What If Moments Adding Up in Georgia Losing Streak

Sadly, longtime Kentucky football fans know what it’s like to waste away in a long losing streak to SEC foes. This one against the Georgia Bulldogs is starting to bring up familiar feelings.

Following Saturday’s one-point loss to the top-ranked team in the country, Georgia has 15 straight wins over the Wildcats. It’s the fifth-longest win streak between SEC foes.

The losing streak to Georgia does not seem to carry the same weight as the lengthy ones to Florida and Tennessee. Part of that is because Kirby Smart is playing a different sport than the rest of college football. However, the weight will soon add up, just as it did so many other times.

Chris Doering was a Cat-Killer back in 1993. Jared Lorenzen watched a 21-point lead over Florida melt away with a late interception. There was the delay of game at The Swamp in overtime that officials didn’t flag, and the wide receivers the Cats didn’t cover at Kroger Field.

The Tennessee losing streak featured almost as many heartbreaking what if moments. What if they just gave the ball to Randall Cobb near the goal line? What if Lones Seiber got a little more air under that short overtime field goal in 2007?

The weight of those what-if moments added up to a point where snapping the streaks felt insurmountable. There’s a similar trend developing between Kentucky and Georgia.

2016: Drop Turns a Kentucky Touchdown Into a Georgia Interception

It’s been eight years and I still can’t believe this play when I see it. In Kirby Smart’s first season, the Cats had the Dawgs on the ropes. After holding Georgia to a field goal, Eddie Gran went for the killshot with a 21-16 lead in the third quarter. Jeff Badet had two steps on DeAndre Baker. It was a perfectly thrown pass that hit Badet in the hands. He dropped the touchdown reception and the ball fell right to Baker. Pain.

Benny Snell tried to will the team to victory in the fourth quarter. With Greg Sankey sitting behind the KSR crew, we got a “No cheering in the pressbox!” warning after one of Snell’s most improbable runs to move the chains. It wasn’t enough. On the final Kentucky drive, the Cats had to settle for a field goal, giving Georgia enough time to march down the field for a Rodrigo Blankenship game-winner.

2017: Untimely Kentucky Injury

You may not think of any sliding doors moments from a 42-13 loss, but Kentucky landed the first punch between the hedges. Junior Josh Hines-Allen picked off Jake Fromm with an incredible play on the opening possession. On a second and ten from the Georgia 20-yard line, a pass to CJ Conrad fell incomplete because the Kentucky tight end broke his foot. The Cats settled for a field goal.

Despite giving up a touchdown on the ensuing possession, Kentucky had a chance to retake the lead right away. Once again on second and ten from the Georgia 20-yard line, Kentucky had a great play drawn up to the tight end. Instead of Conrad reeling it in, Justin Rigg couldn’t hang on to what could have been a touchdown. Following the field goal, Georgia retook momentum for good.

Subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features, and exclusive content.

2019: A Dropped Touchdown in the Rain

Nobody suspected Kentucky could keep up with the tenth-ranked Bulldogs on the road. Weather provided an equalizer. It rained all day in Athens and Kentucky was happy to turn it into a rock fight.

It was a scoreless tie at halftime. Kentucky forced a three-and-out and Chris Oats celebrated with the visiting fans. The Georgia faithful were getting weary. Unfortunately, that’s when the tide started to turn. D’Andre Swift eventually broke a long run for a score. Kentucky had a shot in the end zone, but Chris Rodriguez dropped the wet pass from Lynn Bowden and the Cats never got close again to stopping the shutout.

2021: Jump on the Fumble!

College Gameday was in Athens for a Top 15 matchup. Most Georgia fans will remember this game for the late Wan’Dale Robinson touchdown that covered the spread. That wasn’t the moment where the ball bounced the Dawgs’ way to change the game.

There were zeroes on the scoreboard after one quarter. On the final play of the period, Stetson Bennett fumbled the football. The Kentucky defense thought it was an incomplete pass and let the ball lie lifeless on the turf. Georgia jumped on the ball that officials ruled a fumble. The Dawgs scored on the very next play to take a lead they would never give back.

2024: How Much Time Do You Have?

If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, Kentucky would have a win over the No. 1 team in the country. While much of the postgame conversation has been centered around Mark Stoops’ decision to punt the ball late in the fourth quarter, there were so many plays that could have gone the Wildcats’ way to change the outcome of the game.

What if Georgia doesn’t recover a late fumble? What if Brock Vandagriff had an extra half-second to throw the ball on third and eight? What if Brett Thorson‘s shanked punt doesn’t take a lucky bounce for 20 more yards? What if Carson Beck‘s fumbled snap bounces the other way? What if Zion Childress‘ pick six doesn’t get overturned? What if Jordan Lovett holds onto the interception on the play right before it? These are questions we will be asking for years to come.