Georgia often didn’t resemble what we’d expect the nation’s No. 2 seed to look like, but that seed almost certainly becomes the Bulldogs’ prize.
Georgia needed every ounce of preserverance to beat Texas.
Longhorns dominated first half but had only three-point lead to show for it. Hello, danger zone.
ATLANTA – Hard to believe we saw the playoff’s second-best team Saturday inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, but that No. 2 seed almost certainly becomes Georgia’s prize for upsetting No. 2 Texas 22-19 in overtime of a messy rock fight otherwise known as the SEC championship game.
The Bulldogs won with their backup quarterback spurring the rally.
They survived an interception and four fumbles and prevailed despite being outgained by 112 yards.
They needed a fake punt to pull off the escape. The Bulldogs needed every one of their six sacks of quarterback Quinn Ewers. They needed Texas to commit 10 penalties, miss two field goals and drop too many passes for one hand to count.
Survive and advance, Bulldogs.
“This team never, ever says never,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said afterward.
This team does that, at least.
Only once since the calendar turned to November have the Bulldogs (11-2) looked especially dominant – against Tennessee – but they now own three wins against playoff-bound teams.
By that metric alone, Georgia earned this No. 2 seed.
“No matter what people say about us, we just keep going,’ Georgia wide receiver Arian Smith said. ‘I’m proud of us.”
Georgia needed every bit of the white-knuckle grip it showed previously in narrow wins against Kentucky and Georgia Tech.
Credit Georgia’s perseverance for rallying behind its defense and ground game after quarterback Carson Beck exited with an injury on the final play before halftime. Credit backup Gunner Stockton for his 8-yard run in overtime that set up Georgia for the winning score.
Also, discredit the Longhorns for refusing to grasp a victory that felt about three inches in front of their face for most of the game, and that proved one inch too far.
To the victors goes the valuable bye into the quarterfinal. That’s important time for Georgia to rest up and figure out what to do at quarterback after Beck spent the second half with an ice pack on his elbow.
And how about Texas’ prize?
The Longhorns (11-2), a darling of the committee the past several weeks, still could be seeded high enough to host a first-round game despite losing to Georgia twice and beating no playoff teams.
At halftime, Texas had a 260-54 yard edge in total offense but just a three-point lead, thanks to a litany of blunders.
Hello, danger zone.
You just knew Texas would regret not putting Georgia away when it had the opportunity.
Give the Bulldogs an escape hatch, and they’ll find it and wriggle through.
It took Beck re-entering the game to complete the escape.
Stockton’s helmet flew off after he absorbed a punishing hit on the game’s penultimate play. By rule, that meant Stockton had to sit out the next snap because Georgia did not have a timeout available.
Rather than turn to his third-string quarterback, Smart reinserted Beck.
Texas had to know what was coming. Everyone in the building could appreciate that Beck would hand it off.
He did, and Trevor Etienne ran it through the heart of Texas’ vaunted defense to knot up a top-two playoff seed.
Is Georgia really a top-two team?
I have my doubts about a team that offers a roller-coaster ride nearly every week, but that’s for the playoff to determine.
Georgia made fewer mistakes than its opponent, and, for this day, anyway, that became enough.
On to the playoff, with a bye and an enviable seed in tow.
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer. Subscribe to read all of his columns.