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What separates Georgia, Ohio State mentalities in the Peach Bowl?

On3 imageby:Wes Blankenship•12/30/22
On3 image
The Georgia Bulldogs speak with the media on Tuesday, Dec. 27, in Atlanta. Georgia will face Ohio State in the 2022 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. (Jason Parkhurst via Abell Images for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl)

It’s been a week keeping up with all of the Georgia – Ohio State developments ahead of the Peach Bowl. And it isn’t necessarily because a ton happened.

The Peach Bowl just gives us tremendous access to two historic College Football teams.

We’re excited to share everything we see and hear from a matchup that evaded us since 1993.

And now, it’s time to reflect on everything we witnessed.

For me, there is one glaring difference between Georgia and Ohio State’s media availabilities.

Maybe I’m reading too much into this difference. Maybe it doesn’t mean anything.

But I can’t help but wonder if it means a lot.

For Georgia, it’s about Georgia. Just like we hear every game week.

What separates Georgia from Ohio State is that the Buckeyes spent a lot of time mentioning other things.

We spent part of our latest episode of The Georgia Show (YouTube / Apple / Spotify) diving into it.

The Buckeyes still have a hang-up on history, it seems

I’ve filtered through enough of this week’s press availabilities with Ohio State coaches and players to notice some tendencies.

I don’t even know that they’re prevalent enough to be trends. You’re welcome to watch through them yourself and prove me wrong.

But I just can’t help but notice there’s still a general shuddering at the mention of Michigan.

Players insist they’re ready to move on, but their body language proves differently in some responses.

Me think thou doth protest too much.

Yes, I know it’s a year-round hate and I’ll never understand the rivalry to the extent of the fans that live it.

I just can’t help but wonder if Ohio State cares ever so slightly more about another shot at Michigan than they care about this shot at Georgia.

If that’s the case, I think many of you reading this have seen enough Georgia football this season to know that a less-than-100-percent-focused effort on the Dawgs could be the makings of a Buckeye nitrogylcerin plant.

And the Dawgs might just be a dump truck.

One more thing I’ve picked up on as it pertains to the history front:

There’s been a lot of talk from Ohio State fans about ‘the last time Ohio State played a SEC team in the CFP.’

The Buckeyes ran all over Kirby Smart’s defense and the Alabama Crimson Tide got upset en route to Ohio State’s most recent National Championship, back in 2015.

That’s a great sentiment for fans to have.

But I also saw Ohio State wide receiver Emeka Egbuka bring it up.

Again – not saying this proves Ohio State will lose.

I just think it’s a significantly different approach from how Georgia’s players handle their business.

If that sentiment is anything more than confidence in his team…

…and if it’s something that Ohio State players or coaches or staffers actually think as it relates to playing Georgia…

I’m here to tell you that the thought alone will not be enough to beat these Dawgs.

The differences between Georgia and Ohio State fascinate me

This is a wonderful matchup that College Football fans deserve.

It’s a clash of coaching ideologies and styles.

Its the Bulldogs vs. the Buckeyes.

Even if Georgia’s players don’t know what a Buckeye is…

…and even if Ohio State’s players use a previous loss to Michigan and a previous win over Alabama as fuel in this game…

I can’t wait to see these two strap in for a good, old-fashioned melee.

In the meantime, watch / listen to The Georgia Show to learn about the game.

And to learn why Georgia did yoga before Thursday’s practice:

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