A Jersey Guy: Georgia on my mind (again)
INGLEWOOD, CA.--They started to roll into town on Thursday night, coming from all sections of the state, the Southeast and well beyond.
Georgia fans.
They envelope the place with their numbers, their enthusiasm--How bout them Dawgs?"
That is what Georgia fans do to a football weekend, whether it's Athens, Ga. South Bend, Indiana or, as was the case Southern California.
This weekend was special, however.
Georgia was coming into Monday night's CFP national championship game against TCU at SoFi Stadium, with a glistening 14-0 record, the status of defending national champions, and an attitude that suggested that anything the Frogs might do would be dealt with quickly
.And so it was, as the Dawgs took a 17-7 first-quarter lead, more than doubled it in the second quarter to 38-7 and then coasted home to a 65-7 victory.
The Georgia experience is a force of nature, which was typified by ardent Georgia fans, Carl Brantley, and Tom McMillian, who are long time Georgia fans as well as fraternity bothers to TMG's Mr. College Football Tony Barnhart, who is also a Georgia graduate.
The frat boys have been holding reunions at the Florida-Georgia game in Jacksonville since 1980 and last year added to that with a trip to Indianapolis to watch Georgia win its first national championship in 42 years.
When the Bulldogs rolled through the SEC again this season plans were made for another reunion in Los Angeles this weekend, adding one quasi outsider, Brantley's step son Aaron Jennejahn, who is a Texas Tech grad, but a Georgia backer) same red and black colors).
The boys arrived in town Sunday afternoon and went on a scouting trip to Manhattan Beach where they found...more Georgia fans.
And we''re talking serious fans.
When they tried to scout a nice oceanside place for dinner called The Strand House, they found themselves shut out since some more ambitious Bulldog fans had called a few weeks earlier and bought out the entire restaurant for the evening.
How bout THEM Dawgs?
What happened in Manhattan Beach on Sunday night was not a whole lot different than what Georgia did to TCU on Monday night at SoFi Stadium.
Leading the way was Bulldog Quarterback Stetson Bennett, who may be the best college QB never to win a Heisman Trophy.
All Bennett, who came off the bench and across the depth charts to lead Georgia to a national championship last season, was magnificent again on Monday night, completing 15 of 21 of his first passes for 321 yards and three TDs while also running for two more TDs.
That effort gave Georgia 45-7 lead with 10:52 in the third quarter which truly meant the game, but not the party, was over for the night.
Bennett's numbers when he finally sat down at the start of the fourth quarter: 18 of 25, 304 yards, 4 TD passes and two more scoring runs.
How bout that Dawg?
""We're champions of the whole damn world,'' said Bennett, who was almost at a loss of words after his final triumph as a Georgia football player with an effort that will cement his place in Georgia football folk lore. ""It makes me proud for what I've accomplished. ''
No, this was another SEC laser show of lights and action and dominance.
Since the current 4-team CFP playoff system began in January of 2015, only Clemson (twice) and Ohio State (once) have been able to take the national championship away from the SEC.
TCU, which was cast in a Cinderella mode after an unbeaten regular season and a pulsating win over Michigan inthe CFP semifinals, was a no-show in almost every area.
TCU QB Max Duggan, a Heisman runner up and a miracle worker in come backs, never got a chance to show any of his magic tricks.
The biggest winner in Monday night's NO Contest, were the Georgia Bulldogs, who are now in a dynastic mode as a college football power as is Bulldog Coach Kirby Smart.
Smart, a former Nick Saban assistant at Alabama, is now in the "best coach'' in college football'' territory.
""Stetson probably had the best day of his career,'' said Smart, starting out with the praise parade. "People have slept on Setson Bennett for too long.'''
As far as the legacy and where Georgia currently ranks in the college football elite pecking order, Bennett provided the analysis.
""For the past three or four months, they have been looking for someone to beat us,'' and nobody could,''' said Bennett.