Kirby Smart breaks down Georgia's 'legendary' fourth-quarter comeback effort vs Ohio State

It took everything that the Georgia Bulldogs and head coach Kirby Smart had to mount a late-game comeback against the Ohio State Buckeyes in their College Football Playoff semifinal matchup. Ohio State took what seemed like an insurmountable 14-point lead into the fourth quarter. But that’s when the Bulldogs came alive, overcoming a 38-24 deficit to win 42-41. after the game, Smart broke down Georgia’s ‘legendary’ fourth-quarter comeback effort to advance to the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday against TCU.

“Legendary. It’s a different group,” said Smart. “We’re a lot different than we were last year. But this group is special. They never stopped believing. They put those fours up, and every one of them believed it. And they came back in the fourth.”

The Bulldogs’ legendary comeback was in jeopardy of becoming a heroic victory for the Buckeyes. After taking the lead, Ohio State got the ball back with enough time for star quarterback CJ Stroud to march down the field and put his team in position for a game-winning field goal. Fortunately for Georgia, Buckeyes kicker Noah Ruggles missed the go-ahead field goal wide left.

Smart explained how Georgia will be mentally ready for TCU

The Peach Bowl was emotionally draining for both Georgia and Ohio State. There’s a key difference in the two situations, though, one team won and gets to play for a national championship while the other was eliminated. Now, head coach Kirby Smart needs to find a way to get his players ready for TCU.

During an appearance on College GameDay, Kirby Smart explained how Georgia is going to be mentally ready for TCU.

“Winning a ring. That’s the motivation,” Kirby Smart said simply.

This is definitely a quick turnaround compared to the time between the SEC Championship Game and the Peach Bowl. However, it’s not the quickest turnaround Kirby Smart has seen at Georgia in this scenario either.

“You got to get over that one quick and on to the next one. Fortunately, we have a little time in terms of we don’t have the seven day turnaround we had coming back from Pasadena back in 2017 or 2018. Whenever it was. But, it’s gonna be a quick turnaround because you’re used to having 28 days and now this thing slides to seven, eight days and it already feels like it’s upon us right now.”

Georgia and TCU will meet in the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday, January 9, 2023.