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Updated Wednesday, October 31 at 3:32 PM
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Dawgs in the Cotton Bowl? One authority predicts visions of ’84 for Georgia
By John DuPont
ATHENS – The Georgia Bulldogs would wind up in the Cotton Bowl if a prediction model by Rivals.com comes to fruition. That hypothetical scenario pits the Bulldogs against the Kansas Jayhawks in Dallas on January 1.
The Cotton Bowl matches the SEC’s #4 team against the #2 team from the Big 12.
The Rivals.com prediction is an intriguing possibility, considering the course that Georgia’s season has taken. In the wake of losses to South Carolina and Tennessee, some fans had written the Bulldogs off for this season. A subsequent upset of Florida, though, has given Georgia at least a temporary hold on first place in the SEC East, with a shot to win the division outright.
Georgia (6-2, 4-2) currently has a half-game lead over Tennessee (5-3, 3-2) in the East, with remaining conference games against Auburn and Kentucky. Tennessee, meanwhile, still has SEC dates with Arkansas, Vanderbilt and Kentucky.
In order for Georgia to clinch its fourth SEC East title under Mark Richt, Tennessee needs to lose one game more than Georgia from this point forward, since both teams currently have two conference losses, and considering the fact that Tennessee beat Georgia head-to-head.
If Georgia wins both of its remaining games, and Tennessee goes no better than 2-1, the Dawgs will play in the SEC Championship game. All remaining teams in the field have already lost three conference games apiece.
The Rivals.com model predicts that Georgia will wind up as the #4 SEC choice, behind Auburn, Florida and Tennessee. The bowl model pits Auburn against Missouri in the Sugar Bowl; Florida against Penn State in the Capital One Bowl; and Tennessee against Illinois in the Outback Bowl.
Georgia is currently ranked 10th in the BCS, just behind 8th-ranked Kansas (8-0). It’s the highest the Jayhawks have been ranked since checking in at No. 6 in the AP poll in 1995.
There are few connections between the schools relating to football. The Bulldogs and Jayhawks have never met on the gridiron. However, former Jayhawks coach Glen Mason almost took over as Georgia’s coach. In 1995, Mason was hired to succeed Ray Goff, but spurned the job soon afterward and wound up staying in Lawrence for another season before taking the Minnesota job. Mason’s change-of-heart led to the hiring of Jim Donnan.
The Bulldogs boast a 2-1 record in three previous Cotton Bowl trips. Georgia beat SMU in a game played on New Year’s Eve in 1966. On New Year’s Day in 1976, Georgia lost to Arkansas.
Most memorable to legions of Georgia fans is the January 2, 1984 Cotton Bowl that saw the Bulldogs beat the Texas Longhorns. On what many fans still consider the greatest day in college football history, seventh-ranked Georgia scored a come-from-behind victory over No. 2 Texas, denying the Longhorns a shot at the mythical national title. Instead, No. 5 Miami locked up the first of five eventual national titles with a 31-30 upset of top-ranked Nebraska in the Orange Bowl.
Against the Longhorns in ’84, Georgia went into halftime tied 3-3 after Kevin Butler booted a 43-yard field goal with 17 seconds left in the second quarter. Texas led 9-3 heading into the final period after Jeff Ward booted his second and third field goals of the game.
With 3:22 left in the game, Georgia took over on the Texas 23-yard line. Bulldogs quarterback John Lastinger scored three plays later on a 17-yard option run to the right. Lastinger’s dive into the end zone, and Butler’s ensuing kick made it 10-9 in a game that ranks as one of Georgia’s all-time greatest victories.
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