Georgia Bulldogs will bounce back from devastating championship game loss

Though the Georgia Bulldogs lost the national championship to the Alabama Crimson Tide, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic they’ll bounce back.

It’s going to hurt for a very long time. We were right there and we were about to slay that dragon that is the Evil Empire of Southeastern Conference Football. It was a hell of a year for my alma mater Georgia Bulldogs football team, but here we are, simply devastated after Alabama came back to win in overtime.

This was by far the best year of college football in my life. I didn’t want it to end. For a minute, I really thought the tide was going to turn on Alabama. Georgia gave its best effort, but it wasn’t good enough.

For as thrilling as it was to beat the Oklahoma Sooners in the Rose Bowl, I guess the shoe is on the other foot. Falling in overtime on a stage like this is beyond soul-crushing. Losing in the same Mercedes-Benz Stadium where Georgia beat the Auburn Tigers a little over a month ago to win the SEC Championship is only fitting, as Atlanta and Georgia sports fans can never have nice things.

Yes, it is devastating, but I’m optimistic about all that lies ahead for Georgia football. Dynasties don’t last forever and the Dawgs look to be in great shape under Kirby Smart.

Georgia will continue to recruit the heck out of the talented Peach State to hopefully get back to the College Football Playoff many times in the future. Jake Fromm and the other underclassmen will use this loss as motivation to hopefully get it done in the coming years. And the incoming No. 1 ranked recruiting class will add to the talent on the roster.

However, my heart breaks for the seniors that came back to do something special. I will never see Nick Chubb, Sony Michel, Lorenzo Carter, Davin Bellamy, Dominick Sanders and so many other Dawgs in a Georgia uniform again. That’s the saddest part of it all.

I wanted it so badly for them but Alabama outplayed Georgia in the second half. I’m probably not going to listen to Kendrick Lamar for a while now. Playing ball after halftime shows in championship games just aren’t my teams’ things, aren’t they? But seriously. I’m done with halftimes forever.

Though it didn’t end Georgia fans wanted it to, I will speak on behalf of Dawg Nation. What a year it was! If you would have told me Jacob Eason would go down with a knee injury in Week 1 vs. Appalachian State and Georgia would not only win the SEC but play for a national title, I would have told you to go get your head checked.

See, this is why I love sports so much. You can’t make this stuff up. To go to Notre Dame with a true freshman quarterback in Fromm and win was something that was not possible in the Mark Richt era.

Going 6-0 in SEC East play was truly a remarkable feat. To win the SEC Championship for the first time since I could drive was incredible. Going to a national championship for the first time in my lifetime was a journey I’ll never forget. Neither will the rest of Georgia fans.

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Getting out of bed this morning and writing this postmortem was close to impossible. For as heartbroken as I am right now, I have faith Georgia will be back in the National Championship Game very soon. If and when the Dawgs come out on top for the first time since 1980, I will cry tears of joy. What a year it was for the Georgia Bulldogs!