This past weekend was the most pivotal in college football to date, especially in the SEC, with LSU hosting Alabama and Georgia hosting Tennessee, and I don’t think many people predicted correctly what would happen in either game.
A Thriller in Baton Rouge
In Baton Rouge, the game came down to the final play, as Mason Taylor dove past the pylon on a two-point conversion to walk the Tigers off in overtime, giving them a stranglehold on the SEC West. Even though they were severe underdogs, it was LSU that controlled most of the game, and despite Bryce Young’s heroics in the second half, it wasn’t enough for Alabama to escape yet another close contest. Now with two losses and a near-impossible path to the SEC Championship, it’s not too early to put the nail in the coffin of the Crimson Tide. They will not be making the College Football Playoff, meaning Bryce Young — one of the best college football quarterbacks of all time — will end his Alabama career without a National Championship as a starter.
A Dynasty in the Making
But while Alabama losing to LSU was somewhat shocking, perhaps an even bigger surprise — to those outside of Athens — was the way Georgia absolutely dominated the #1 Tennessee Volunteers. From start to finish, the atmosphere in Sanford Stadium was electric, fueling a defense that suffocated Hendon Hooker and company all afternoon. The Volunteers, who came into Saturday’s contest averaging nearly 50 points per game, were held to just 13, looking uncomfortable all afternoon.
But on the other side, it was a coming-out party for Georgia’s wide receiving core, and Stetson Bennett once again proved that he deserves to be in the conversation with the best quarterbacks in the country. The final score ended up being 27-13, but in reality, Georgia could have won by double that. They proved Tennessee is not on their level in what is undoubtedly the most eye-popping result of the college football season thus far.
In a few years from now, there’s a chance we look at this moment as the passing of the torch. In no way am I ready to count out Nick Saban. As long as he’s at Alabama, they will continue to reload and compete for championships, but this is more about what Kirby Smart is doing at Georgia. They are at the top of college football. They are who every other program is aspiring to be. Georgia is more physical than everyone in the country. They are better coached than every other team in the country. And they are superior to every other team in the country. The job is not done for the Bulldogs, but there’s no reason to believe they won’t repeat as champions again and find themselves in a similar position a year from now. That, my friends, is a dynasty.
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Photo: Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire
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