One day, if Kirby Smart continues to work wonders with Georgia's football program, there may be more SEC championship banners to hang and there may be a national title or two to celebrate if the sports gods decide to stop plunging pins into their Atlanta voodoo doll.
But that's today. Because all that happened Monday night was Georgia came as close as a team can come to winning a championship without doing so. Heartbreak continues Atlanta.
True freshman Tua Tagovailoa threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to DeVonta Smith in overtime to give Alabama a 26-23 win over Georgia, giving the Crimson Tide the national championship.
The Dogs had leads of 13-0 and 20-7.
They got a second life with Alabama's kicker missed a 36-yard field goal at the end of regulation.
They teased the masses again when Rodrigo Blankenship made a 51-yard field goal in overtime to give Georgia a 23-20 lead. Smart seemed on the verge so many times on becoming the first Nick Saban assistant to beat him in a game in 12 tries. Georgia seemed so close to winning its first national championship since 1980.
So close: That's the Atlanta story. It was the Super Bowl last February. It was the national championship game 11 months later.
At 13-0, Georgia fans wondered: "Are we safe? Is this really happening? What number is Julian Edelman?"
No lead is safe against great teams. At any level.
Tagovailoa, inserted in the second half after Saban benched Jalen Hurts, ignited a comeback. He had a mad nine-yard-scramble on third-and-seven, breaking several tackles. Then he completed four straight passes, including a six-yard touchdown pass to Henry Ruggs.
Here we go.
Jake Fromm, the only true freshman quarterback expected to play in this game, had an immediate response: an 80-yard touchdown strike to Mecole Hardenman on the fly down the right sideline. That made it 20-7.
More breathing room. Not enough. Alabama's defense stuffed Georgia on its next five possessions: an interception and four punts, including two three-and-outs. The interception set up a field goal. Then came another field goal to make it 20-13. Georgia's offense needed an extended drive to at least give its defense a rest. But it couldn't move the ball.
Here we go. Again. Tagovailoa drives Alabama 66 yards in eight plays for a touchdown, hitting Calvin Ridley in the end zone with 3:49 left to tie the game. Georgia fans sunk in their seats. The Dogs' offense went three-and-out. Alabama drove again, seemingly set up the winning field goal for Andy Pappanastos. But he missed from 36 yards, sending the game to overtime.
Saban watched from the sideline and threw his hands in the air.
Quoth the referee at midfield for the coin flip: "Congratulations to both teams. We still don't have a champion."
Fromm was sacked on Georgia's first possession but Blankenship hit from 51.
Davin Belamy sacked Tagovailoa for a 16-yard loss, seemingly burying Alabama's offense. But then came the touchdown pass.
The way for Georgia continues. So does Atlanta's wait for a parade.
Vince Dooley won Georgia's last national championship in his 17th season. Kirby Smart went Saturday trying to win it in his second.
Good vibes filled the program. Even the former coach, Mark Richt, tweeted best wishes before the game: "Good luck to the Dawgs tonight! I'm happy for the players, coaches, and the Georgia people! U Family!"
The extent of Georgia's dramatic rise after last season could not have been expected, not after Smart's first season saw the Bulldogs stumble and bumble their way to a 4-4 record in the SEC and a Liberty Bowl birth.
Richt was not fired for a Liberty Bowl birth. Richt was fired for this.
Smart showed this season he was the right choice. It wasn't just that Georgia went 11-1 during the regular season but how it won. The Dogs showed resilience and toughness in a comeback win at Notre Dame, doing so with Fromm, making his first start. They showed the stepped-on-their throat mentality Georgia fans had been hungry for in lopsided wins over Mississippi State (31-1), Tennessee (41-0) and _ let the angels sing _ Florida (42-7).
They lost to Auburn, ending their run of undefeated brilliance. Then they body-slammed Auburn in the rematch for the SEC championship. Affirmation: This was real.
The Dogs went to the Rose Bowl to win a playoff game, rallying past Oklahoma, 54-48. The last spasm got them across the finish line. Also, more Sony Michel brilliance. Then they came home to try to win a championship.
It was defense, not surprisingly, that gave them an opportunity early. After Alabama drove to a potential field goal on its first possession but missed, Georgia held the Tide to 47 yards in total offense the rest of the half. Combine that with an uncommon run of Alabama mistakes in the first half _ false start penalty that wiped out the original field goal attempt that was good; a Sony Michel 26-yard run on third-and-20; and Alabama penalties for too many players on the field and roughing-the-passer _ and it's easy to see why Nick Saban's head exploded.
The Dogs' defense held Alabama to 94 yards in five possessions and quarterback Hurts was a mere 3-for-8 for 21 yards.
Starting his second national title game in two years doesn't buy you a long lifeline in Sabanville. Hurts was benched in the second half. Saban summoned Tagovailoa of Hawaii. So for the second half of a college football national championship game, we had two true freshmen quarterbacks going at it. Wrap your heads around that, old school fans.
Tagovailoa was an improvement. But the kid from Warner-Robins, Ga., the coveted recruit who originally committed to Alabama but flipped to Georgia after Smart's hiring, was pretty good, too.
He led Georgia to three scoring drives in the first half: two field goals and then an impressive 69-yard touchdown drive in a span of 1:12 that made it 13-0 at halftime. The drive included two Alabama penalties, a 14-yard run by Michel in third-and-10 and a 14-yard scramble by Fromm, capped by a one-yard touchdown run by Hardeman.
The lead grew. Things looked good. They often do.
