Georgia Bulldogs Countdown to Kickoff: 80 Days
Yesterday on the Countdown to Kickoff, 81 days until Georgia and Oregon in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic, we took a look at the 1981 Sugar Bowl when the Bulldogs beat Notre Dame to take home the National Championship. We don’t veer far from there for No. 80 looking at the 1980 National Championship season as a whole.
My God a Freshman
Georgia opened the season on the road at Tennessee, and fans got their first taste of Herschel Walker. A freshman out of Wrightsville, Ga., Walker entered the game with the Bulldogs trailing the Volunteers 9-0 early in the second quarter. Late in the third quarter with Georgia down now 15-2, Walker took a handoff 16 yards, running over Tennessee safety Bill Bates on his way into the end zone. It was his first career collegiate touchdown, and no words better described the play than Larry Munson’s, “My god a freshman!” Walker would add on another score in the fourth quarter as Georgia won 16-15.
Run Lindsay
Georgia rolled to a 42-0 win over Texas A&M in Week 2 before jumping into the top 10 and beating Clemson 20-16 behind another big game from Herschel Walker. Wins over TCU, Ole Miss and Vanderbilt – Walker rushed for a career high 282 yards including long touchdowns of 60, 48 and 53 yards in the victory over Vanderbilt – vaulted the Bulldogs into the top 5 before going on the road to beat Kentucky and coming back home to take down South Carolina on national television in the first ranked matchup of the season.
A second straight nationally televised game ensued the following week, this time down in Jacksonville against Florida. The Gators came in ranked No. 20 in the country at 6-1 on the season. Early in the first quarter, Walker rushed for a 72 yards score, part of his 37-carry, 238-yard performance on the day.
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However, the play of the day came from Lindsay Scott when after Florida took a 21-20 lead late, quarterback Buck Belue connected with Scott on 3rd and 11 from his own 7-yard line. Scott did the rest, once again best described by Munson with his famous words, “Run Lindsay!” followed by breaking his broadcasting chair and warning the folks at home of more property damage later that night in Jacksonville, St. Simons, Jekyll Island and other surrounding areas. Take a listen…
Georgia rose to No. 1 in the polls after the win, beat Auburn to clinch the SEC Championship and ended the regular season with an exclamation point against in-state rival Georgia Tech. Once again, Walker went for over 200 yards. While those wins were certainly nice, no two plays better characterize the season than those famous ones against Tennessee and Florida, and no man could have done a better job of describing it than the legendary Larry Munson.
Recent Georgia Bulldogs Countdown to Kickoff Stories
No. 81 – Georgia takes home the title with win in 1981 Sugar Bowl
No. 82 – Fred Gibson still gives Clemson fans nightmares
No. 83 – 83 yards, 83 points and one 83 jersey
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