OPINION: Excited for Georgia Football to kickoff in 2022… Kind Of

A numerical countdown to the upcoming Georgia football season has been a constant in my life. Every year of adulthood, I have had a countdown. Whether on social media or a physical calendar, I have had something telling me the days until Georgia’s first game.

However, people on social media brought to my attention that I didn’t even do one this offseason. Some even asked if I was OK, that maybe something was wrong with me on why I didn’t.

It wasn’t on purpose, but when that clock struck zero on that cold night in Indianapolis, the emotions that came over Bulldog Nation were beyond overwhelming. So much so that I, for one, am still elated, still in a state of euphoria.

Maybe the countdown was not me counting down to kickoff for the past 41 years. Perhaps it was counting down to another shot at that national championship.

Georgia football is around the corner, and it’s somewhat exciting.

In years past, Georgia was so tantalizingly close that there was a legit chance the Dawgs could play for a national championship every year. Also, Dawg fans would have to watch another fanbase, usually in SEC, celebrate a national title every year.

Watching Tennessee, Florida, Auburn, LSU, and Alabama all win championships while Georgia came up short was infuriating. The 1980 jokes told by rivals and other fanbases were ad nauseam. The worst part was what the comeback? Well, 2021 was the comeback.

In the 1990’s we were not chasing championships. Beating Auburn or Georgia Tech, plus gaining a spot in a New Year’s Day Bowl, felt like a good season. Wins over Florida and Tennessee were few and far between. However, since the end of the 2002 season — exempting 2009 and 2016 — every season brought hope that a national title could happen.

Each year brought a moment or a game that Georgia fans wanted to avoid talking about because it was that letdown moment. In 2002 we had the Terrence Edwards drop against Florida. The 2007 letdown was losing to South Carolina at home, the 2012 SEC Championship and the 2017 National Championship.

There are moments every year that remind Georgia fans how close they were to a title. Meaning all off-season, all we wanted was another shot — another opportunity to win that elusive national championship.

Now, as we close in on the start of 2022, there is no feeling of wanting another shot to end the misery. I have enjoyed this off-season as a fan of the team that won the championship. This feeling is something most Georgia fans have not felt during an offseason. The euphoria has not ended, and it won’t end until Sept. 3, when Georgia tees it up against Oregon.

I am excited about the start of Georgia football in 2022 because the Dawgs legitimately have an opportunity to repeat as national champions. It’s a little disappointing that it will mark the end of the greatest offseason since the spring and summer of 1981 for Georgia fans across all of Bulldog Nation.