It’s late into the night on Friday, Nov. 29th and Georgia head coach Kirby Smart walks off the field of Sanford Stadium. His hands sweating and head down, Smart is fresh off what would have been the biggest upset of his career.
In eight overtimes, Smart’s No. 6 Bulldogs escaped a 7–4 Georgia Tech squad 44-42.
It’s hard to know what Smart was thinking as he left the field. “Was the play calling not good enough?,” “Was our prep subpar?,” “What. Just. Happened?”
The rest of the country believed something they likely hadn’t for a long time: Georgia isn’t perfect, and more than beatable.
But that wasn’t the thought after Texas’ first and only loss of the season, where Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs throttled the Longhorns 30-15 in Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Georgia came onto the Forty Acres and controlled the entire game against the then-No. 1 squad in the country. The Bulldogs converted more third downs, had more total yards, possessed fewer penalty yards and experienced fewer turnovers.
So what did an unranked Georgia Tech squad do so well that Texas didn’t?
For one, they got out to an early start. At the end of the first half, Tech was winning 17-0. The Longhorns were down 23-0 at the end of their first half against Georgia. If Texas is going to have a chance in the SEC Championship, momentum must come early. Georgia is too good of a squad to blow large leads, and if Texas comes out slow, it’s destined for disaster in the conference championship.
Secondly, Texas has to get creative. Smart was all over Steve Sarkisian’s quick screen and run-pass option style football in their last meeting. A big reason for Texas’ success in the Sarkisian era is the creative play calling. The touchdown catch by T’Vondre Sweat in the Big 12 Championship is a mere example of how Texas has been able to strive in big-game football. In a game of two highly skilled squads, the more creative team is going to gain an advantage.
Texas has to win the turnover battle too. They forced three interceptions off of Georgia quarterback Carson Beck in the last game but Texas threw one interception and lost three fumbles. If the Longhorns keep the ball in their hands and get the ball out of the Bulldogs’, Georgia will be in trouble, one way or the other.
Texas is set to play in the SEC Championship in its first year in the conference. Georgia, however, is familiar with this game. In the past seven years, Smart and his Bulldogs have been participants in this game six times and now have made four straight appearances. Perhaps Texas’ unfamiliarity with the event is a strength for Georgia.
Only time will tell when the two squads face off on Dec. 7 for the bragging rights of being the SEC school of the year, and maybe more.
