It’s been a little over 24 hours since Georgia football beat Michigan in the Orange Bowl, sealing their place in the national championship in a rematch against Alabama.
And while I had all the thoughts and emotions after the game, I’m just starting to finally process them all.
This is the Georgia team we’ve watched play all year, and this was the Georgia team I was hoping would show up. From a dominating and suffocating defensive performance to an explosive offense whose health is peaking at just the right time, this is what we’ve been waiting for all year.
And it was so much fun to watch. The Rose Bowl in 2018 was amazing and magical. And it’s really unfair to compare the two semifinal games because they’re so different, from the location to the matchup, to the players on the team.
Georgia football is peaking at the right moment.
Although, a few things remained the same— our favorite head coach, red confetti falling from the sky, excitement at another shot at a natty, and ironically the quarterback. This time, instead of running the scout team to help the defense, Stetson Bennett IV was the starting quarterback, repeatedly and successfully marching the offense down the field, throwing the ball 20 times with several successful deep balls, and winning offensive MVP honors.
And honestly, I couldn’t have written it any better. The Rose Bowl was exhilarating. This game was just straight up fun, and I enjoyed every single minute of it.
But as amazing and satisfying as it was, the story’s not over yet. And I think we could all sense it the moment the game ended. There was excitement and joy, but also a little bit of anticipation, knowing that there’s still one more chapter left to be written. Waiting for an ending always makes me nervous, but gosh, I love watching them unfold.
So enjoy it. Soak in the moment and lay in the confetti. But don’t bring out the Gatorade bath just yet. Like Kirby said, “We’re not going anywhere,” but we’re not finished just yet. Time to hunker it down one more time.