TCU Horned Frogs Can't Be an Afterthought for Georgia Bulldogs
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ATHENS - Georgia Bulldogs and coach Kirby Smart will play in a second consecutive national title game - this time against Sonny Dykes and the TCU Horned Frogs in the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship Game in Los Angeles.
Like most of you, my heart rate finally came back to normal sometime Sunday. UGA’s thrilling, ringing in the New Year win at the 2022 Peach Bowl was full of ups and downs, enough to leave many of us exhausted emotionally. But it’s still a win regardless of what Ohio State Twitter says, and now UGA is on to Los Angeles to face the Horned Frogs of TCU. Who saw that coming 6 months ago?
To look ahead we must look back to determine what the pathway looks like and to find those things that must be altered to achieve the most desired outcome. I’ve done a couple of random thought pieces this season and, after finally getting settled in our Athens home (#7 in the original article) it’s time to look at the pressing trends and observations ahead of the final game of the 2022 season. This game portends to be problematic because TCU is a problematic matchup. Just ask Michigan, who didn’t give the Frogs their deserved due prior to the Fiesta Bowl matchup. Listen to the pregame interviews with the Wolverine players…if TCU was mentioned, it was late in the interview. It was as if TCU was an afterthought. UGA cannot afford that same approach. So here goes….
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1. Trend – UGA’s 4th quarter efforts in tight games.
Going back to last year’s CFP final, UGA outplayed each opponent in the 4th quarter of games where the Dawgs were behind. Saturday night was no different, as the Dawgs outscored the Buckeyes 18-3. There’s just something about this program that believes, regardless of the circumstances, that a tight game in the 4th quarter will eventually turn into a winning outcome for the good guys. I think we can attribute this to Kirby’s mindset and the trickle-down effect on his team as well as the connection these kids have with each other. It may be stressful to watch but it’s a beautiful thing to behold.
2. Trend – Inevitability.
Along with this effort above comes this feeling of inevitability. It’s been said on The Porch and social media since the game ended that you must kill UGA twice. If you don’t, the outcome feels inevitable. This python-like program that Kirby has created never shows panic. It never shows faltering belief. It never shows anything other than an unwavering drive to win regardless of the circumstances. If you let UGA hang around, you get the football version of the movie “Taken” – they will find you, and they will kill you.
3. Trend – Pass Defense.
In the last two games, the vaunted UGA defense has given up 850 yards passing (502 LSU, 348 OSU). That’s an average of 425 yards per game. Yikes. Receivers look to be wide open constantly in a way we haven’t seen much, if at all, in the Kirby Smart tenure. Granted, the 300-plus yards given up to LSU in the second half came while the Dawgs played a soft shell in the secondary. But damn if it didn’t appear to be Charmin-soft. CJ Stroud (more on him later) seemed to have played his best game against the best defense he’s seen all season. Even when pressured he completed tough throws. It seems as if our defense underestimated the speed of both Stroud and the receiver corps of OSU. TCU has players on the perimeter and a quarterback who was the runner up in the Heisman voting. Double yikes.
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4. Trend – Substandard Officiating.
Fans have rightly complained about officiating in both college and pro ball this season. That’s not necessarily a new trend. However, the egregious nature of blown or missed calls seems to be growing. We’ve seen the outlandish roughing the passer calls in both college and pro football. We’ve seen targeting calls that are either overturned, upheld, or missed all season long to the point no one knows what targeting is anymore. The Peach Bowl was rife with missed calls, from an obvious illegal motion on OSU on their second drive to 12 men on the field on the (thankfully) unsuccessful fake punt due to the best timeout in the history of football. And I haven’t even discussed the missed holding (tackling) calls that went on all game long Saturday night. I don’t even know what constitutes holding anymore either. From game to game, the consistency of officiating changes based on the officiating crew. How each crew in each conference calls a game leaves way too much to be desired. Players have zero clue what’s truly allowed, and neither do coaching staffs. While I don’t believe (for now) that officiating will affect the outcome of a contest, it’s becoming more difficult to maintain that position. I do believe Javon Bullard’s hit was a football play and a clean hit. Just because it was a brutal hit doesn’t make it illegal, regardless of what OSU football Twitter thinks. The NCAA along with each league must address the inconsistencies in officiating during the offseason.
5. Trend – depth.
This trend isn’t just focused on what Kirby has built in his 7 years at the helm. While it is a case in point of what great recruiting, coupled with development, can give you it’s also a counter case for the same. For the second season in a row UGA has played the majority of its contests without their #1 wide receiver. For the second season in a row UGA has played the latter part of its schedule, to include the playoffs, without its best pash rusher. In each of those seasons, other players along with scheme alterations enabled UGA to continue to play at a high level despite the loss of key contributors. Losing Darnell Washington surely forced play calling changes based on his value to the offense and the relative inexperience of Oscar Delp. Amarius Mims insertion into the starting lineup due to Warren McClendon’s injury showed no drop off. On OSU’s final drive there were 3 freshmen on the defensive line. And they all performed, as did so many others who stepped up to due injury. UGA makes no excuses for the players lost to injury as opposed to programs such as Alabama and Ohio State. Injuries happen and teams must deal with the loss of players every game. Those that don’t have alternative courses of action generally lose.
6. Observation – rush / pursuit angles.
I cannot be the only one that saw poor rush and pursuit angles Saturday night. Time and time again CJ Stroud was able to evade the rush, keep his eyes downfield and complete passes that resulted in chunk gains and / touchdowns. On his final scramble the angle Javon Bullard took to make the play was horrid. It gave Stroud another 10-15 yards at a time where 10-15 yards was insanely important to both teams. It appeared that UGA underestimated the OSU team speed or was just uncharacteristically undisciplined Saturday. With a better scrambler awaiting UGA in the CFP final, disciplined angles could make the difference between winning and losing regardless of the overall talent disparity.
7. Observation – CJ Stroud.
I count myself among others that felt CJ Stroud was good, but not great. He proved me wrong. He was incredibly accurate but also impressed with his legs. His composure all game and to include the post-game press conference was laudatory. Count me now as a fan. I wish him all the success as he heads to the NFL.
8. Observation – social media insanity.
Maybe this should be a trend... regardless the vitriol that came out of OSU football Twitter, to include wishing harm to Bullard for the hit and to the OSU kicker for the miss, was just a bit over the top (sarcasm font). Look, we are used to the mind-numbing drivel that comes from Bama and Tennessee fans. To be fair, neither include the smartest folks ever. However, what I’ve seen from OSU fans borders on lunacy. I had a short, curt discussion with my former battalion chaplain who is a rabid OSU fan. The things that he typed in messages to me were shocking coming from a man of the cloth but were in line with things I’ve seen on Twitter and other social media platforms from OSU fans. I get it that you’re disappointed in the outcome of the game. But to accuse both Kirby and Bullard for intentionally hurting Harrison? That Kirby ordered the hit like a mob boss? To paraphrase Abraham Lincoln – better to stay silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt. I get that keyboard warriors are here to stay, but even accredited media got in on the foolish action. I don’t have a fix for this, so I’m choosing to ignore them.
9. Observation – Stetson Bennett.
I don’t know how anyone can write anything about UGA football without somehow weaving SBIV into the narrative. He is UGA football. He has the program on the verge of back-to-back championships, only done twice before. He has grown on me over the last three seasons to the point I expect him to do something jaw-dropping each game. His fourth quarter performance was dazzling. I still can’t fathom how he completed that pass to Brock Bowers on the game-winning drive. I’ve watched it repeatedly and I’m still shocked. The next pass to Kearis Jackson was a brilliantly placed ball. His anticipation on the touchdown throw to AD Mitchell – chef’s kiss! However, at times he freelances throughout the game. Pulling the give to Kenny McIntosh cost UGA points on their first drive, which was followed by a missed field goal. The interception on the throw to Kenny McIntosh may or may not have been on him, but it was a bad play regardless. The lateral to Ladd McConkey? That wasn’t even an option on the play. It cost UGA a chance at a touchdown at a time where a touchdown was needed. The freelance version of SBIV needs to be put on ice for the final four quarters of this season. We need more of “System Stetson” than “Freestyle Stetson”.
10. Observation – What UGA needs more of next Monday.
After watching the Peach Bowl over again, we all need to see more of Arian Smith and Dom Blaylock. Both players were clutch Saturday night and TCU’s secondary is no joke. Further, we need more of Jack Podlesny actually making field goals. UGA cannot afford to leave points on the field Monday. The offensive line must continue to create holes and protect against the 3-3-5 defense TCU will roll out. Historically UGA hasn’t fared terribly well against that type of scheme. More of each of these will help allay any fears UGA fans may have with a defense that isn’t playing to its typical standard.
What a season! As stated earlier, UGA is on the precipice of attaining a level of excellence that isn’t often seen. I am consistently amazed at the machine Kirby has built as this program has overcome a historic draft and loss of great players to be four quarters away from immortality. This team has wowed fans with incredible play all season long, even though their performance has occasionally left something to be desired. But they win. And Monday night it doesn’t matter how they win as long as they do.
Finally, I feel that this closing space would be better served by offering healing thoughts to Damar Hamlin. Many of us saw the play and his subsequent collapse Monday night. Each who saw it was horrified and hoping for good news the succeeding hours hoping for good news has only been surpassed by thoughts for his family and teammates. This incident clarifies what’s important in life. Sporting contests are fun, but pale in comparison to an obviously great young man whose life is hanging in the balance. No sport, though, is worth a life. I know most of you have already done this, but please take some time to offer a prayer of healing and comfort for Damar, his family and teammates.