Kirby Smart on Georgia's Sugar Bowl loss: 'Turnovers are the difference'

In the Sugar Bowl, Notre Dame passed for just 90 yards in the game and yet managed to beat Georgia by two scores.

The formula was pretty simple, according to Georgia coach Kirby Smart.

“Yeah. When you have two turnovers and a kickoff return for a touchdown, that’s what happens,” Smart said. “I mean, I have been part of those games.”

Unfortunately, his team was on the wrong end of it in the Sugar Bowl, a College Football Playoff quarterfinal contest. Georgia seemed out of sorts from the jump, unable to establish anything in the run game, which put the pressure on new starting quarterback Gunner Stockton.

After Georgia took an early lead in the second quarter, Notre Dame began to assert itself.

The Bulldogs made life difficult on themselves when they tried to stay aggressive before the half with 39 seconds left to play. Pick up a few first downs, kick a field goal and get into the half with the game tied and some momentum. That plan backfired.

Stockton was sacked by RJ Oben and fumbled, and Junior Tuihalamaka recovered for the Irish. A late touchdown pass from Riley Leonard to Beaux Collins just before halftime made it a 13-3 game.

Then Notre Dame housed the second-half kickoff with a 98-yard return by Jayden Harrison to blow the game open. The middle-eight, as it’s called, was completely dominated by the Fighting Irish.

“I’ve been part of really good defenses, and they stop people,” Smart said. “And we weren’t able to get a lot going. And the turnovers are the difference in the game, guys. It’s not an exact science. I mean, you should know when you turn it over twice and they return a kickoff for a touchdown, you’re not going to have a lot of success.”

Georgia found that out the hard way, despite Stockton managing decently in the absence of quarterback Carson Beck. He didn’t always get the most help, as some crucial drops proved costly.

Bottom line: It just wasn’t Georgia’s night. And so the Bulldogs will look forward to next year and another run at the College Football Playoff.