Championship Special Issue | January 13, 2022

ON TOP! SPECIAL ISSUE | JANUARY 13, 2022

After 41 years, Bulldogs win national title

K AT H R Y N S K E E A N / S TA F F

A2 ROLL OVER, TIDE

A3 TOP PLAYERS

A5 CHAMPION BOND

A7 SHOWCASE

Georgia and Smart finally defeat archrivals Alabama and Saban

Davis, Dean and other outstanding Dawgs from this season

Bulldogs national title teams connected across four decades

See some of our best photos from the showdown in Indianapolis

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a2 Thursday, January 13, 2022

THE RED & BLACK

Roll over, Tide

Georgia defeats Alabama 33-18 to win national championship

Lineman Jamaree Salyer holds the College Football National Championship trophy in Lucas Oil Stadium. K A T H R Y N

Drew Hubbard Georgia football defeated Alabama 33-18 to win the College Football Playoff for the first time since the 1980 season.

Here are some observations from The Red & Black:

The wait is over For the first time in over 40 years, the Georgia Bulldogs are atop college football after defeating Alabama 33-18 in the national championship. The win breaks the Crimson Tide’s seven-game winning streak against the Bulldogs and ends a decades-long national title drought.

Georgia has come close to winning it all before, but often came up just short to Alabama. Whether it was second-and-26 in the 2018 national championship, or four yards short in the 2012 SEC Championship game.

Now, all those moments of coming up so short don’t matter. Behind the arm of a walk-on quarterback and one of the best defenses in college football, the Bulldogs won the big one.

This season’s team now joins the elite Georgia teams from the 1942 and 1980 seasons as national champions.

Nick Saban’s team lost in Indianapolis. J E S S I C A

S K E E A N / S TA F F

G R AT I G N Y / S TA F F

Head coach Kirby Smart, who played for Georgia from 1995-1998, has led his alma mater to the top.

seal the title and make it 33-18 with under a minute left.

A new breed of Bulldogs

With Alabama’s offense driving and threatening to score the first touchdown of the game, the Bulldogs’ special teams broke through to keep Georgia within striking distance.

On fourth-and-11, Alabama kicker Will Reichard attempted a 48-yard field goal to extend Alabama’s lead to 12-6. Instead, Georgia defensive lineman Jalen Carter blocked the attempt to keep the Bulldogs down three.

The next play, running back James Cook earned a 66yard run to take the ball to Alabama’s 13-yard line. Zamir White ran one yard for the end zone to take a 13-9 lead before ending the game on top.

After the blocked field goal, Georgia outscored Alabama 27-9 leading to the Bulldogs’ victory.

Blocked kicks have become a theme for Georgia in the postseason. Last time Georgia was in the CFP, the Bulldogs defeated Oklahoma after a Sooners’ kick was blocked in overtime. Now, a blocked kick helped lead Georgia to a national title.

Georgia fans that were born after 1980 have never witnessed the Bulldogs win a national championship. Instead, they watched highlights from the past and hoped one day they would see Georgia become national champions.

Now, those fans can put away the old highlights and remember the moment when time ran out and the Bulldogs were the champions of college football.

Georgia earned the title behind the performance of multiple players including quarterback Stetson Bennett, running back Zamir White and defensive backs Christopher Smith and Kelee Ringo. All four made decisive plays for Georgia and will live on in college football history.

Bennett threw for 224 yards and two touchdowns and zero interceptions. On the ground, White ran for 84 yards and one touchdown. Smith’s interception in the third quarter was Georgia’s first forced turnover of the game.

With Alabama driving to tie the game, Ringo intercepted Bryce Young and returned it 79 yards for a touchdown to

Historic block

Unsung heroes step up for Georgia in national title game Jake Jennings When Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs took the field for the national championship game, they boasted a roster riddled with talent and stars. However, like the other games in Georgia’s championship season, it was the unsung heroes who stepped up for the Bulldogs on Monday night.

Throughout Georgia’s season unlikely names were called upon to step up in big moments. From Dan Jackson’s punt block against Arkansas to Stetson Bennett’s unlikely rise to starting quarterback, the season was filled with underdog stories. And against Alabama, Georgia’s trend of unlikely playmakers continued.

Georgia endured multiple setbacks to its receiver room throughout the 2021-22 season, forcing young players to step up.

In the team’s 33-18 victory over Alabama, freshman tight end Brock Bowers and freshman receiver Adonai Mitchell were the two receivers to find the end zone for the Bulldogs.

Bowers ended the game with four catches for 36 yards while Mitchell grabbed two for 50 yards.

Throwing to the young receivers was Bennett, a former walk-on and transfer who stepped up when his team needed him.

The gunslinger has heard criticism about his qualifications all season. Bennett said he knew he had to step up after he turned

the ball over in the fourth quarter.

“I knew that once I fumbled the ball I was not going to be the reason that we lost this game,” Bennett said. “I knew that those guys beside me had my back, and I had their back, too.”

Bennett finished the game with 224 passing yards and two touchdowns, enough to claim the offensive MVP of the contest. The quarterback couldn’t contain his emotions when the championship was sealed.

“Then the tears afterwards, that just hit me. I hadn’t cried in, I don’t know, years, but that just came over me,” Bennett said.

“That’s what – when you put as much time as we do into this thing, blood, sweat, tears, it means something.”

Outside of Bennett and his young pass catchers, unsung heroes struck on the defensive side of things as well.

Throughout the year, defensive back Kelee Ringo has gone through his ups and downs. He has struggled in certain games and Smart has admitted that the redshirt freshman has lots of room to grow.

With the game on the line and Alabama driving down the field, Ringo took the game into his own hands. An underthrown pass from Bryce Young found its way to Ringo, who grabbed the interception and returned it 79 yards for a touchdown.

“The sad thing is that I was screaming to get down,” Smart said. “I saw the receiver coming behind him, and [with a] pessi-

Cornerback Kelee Ringo intercepted Alabama quarterback Bryce Young to seal the national championship for Georgia. K A T H R Y N S K E E A N / S T A F F mistic thought or whatever, I was worried about the guy stripping the ball from behind. Then I realized [number 11] wasn’t going to catch Kelee.”

To win its first national championship in 41 years, Georgia had to adapt and overcome throughout the entire season. The team found a way to surpass and move forward, much to the thanks of Georgia’s nextman-up mentality and unity as a team.

Senior defensive tackle Jordan Davis knows that the Bulldogs’ chemistry and work ethic allowed for players to step up when their time came, throughout the season and on the biggest stage of all.

“It doesn’t matter where you are from.

Football is the great equalizer,” Davis said.

“You’ve got different backgrounds coming together in one locker room all working for a common goal, which is to win.”

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Thursday, January 13, 2022

THE RED & BLACK

Best Bulldogs

Lineman Jordan Davis embraces the College Football Playoff trophy after a 33-18 victory over Alabama. K A T H R Y N

Katherine Lewis Georgia football had a historic 2021 season, winning its first national title since the 1980 season. After dominating in the regular season, the Bulldogs faltered in the SEC Championship, only to defeat Alabama 33-18 in the national championship. Here are some of Georgia’s top players throughout the 2021 season.

Brock Bowers, #19 Prior to the season, few Georgia football fans predicted a true freshman tight end would lead the team in regular season receiving yards. With preseason injuries to some of Georgia’s top tight ends, the four-star prospect from Napa, California, had an opportunity to flaunt his skills in Week 1 against Clemson, when quarterback JT Daniels connected with Bowers for six receptions and 43 yards.

Since then, he has tallied 882 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns, both leading the team. Bowers has not been shy of making his own history on the field. Against UAB in Week 2, quarterback Stetson Bennett found Bowers for an 89-yard touchdown pass, marking the ninth-longest touchdown reception in school history. The freshman was recognized for his stellar regular season, being named the AP SEC Newcomer of the Year and was awarded the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award. In the season finale, Bowers contributed 36 yards in the receiving game.

Jordan Davis, #99 Standing at 6-foot-6 and 340 pounds, Jordan Davis is a difficult man to miss on the field for the Bulldogs. At defensive tackle, the senior from Charlotte, North Carolina, has added 32 total tackles and two sacks throughout 15 games.

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In the Bulldogs’ senior day celebration against Charleston Southern, Davis did something he had yet to do in red and black: score a touchdown. With two yards remaining to the end zone, the defensive tackle lined up as a running back and took two plays to push the ball in to score. Davis became a household name for college football fans as he led the team to a national title.

Nakobe Dean, #17 Adding to Georgia’s top-ranked defense is inside linebacker Nakobe Dean. The junior from Horn Lake, Mississippi, earned a starting position in all 15 games this season, recording 72 total tackles, which is second on the team. His six sacks also ranks second, behind Robert Beal Jr. Against Florida, Dean tallied his first pick six of the season as he intercepted a pass by Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown.

He earned another interception against Auburn, setting Georgia’s offense up for a field goal.

In the National Championship, Dean accounted for four total tackles.

Dean has been an essential part of the Bulldogs’ defense, which has only allowed 10.2 points per game this season, which is best of any Football Bowl Subdivision team. On Dec. 5, he was named the winner of the 2021 Butkus Award, which goes to the nation’s top linebacker.

Stetson Bennett, #13 From a walk-on to leading the team to a national championship, Stetson Bennett has earned Georgia’s starting quarterback position during his senior year.

Bennett earned the starting position 12 times this season. Throughout participation in the first 14 games, he has

passed for 2,862 yards and 29 touchdowns, good for a quarterback rating of 176.7.

After his performance against Alabama in the SEC Championship, many doubted Bennett’s abilities to lead the Bulldogs in their playoff run. He proved his skeptics wrong in the Orange Bowl, passing for 313 yards and three touchdowns, and again in the national title game, passing for 224 yards and two touchdowns.

After an exceptional showing in the playoffs and being named the offensive MVP in both games, Bennett has led his teammates to become champions.

Derion Kendrick, #11 A defensive back transfer, Derion Kendrick has made a huge impact on Georgia’s inexperienced secondary corps.

The senior announced his commitment to Georgia on June 1 after playing three years of football at Clemson. Kendrick started in all 15 games this season and put up 41 total tackles and four interceptions.

In the Bulldogs’ season opener against his former team, he recorded three tackles, and has only improved since.

Two of his interceptions came against South Carolina and Tennessee, both times setting Georgia up for a touchdown on the next drive.

In the Bulldogs’ game against Michigan, he doubled his interceptions from two to four, which came in back-to-back offensive drives for the Wolverines.

Kendrick’s move to the team eased many peoples’ fears of the depth in Georgia’s secondary. The Bulldogs lost multiple defensive backs to the NFL draft after the 2020 season. Kendrick was a major part of the Bulldogs being ranked near the top of FBS in passing yards allowed per game heading into the national title game.

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a4 Thursday, January 13, 2022

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Stars without five stars

Stetson Bennett runs from a Michigan player in the Orange Bowl.

Ladd McConkey prepares for a play against Missouri on Nov. 6.

Devonte Wyatt stares down Clemson opposition on Sept. 4.

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For the past five years, Georgia football has had a top-five national recruiting class. Under head coach Kirby Smart, the Bulldogs have been able to acquire some of the best high school talent in the country. However, in one of the program’s most historic seasons, the playmakers were not as highly rated coming into college.

Stetson Bennett, Devonte Wyatt, Justin Shaffer and Ladd McConkey have made their mark on Georgia’s 2021 national championship season, despite an underwhelming performance in the SEC Championship for some of them.

While they have produced for the Bulldogs, none of them were five- or four-star recruits coming out of high school.

Wyatt, Shaffer and McConkey were all listed as threestar recruits, according to Rivals.com. Bennett was listed as a two-star recruit before leaving Georgia to attend Jones College in Ellisville, Mississippi, for a year before coming back to the Bulldogs and later leading them to defeat Alabama in the national championship game.

Smart said he does not put stock into player’s stars when he is recruiting future Bulldogs.

“I have no idea what the stars are, nor do I care,” Smart said. “It’s not like we have that in our records. We don’t put that beside their name. Some places, they put what the recruiting analysts say about them. I don’t care. I just care more about the player.”

said is valuable when looking at potential future Bulldogs.

“Watching them compete live, there’s no substitute for that,” Smart said. “Because you see how they interact with players, fans, the coaches, how they react to a poor play, how they react to a really good play.”

Rivals.com recruiting analyst Ryan Wright said Rivals uses different ways to assess players’ talent and assign stars. Wright said they study film, watch players in person and have their own camp series.

The camp series gives high school recruits the opportunity to compete against players from across the country.

Wright said these camps give recruits who are not as highly rated the chance to be noticed by college coaches.

“There’s that water cooler talk, if you will, names [and] information gets spread. College coaches get tips and stuff like that,” Wright said. “So, anytime a player can go out and compete, and show that they belong, I encourage it.”

Once players have gone through the recruiting process, they now have the decision of where to play. While recruits often have multiple schools fighting for their signature, there is a lot to consider when choosing the next step.

Players have to choose teams that are best suited to their style of play to have the best possible college career and move onto the NFL, Wright said.

“Not all college coaches are the same when it comes to being able to develop players,” Wright said. “Some coaches are better at getting those guys prepared for the league.”

The process

Making history

He threw for 1,985 yards, 21 touchdowns and five interceptions through 11 regular season games played. Bennett found success through the air behind Georgia’s offensive line, which allowed eight sacks through 12 games.

As for Shaffer, his consistent presence has proved to be a large part of the offensive line’s success. He started all 12 regular season games at left guard after leaving Cedar Grove High School as a three-star recruit.

“I looked at it as motivation because I felt like I was underrated. I came in, day one, worked like I had a chip on my shoulder and always kept my head down,” Shaffer said.

With time to throw the ball, Bennett has found McConkey as one of the offense’s most consistent threats.

McConkey, a redshirt freshman, is third in receiving yards with 444 yards. Although he didn’t see much action in the national championship, he was consistent in the SEC Championship, catching a pass to tie up the game in the first half.

The Bulldogs’ historic regular season was led by the defense, which allowed an average of 230.6 yards per game, the best in the country. Georgia allowed Alabama 537 yards in the SEC championship but only 399 in the final.

Wyatt played a large role in Georgia’s regular season defensive success, playing in 11 of 12 games. He ended the regular season with six tackles for loss, which was tied for third-highest on the team with Channing Tindall. In the national championship, he had four total tackles, including three on his own.

The Bulldogs have had one of the program’s best seasons, and they have been led by players who were not highly rated coming out of high school. However, on any given Saturday, anything can happen.

“There’s all sorts of success stories across the board about guys that just had the heart and the work ethic and also were lucky enough to stay healthy to make it through.

That’s what makes the game fun and amazing,” Wright said.

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Despite their low ratings in high school, Bennett, Wyatt, McConkey and Shaffer have made their mark on the Bulldogs.

Bennett came into the season as the backup quarterback to JT Daniels after Daniels impressed in 2020. Daniels was the starting quarterback heading into 2021, starting against Clemson, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. However, Daniels suffered an injury, so Bennett took the starting job and led Georgia to a national title.

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As recruits compete for their high schools all across the country, colleges are also in the middle of playing. While still in season, Smart looks for future players while coaching.

Smart said the coaching staff has to manage its time between preparing for games and Georgia players’ mental health, while also recruiting high schoolers.

Even with the challenges, Smart and the coaching staff make visits to watch players in person, something Smart

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a5 Thursday, January 13, 2022

THE RED & BLACK

Bond of champions Georgia’s past and present title wins connected

Drew Hubbard The night before the national championship game, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart got off the elevator in his hotel on the 15th floor. Sitting on a bench was former Georgia head coach Vince Dooley, who led the Bulldogs to their last national championship in the 1980 season. Dooley was locked out of his hotel room.

Smart said seeing Dooley there was a sign of good things to come. The next day, Smart was hugging Dooley, this time, as a fellow national champion.

“I think about hugging Vince Dooley’s neck after the game, and I’m in tears, and he’s in tears,” Smart said.

It had been since Jan. 1, 1981, the last time Georgia was crowned national champions of college football. Dooley was on the sideline, finishing off a 12-0 record with a 17-10 win over Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl.

While Smart knew about the championship drought, he made this win about the players on the field, not history.

Smart said the win was due to the players’ toughness and connections throughout the entire game.

This toughness and connection came into play against Alabama when the Bulldogs turned the ball over in their own territory. The Crimson Tide recovered a fumble on Georgia’s 16-yard line. Three plays later, Alabama scored to take an 18-13 lead.

That was the last touchdown of the Crimson Tide’s season, as Georgia’s defense shut down Bryce Young and Alabama. The Crimson Tide had an opportunity to tie the game, down 26-18 and with the ball.

However, Georgia’s defense sealed the win with Kelee Ringo returning an interception 67 yards for a touchdown to take a 33-18 lead with less than a minute remaining.

One of the leaders of the defense is linebacker Nakobe Dean, who won the Butkus Award, given to the nation’s best linebacker. Although the nation first saw how good Georgia’s defense was in Week 1 against Clemson, and again in the national championship, Dean saw the unit’s talent in preseason.

“That’s kind of when I knew this team could be special and get the job done, and it had the group of guys to do it,” Dean said.

Georgia not only ended a championship drought, but it also ended the Crimson Tide’s winning streak over the Bulldogs. Alabama had won seven straight games over Georgia, and Smart had never beaten his former mentor, Alabama head coach Nick Saban.

Saban was previously 25-1 against former assistants, losing against Jimbo Fisher earlier this year, who coached with Saban at LSU from 2000-2004. While Saban’s attempt at an eighth national championship failed, he is proud of the work Smart has done at Georgia.

“Kirby has a lot of respect for us. He did a great job for us for a long time,” Saban said. “If we had to lose a national championship, I’d rather lose one to one of the former assistants who certainly did a great job for us.”

Georgia defeated Alabama 33-18 to win its first national championship since 1981. K A T H R Y N The Bulldogs’ win is one that will live on in Georgia history as one of only three teams to win a national championship.

Now, the confetti has fallen, the trophy is lifted and there is only one team left standing. Despite all the challenges the 2021 season brought Georgia, there is one thing that is for sure, the Bulldogs are national champions, and that can

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never be taken away from them.

“I think back to the [1980] championship picture and seeing all those players and the Frank Walkers and the Herschel Walkers and all these people that have reached out and said things,” Smart said.

“Our guys have accomplished something special, and as they say, they’ve become legendary,” he said.

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Thursday, January 13, 2022

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Report card

Grading Bulldogs’ position groups after 33-18 win Stuart Steele Georgia defeated Alabama in the College Football Playoff championship game by a score of 33-18, earning its first national title since the 1980 season. Following the game, The Red & Black graded each position group’s performance.

Quarterback Following the SEC Championship loss to Alabama, Stetson Bennett had immense pressure on him to perform in the national championship game. Understandably, he was a bit frantic in the first half, struggling to get in rhythm with pressure from Alabama. After a controversial fumble call early in the fourth quarter, Bennett was everything Georgia needed him to be. He responded on the next drive, leading the Bulldogs on a 75-yard touchdown drive, completing all three of his passes for 68 yards and a 40-yard bomb to Adonai Mitchell. Bennett would add a 15-yard touchdown to freshman phenom Brock Bowers later in the quarter. While he wasn’t perfect throughout the game, Bennett fought through adversity and did what he had to do to put Georgia in position to beat Alabama. After a season of questions surrounding Georgia’s quarterback position, Bennett proved the doubters wrong on the biggest stage of all, against the team that had bested Georgia seven straight times.

For that, he deserves all the plaudits he’ll get for years.

Grade: A-

Running backs Similarly to Bennett, Georgia’s rushing attack struggled heavily in the first half, managing just 26 rushing yards. However, the backs showed up in the second half, with James Cook’s 67-yard run waking the entire offense up, and Zamir White punching in a one-yard touchdown later in the drive.

When Georgia got the ball back up 19-18, the backs and the offensive line took over, as the Bulldogs ran the ball six times, im-

posing their will on the Crimson Tide with consistent solid runs. The Bulldogs ran for 114 yards in the second half, and White and Cook’s strong performances were a huge reason why.

Grade: A-

Receivers Georgia’s receivers were consistently good when Bennett was given time to throw.

George Pickens made an absurd 52-yard reception on the Bulldogs’ first scoring drive, and Adonai Mitchell’s 40-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter will live in Georgia football lore forever. Bowers added another score to his outstanding freshman campaign, and the Bulldogs were able to put away Alabama in crunch time.

Grade: A

Offensive line

Zamir White scores the first touchdown of the game. White led the Bulldogs with 84 rushing yards.

No position group in the national championship got off to a worse start than Georgia’s offensive line. Bennett was under duress throughout the first half, and the running game struggled, posting just 26 yards on 13 attempts. However, the group responded in a big way in the second half, particularly after the Bennett fumble in the fourth quarter. The line gave Bennett time on the last go-ahead drive for Georgia and controlled the Alabama defensive line on the touchdown drive that put the Bulldogs up 26-18. The first half struggles followed by second half triumphs tippified Georgia’s night, and the line did enough for the Bulldogs to win.

Grade: B+

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Front seven The biggest difference between the SEC Championship game and the national championship was without a doubt Georgia’s front seven. After struggling to pressure Bryce Young in the first matchup, the Bulldogs got after him early and often in the rematch. In the end, the Bulldogs sacked Alabama’s Heisman Trophy winning quarterback four times, making him uncomfortable in the pocket throughout the

game. Georgia also held the Crimson Tide to 30 rushing yards, ensuring that the game would rest on Young’s shoulders. In the red zone, the Bulldogs held strong, barring one Alabama touchdown that came off a Georgia turnover. All season, the Bulldogs’ defense was the story of the team, and on the biggest stage, after over 40 years since the last championship, the group was dominant. Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean and the whole group up front will live on in Georgia’s football lore for decades to come.

Grade: A+

Secondary After the front seven, no position group was more impressive in the national championship than Georgia’s secondary. The group was a question mark coming into the season, and in the SEC Championship they appeared to be exposed by Bryce Young and Alabama’s passing attack. Young still passed for 369 yards in Indianapolis, but Christopher Smith and Kelee Ringo both had interceptions, and Ringo’s 79-yard return touchdown sealed the game for the Bulldogs. Georgia did a fantastic job of lim-

iting big plays from the Alabama offense, and held up in the red zone to limit the Tide to just 18 points.

Grade: A

Special Teams Kicker Jack Podlesny and punter Jake Camarda played as well as Georgia could’ve hoped for, with Podlesny nailing two field goals and three extra points in the game and Camarda punting five times with an average distance of 44.6 yards. Camarda was huge in the field position battle of the first half and the third quarter, helping limit Alabama to just nine points through three quarters. Georgia’s field goal block unit also made a huge play, as Jalen Carter blocked an Alabama field goal attempt late in the third quarter to keep the score at 9-6. While there were penalties, including a questionable fair catch interference call in the first quarter and a holding call that negated a long kickoff return by running back Kenny McIntosh, it’s hard to quibble with the group as a whole when the kicker and punter were so consistent.

Grade: A

How Stetson Bennett’s flip phone helped lead Georgia to Indianapolis Jake Jennings Stetson Bennett is used to being the underdog. From coming to Georgia in 2017 as a walk-on and playing for the scout team, to his time in Mississippi at Jones College, the Bulldogs’ quarterback has always had to work for his successes.

On Monday night, when Bennett took the field at Lucas Oil Stadium, the fifth-year quarterback took advantage of the unique opportunity and etched his name in Georgia history.

Despite all the noise and attention Bennett had on him this season, he has managed to stay focused with the help of one key tool: a flip phone.

“Stetson doesn’t really pay too much attention to what’s being said of him,” linebacker Quay Walker said. “Having a flip phone -- I don’t think [Bennett] really cares too much about the outside noise and social media.”

Throughout his time as Georgia’s starter Bennett has seen his fair share of criticism. The quarterback started five games for the Bulldogs in 2020 before losing the starting spot to JT Daniels after a rough two-interception performance in a loss to SEC East rivals Florida.

This season, Daniels came out as the starting quarterback against Clemson in Week 1. However, through injury, Bennett was able to see his way back into the starting position.

Bennett has stayed focused and poised throughout the season despite constant questions about the quarterback battle between him and Daniels. One way that Bennett has stayed focused this season is a bit unconventional, but seems to have helped.

Having a flip phone is something that Bennett decided on before the start of the 2021 season. He said that he knew the upcoming season would be important for him and he wanted to be able to fully focus without any distractions.

“I guess in June or July, I went -- I had a bunch of school coming up the next semester, I had football, I was like, ‘I

Quarterback Stetson Bennett stands under confetti after leading Georgia to a national title. K A T H R Y N spend, whatever, an hour on my smartphone a day doing what? Doing nothing,’” Bennett said. “And I was like, ‘well, I’ve got all this stuff to do, all this important stuff, let’s try not to let anything get in the way of that focus and just go get a flip phone.’”

Bennett’s ability to shut out the doubters and haters has shown on the field. Since taking over the starting position, he has led Georgia to win its first national championship since 1980. This year, Bennett threw the ball 287 times, completing 185 of those passes for 2,862 yards. The

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quarterback also boasts 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Running back James Cook, one of Bennett’s favorite targets out of the backfield, has seen his quarterback stay focused this year and believes in him no matter the circumstances.

“I mean, he just kind of ignored it and blocked it out,” Cook said. “[Bennett] did a ton of work every day to lead us to a national championship. That’s what he’s been doing all year and all season long.”

About Us Publishing online daily at redandblack.com and in print each Thursday of the academic year by The Red & Black Publishing Company Inc. Subscriptions: $84. All rights reserved. Reprints by permission. Opinions expressed are those of contributors and not necessarily those of The Red & Black Publishing Company Inc. The Red & Black has covered the University of Georgia and Athens since 1893. Independent of the university since 1980, The Red & Black is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit company with the dual missions of training students for future careers in journalism and serving our community as an independent news source. We receive no funding from the university and are self-supporting through advertising, events and donations.

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