Dawgs Win Back-To-Back
The Georgia Bulldogs faced off against the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs in the National Championship game on January 9, 2023.
January 10, 2023
The college football playoff has been a part of the NCAA’s history since 1869, and never before had a team won the greatest prize in college football the way the 2022-2023 Georgia Bulldogs did.
Facing off against Texas Christian University, both teams in this year’s championship game are coming off of a win against two Big 10 powerhouses: Michigan and Ohio State. Both teams also featured Heisman finalists at the quarterback position. TCU’s offense had been versatile all season, and they proved that their ranking was no fluke. This offense has been led by their dual-threat quarterback Max Duggan, who has been able to hurt defenses by scrambling for yardage and throwing the ball extremely well also.
Meanwhile, Georgia came into this game as the number-one-ranked team in the country, undefeated, boasting an elite defense and an offense that has no issues producing points in bunches. Stetson Bennett has been one of the stars of this offense, also being an incredible dual-threat quarterback himself. This game seemed to evidence the precipice of two titanic forces colliding with one another in ultimate climactic fashion. The entire country was on the edge of its seats anticipating this game since the calendar rolled over. This contest proved to be record-breaking as UGA emerged victorious in what was a historic performance.
Georgia started the game off with the first score as Bennett ran in for an early 7-0 lead. The Horned Frogs would not respond until later in the quarter, courtesy of a quarterback run by Duggan to bring the score to 10-7. These turned out to be the only points the TCU Horned Frogs would post in this game, as the Dawgs poured it on in the following quarters. The Bulldogs led the horned frogs 17-7 at the end of the first quarter, 38-7 at halftime, 52-7 at the end of the third quarter, and a final score of 65-7.
Bennett finished the game with 304 yards passing, 4 touchdown passes, and 2 touchdowns ran in. Duggan finished with 152 yards passing, 1 touchdown ran in, 2 interceptions, and negative rushing yards. Georgia’s defense was able to prove themselves most effective with their pass rush pressuring Duggan all game long. They sacked Duggan 5 ties and dominated the line of scrimmage. Both picks came courtesy of safety Javon Bullard. The Dawgs defense was able to force 3 takeaways. The defense definitely won this championship, but the offense brought just as much firepower to turn the game into an n.c.: no contest. ESPN already gave UGA a 99.9% chance of victory before the end of the third quarter.
New records set by the Bulldogs in this game include: the most points scored in the championship game (65 points); most lopsided victory in the championship game (65-7); most points scored in the first quarter of the championship game (17 points); greatest difference in total offensive yards (401 yards difference); tied most total touchdowns scored by a quarterback in the championship game (6/Stetson Bennett which ties Joe Burrow); most passing yards by a UGA quarterback in a season (4,127 yards/Stetson Bennett).
This is now the 29th time a D1 college football program has won at least back-to-back championships in NCAA history. The Dawgs have now set their eyes on a third straight title next season. They would become the first team to win three straight national titles since Minnesota from 1934-1936. Kirby Smart has demonstrated more than a “Dawg” mentality as the Georgia head coach, and he is definitely the man to coach and recruit a program that could pull this off. In the meantime, it’s an exciting time for Bulldogs fans everywhere. As Coach Smart says, “How ‘bout them Dawgs?”
Sources: https://www.espn.com/college-football/matchup/_/gameId/401442010
https://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/college-football-national-championship-history
https://www.espn.com/college-football/player/_/id/4259553/stetson-bennett
