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Portal players to get here. Smart credited “ physical, tough “ Irish. The longer layoff was not contributing factor to his teams loss and refused to use that as an excuse. They played exactly like the way we expected them to play physically , tough, don’t beat yourself and they did those exact things”

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I agree total B.S. Prior to the game, all we heard was how their huge O-Line will dominate N.D., especially without #99. And if they won, we would have heard the same old song and dance about N.D. not being able to win a major bowl. Now that they lost, all the apologists are coming to the rescue along with the excuses.

They beat Texas twice and won the SEC, and got a first round bye, but now that the lose to N.D. it was a down year for them?

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has been spotty also.

GRANTED... this is the first year they've actually had to play real teams from the West. Historically, they get the doormats of college football: Vandy, Ole Miss, Miss St., Kentucky, Missouri and Florida and TN haven't been good in 20 years. They only play Auburn and So. Carolina every year. No LSU and No Bama. These two teams are all that has made of the big, bad SEC. Auburn is spotty and So. Carolina is always a seven or eight win team.

Alabama and Georgia were still good teams to the point where they could contend for top 10 rankings, but not in that upper echelon where they'd smoke lesser teams. Neither team was as good as what they were in previous years. That's why a lot of sports writers are calling this the "year of parity."

The same could be said about the other "big boys" in the way of Clemson, and even Oklahoma. Oklahoma hasn't quite been the same since Lincoln Riley left, but it still remains to be seen if Brett Venables can get them back to contention.

The only team that really stayed the course was tOSU, and even then, they had their fair share of stumbles.

If we're going to win a NC, this is one of the best opportunities to do so.

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the SEC.

It's really not a shocker. That has disbursed the talent away from the hands of three to five schools.

The SEC isn't in a "down" year, but rather everyone else is just rising up and able to challenge due to NIL and the portal. It's significantly changed the landscape of college football and coaches like Saban can't horde 5 star players who sit the bench. Why do you think he left Bama when he did? He knew what was coming.

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1. Georgia has won 2 of the last 3 National Championships and a case can easily be made that it would be 3 of 3 if they got into the playoff last season. While this may have been a slightly down season for Georgia, I would present that this was more because they've played the toughest schedule in the nation (as you yourself have alluded to throughout the season) than because there is some significant drop-off in how good they are. They still have a 73% blue chip ratio vs our 63%, they have who's largely considered the best active HC in the game, and they were projected by most to advance to the NCG vs Oregon or Tosu. So from a big picture perspective, they are every bit as dominant of a program as Miami was in '88 and if they had run through ND and PSU en route to winning another NC they'd just be considered another dominant SEC National Champion...but WE beat them. That's the main difference, it's about what we DID more than what they didn't.

2. The last time Georgia lost to a non-SEC team was to Texas in like 2018. Other than Ol Miss this year, they had not lost to a team not named Bama in that stretch. They won the SEC Championship "Again" beating a highly talented Texas team for the second time, they were were the #2 ranked team in the nation and #2 seed in the CFP bracket, they were 4-0 vs teams seeded in the CFP, they obliterated the ACC Champs (CFP team), spanked Aub, Texas (CFP team), Florida, and Tennessee (CFP team).

3. They were 3-0 vs ND all time and ND hadn't won a major bowl sine the end of the 1993 season. They were considered good enough that even with their backup QB, most pundits still predicted them to beat us and a large contingent of their fan base (who now says 'oh you only beat a poor version of Georgia') thought they would blow us out of the water and we were silly little homers for thinking we had any chance in this game.

Marcus Freeman in only his third year as a HC, at a University that allegedly holds coaches back from success, just out coached the guy thought to be the best on this level and beat a more talented team for the highest ranked postseason win by Notre Dame since beating #1 Colorado after the 1989 season.

This was a HUGE win, regardless of how anyone tries to move the goalposts now that it has occurred.

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They are on the local news 24/7 throughout the season. It is widely discussed and accepted that this isn’t as good a team as in the recent past. They barely beat Kentucky, took 8 overtime’s to beat Georgia Tech, and lost to Mississippi. They lost to Alabama who finished with 4 losses.

Sorry if you disagree and I apologize for making you write that novel. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to tell they weren’t as good this year. Their WRs dropped passes all year not just against us. They didn’t have a dominant RB let alone the type of dominant TE they’ve grown accustomed to having.

We beat a very good team. Make no doubt about it. Hell this board has been badmouthing how crappy the SEC is for weeks/months. Can’t have it both ways.

good team, who was still seeded number 2 at their own game. I am very proud of that victory. Nothing can diminish this.

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in the 3rd year finished 13-1 with only loss to Bama by 3pts in SEC CCG and along the way beat FSU so bad it scrambled their DNA and made them forget how to play the game of American Collegiate Football.

As good as they were in that 3 year stretch, they still struggled @Kentucky and @Mizzou in '22, and also @Ga Tech (last year).

So what real value does it hold, to say that a team who lost 2 regular season games this year is not 'as good' as the teams that lost 2 total games in 3 years and won back2back natties, other than to attempt to diminish what Notre Dame has done?

Notice I never said they were as good..my point was that their schedule strength has a lot to do with the perceived 'amount' of drop off and that we didn't beat them because we had a superior roster.

This was the first team we played this year, that when I looked out there, I saw players that outmatched us physically at nearly every position. We WON this game off of effort, coaching and culture, and as a Notre Dame "fanatic" supporting a 3rd Year HC who is still in his Ascension phase, this IS something we should puff our chests out and be proud of not try to diminish.

They were in recent past years. There was a “stratification” that was happening over the last 4/5+ years where the top 3-4 years were far better than 5-10, let alone 11-25. That doesn’t exist this year and most people readily recognize that. It’s blatantly obvious. You are amazingly stubborn and always seem to think you’re 100% right and no one knows as much as you do

in a style that mimics Georgia's own style. If it makes you feel better I will say we 99% wouldn't have beaten their last three years teams. Enjoy this win if you truly can. I hear the Georgia fans repeating this wasn't their best team but I never heard Kirby say this like a true competitor would not.

And complaining about the refs in the game. He’s more of a whiner than Kelly was/is.

You start out saying you don't see where we disagree, but then turn around and call me stubborn and say I always think I'm 100% right and no one else knows as much as me...I'm honestly floored here right now, as that's so far from accurate about me.

I have opinions, like you have opinions..I highly doubt you have many opinions that you THINK are incorrect.. lol, or it wouldn't be your opinion!
..that's kinda how opinions work, right?

I actively seek others opinions and consider what they say..its a primary way I learn where I'm wrong and determine when to adjust my opinions.

I enjoy talking about differences in opinions, presenting points and hearing/considering counter points..MOST specifically with people who I like and respect their intelligence and varied experiences. I thought we were on the same page here, as two Vets who are co-alligned on a great number of things but have strong takes on our few differences. I guess I mistook our interactions on here, so that's that.

Yeah, we don't disagree much on the subject that was being discussed. Despite their drop off from the last 3 years, they still have a MUCH better roster than us, but we beat them because we are the better "team".

Can't see any reason to bring up their drop off, other than to diminish what Notre Dame accomplished, since the way all sports work is you only have to be better than the teams that are playing THAT YEAR.

Plenty of outsiders are throwing shade to dismiss what Notre Dame and Marcus Freeman have accomplished..guess I just can't see any reason why a Notre Dame fanatic would embrace this right now. But hey, to each their own..you know so I'm not acting 100% right.

Right. We can really tell when you write novels to deny it.

It’s all good. I know I’m not always right, and I know I tend to not be all in and find fault with ND. I think part of that is due to where I live in SEC country, part is because my immediate family are all SEC people, and partly because ND fans are looked at as being insufferable and I can’t say I disagree.

This is our best team in probably 30 years and we struck gold with Freeman. I will readily admit I was wrong about him. He is better than I thought he was and he’s smart enough to surround himself with two aces for OC and DC. He needs to hold onto them as I think they are equally the reason for the success.

It’s all good.

Also they were still seeded number 2, that would make them at least very good in relation to the other teams and a tough out.

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Between the NIL and the portal it’s quite obvious the talent is more spread out.

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