What does Georgia have to do to beat Alabama? Kirby Smart has taken the Bulldogs to the top of the college football world, but he just can't get past the Crimson Tide.
Saturday presented him with his best opportunity to notch another win against Alabama, but he and the Bulldogs came up short 24-21. This moves Smart's record against the Crimson Tide to 1-7.
Georgia whiffs on best chance to beat Alabama
Georgia had everything going their way entering Saturday's contest against Alabama. They were able to play Alabama at home for the first time in the decade against a coach who isn't Nick Saban. The Bulldogs also were undefeated and riding high after their win over Tennessee while Alabama already had one loss on the year.
Georgia was even coming off a bye week as well which is a huge deal. But none of that mattered as Alabama was able to come into Athens and steal a victory from the Bulldogs.
Georgia had every opportunity to win this game
Alabama came out firing on all cylinders and jumped out to a huge lead. This is nothing new for Georgia though as it has become the norm over the last few years in big games. So what did Georgia do? Clawed their way back into the game and gave themselves a chance to win.
Unfortunately they didn't take advantage of those chances.
Two plays stand out that ultimately cost Georgia this game, with the biggest being the dropped touchdown from true freshman Talyn Taylor in the third quarter. If he catches that ball Georgia would have taken their first lead of the game at 28-24 which might have been enough to win this game.
Then there was the failed 4th and one late in the game when UGA decided to go quick and hand the ball off to Cash Jones. He is the last running back Georgia should be using to try and pick up one yard on the ground, so they sould have taken their time to get the right personnel on the field for that play.
There were countless other plays that could have led Georgia to win this game, but at the end of the day UGA suffered the same outcome they always do. A loss to Alabama.
What's next for Georgia?
The good news for Georgia is that their season is not over. The Bulldogs lost to Alabama last season as well and still went on to win the SEC and make it to the College Football Playoff. Their journey to accomplish both feats took a massive hit after this loss, but both goals are still very attainable.
Up next for Georgia is a home date with Kentucky on Oct. 4 at 12:00 pm EST.