National Title Game Loss Not Haunting Georgia Going Into Next Season

Atlanta, GA-(WDEF-TV) Georgia lost in the national title game to Alabama last season when the Tide scored on a 41-yard pass play in overtime to seal a 26-23 victory, but Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said at SEC Media Days on Tuesday that he’s not losing any sleep over Bama’s walk-off winner. Said Smart: “The losses don’t haunt me, they motivate me. So if anybody’s telling you they haunt you, I don’t think that they haunt me at all. If anything, it drives me, it motivates me. It keeps me hungry.”

Hungry for that national championship. According to Smart, last year’s success doesn’t give this year’s team a free pass. Said defensive end Jonathan Ledbetter: “Everyday’s a work day, you know. No days off. You know, after a loss like that, coming down to the last seconds, you really just start to see that football really is truly a game of inches.” Added receiver Terry Godwin: “Just not looking back on last season. Just looking forward to the future and taking on the next game. Trying to get better at what we didn’t have last year, and just trying to proceed with these younger guys.”

Those younger guys have helped fill out the roster, which has created some big time position battles, especially at quarterback. Said Smart: “We’re going to have more depth than we’ve had. We might not have as much talent. We might not have three first rounders. But what we have is a lot of competition at a lot of positions.” Said Godwin: “To have Fromm back is awesome because he has a year under his belt. He knows what teams are going to throw at him, and what he needs to look for. Just having that coach out there. And I mean, Fields he’s done tremendous at practice. He’s showing us why he’s number one player in the nation.”

The question remains unanswered, but the goal is clear. Said Godwin: “We’re going to win the national championship. We’re going to be a contender for it. And to actually be there and be a contender, it’s a dream come true, because for me a Georgia native, I mean, that’s everything that we want from Georgia. Except to win it actually.”