For the first time in two years, the Georgia Bulldogs lost a football game Saturday.
The top-ranked, two-time defending national champions were upset in the SEC title game by No. 8 Alabama, creating chaos for the College Football Playoff committee.
Georgia was riding a 29-game winning streak entering Saturday afternoon, and its last loss came Dec. 4, 2021 in the SEC championship against Alabama.
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Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart prior to a game against the Ole Miss Rebels Nov. 11, 2023, at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga. (Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
But that loss didn’t keep the Bulldogs out of the 2021 College Football Playoff. And Georgia got its revenge by beating Alabama in that season’s national championship.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart says Saturday’s loss shouldn’t keep his Bulldogs out this year either.
“[Committee executive director] Bill Hancock said it’s not the most deserving,” Smart said after the game. “Simply, it’s the best four teams. You’re gonna tell me somebody’s sitting in that committee room and doesn’t think that Georgia team is not one of the best four teams? I don’t know if you’re in the right profession.
“It’s a really good football team. It’s a really talented football team. It’s a really balanced football team. They have to make that decision, but it’s the best four teams.”
Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs and head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide shake hands prior to the SEC championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Dec. 2, 2023, in Atlanta. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Georgia scored a touchdown on its first possession of the game, but the Crimson Tide earned its seventh conference title in the last decade.
It’s rare a team has made the CFP without winning its conference. But it happened with Ohio State in 2016, Alabama in 2017 and the 2021 Georgia team.
No. 7 Texas remains in the mix with its Big 12 title. At the time of publication, No. 4 Florida State looks like it will finish 13-0 with an ACC title, which still might not even be enough. And who knows what happens if No. 2 Michigan is upset by No. 19 Iowa in the Big Ten championship?
Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs during the second half of a game against the Florida Gators at EverBank Stadium Oct. 28, 2023, in Jacksonville, Fla. (James Gilbert/Getty Images)
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The Bulldogs will find out their fate Sunday afternoon.