship game being played just a few short miles from Hollywood.
And, yeah, the Bulldogs are favored by almost 2 touchdowns against TCU, which is playing the role of the little Texas school that could in the championship showdown in Los Angeles.
But don’t tell Georgia head coach Kirby Smart that his team was certain to return to this stage, where the Bulldogs are 1 victory from capturing back-to-back national titles.
After all, Georgia made history last spring when it became the first school to produce 5 1st-round draft picks from the defensive side of the ball alone. That was great and all, but it left some holes in the Bulldogs’ defense that Smart had to fill and coach up. That quest has gone pretty darn well.
“I love the ride with this group,” said Smart during an interview with ESPN alongside TCU head coach Sonny Dykes. “They felt so disrespected, because nobody gave them a chance after last year.”
Well, here the Bulldogs are, again, with a shot to be the 1st program to go back-to-back since SEC rival Alabama did it in 2011 and 2012.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
