The Hype Machine has been full speed ahead on this one for a long time, as two of the most storied programs in college football history collide Saturday night Between the Hedges, with the Georgia Bulldogs hosting the Texas Longhorns.
This will be just the eighth all-time meeting between these blue bloods, but the third in the last two seasons.
Texas joined the Southeastern Conference a year ago, and the Bulldogs visited Austin for a highly anticipated matchup. The two then had a rematch in the SEC Championship Game.
The first time these two met was in the 1949 Orange Bowl. Led by hall of fame head coach Wally Butts and hall of fame quarterback Johnny Rauch, the Bulldogs were SEC champions and 9-1 on the season. It was Georgia’s third SEC title of the decade, as the Bulldogs had also captured the crown in 1942 and 1946. The Longhorns came in with a record of 6-3-1. It was a back and forth affair, but Texas scored the final two touchdowns and pulled away to win 41-28.
One of the standout players for the Longhorns that day in Miami was talented senior running back Tom Landry, who rushed for 117 yards and scored a touchdown in the Longhorns victory. For the future iconic head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, it was his final game as a player for Texas.
In 1957 and 1958, the Bulldogs and Longhorns squared off. Georgia was in a dismal state, having lost eight straight to the Yellow Jackets in the midst of an awful decade. It was so bad, that instead of playing Texas in Athens, the game was played in Atlanta in hopes of drawing better crowds. Georgia lost. The next season in Austin, the Bulldogs lost.
Georgia and Texas would not meet again until playing on arguably the greatest day in the history of college football.
It was January 2, 1984.
A Monday.
When New Year’s Day would fall on Sunday, college football’s biggest games would be played on either the 31st of December, or January 2.
In this era where the regular season meant almost everything, and conference champions were tied into certain bowl games, there was a harmonic convergence of destiny.
First things first, after Georgia beat the Yellow Jackets to go 9-1-1 and earn the Cotton Bowl berth, when I found out that we had school on January 2 and the game kicked off early in the afternoon, I went into full fledged panic mode. My dad assured me that I’d see the game, he’d pick me up a little after 11:00. With a half day, I’d get full attendance credit. My good friend Brad Lanier got to skip the whole day.
Texas was the Southwest Conference champion, ranked No. 2 at 11-0, locked into the Cotton Bowl. Mighty No. 1 Nebraska was undefeated, champions of the Big Eight and bound for the Orange Bowl to play once-beaten Miami. Auburn was ranked third at 11-1, and as SEC champion, in the Sugar Bowl, where the Tigers played Michigan.
The twists here – Georgia (which also tied Clemson) had lost only to Auburn. Auburn had lost only to Texas (the day of the 16-16 Georgia-Clemson tie). Miami was 10-1, losing only to Florida. The Gators, who went 9-2-1, lost only to Georgia and Auburn.
Well you know the history of the fumbled punt, John Lastiner’s 17-yard scoring jaunt, Kevin Butler’s PAT, the defensive stand and the fourth down conversion to run out the clock. If you don’t it was an epic ending. In fact, all of that good stuff started to happen when my dad had to run outside to talk with a guy about paving our gravel driveway. I then implored him to stay outside, not to jinx anything, as things were finally turning Georgia’s way in the epic 10-9 victory.
Later that night, Auburn edged Michigan 9-7 in New Orleans, and – in one of the all-time great college football classics – Miami upset Nebraska 31-30 in … Miami.
Who would be voted No. 1 the next day?
The Hurricanes jumped all the way to the top spot, winning their first national championship. Nebraska wound up No. 2, losing only to Miami. Auburn, unhappy, stayed at No. 3. Georgia was No. 4. Texas, which lost only to the Bulldogs, was No. 5, and for the Longhorns, they knew if they had beaten Georgia, after what happened in Miami, the crown would have been theirs. Florida would be No. 6. What a day. Three games that had a bearing on the national title were decided by a total of four points.
It would be another 35 years before the Bulldogs and Longhorns played again, with Texas beating Georgia 28-21 in the 2019 Sugar Bowl. The Bulldogs, crestfallen from a crushing SEC Championship Game loss to Alabama which kept Georgia out of the College Football Playoff, were outplayed by upstart Texas. Lessons were learned, and for surefire future Hall of Fame Bulldogs Coach Kirby Smart, his Bulldogs would then reel off seven straight bowl/CFP victories over the next five years.
Dynasty.
Georgia played one of its best games last season in Austin, beating the Longhorns 30-15. In an instant classic in Atlanta, the Bulldogs persevered 22-19 in overtime. Both would go on to make the College Football Playoff, but It was a game that took a lot out of both teams. Georgia suffered significant injuries.
Now here we go again, these two blue blood programs who have rarely played, teeing it up for the first time ever Between the Hedges. The ramifications are huge. Both are still in the playoff hunt and dreaming big. They might not have played much, but an Orange Bowl, a Cotton Bowl, the SEC Championship Game, and a top ten matchup, when these two do get together there tends be a lot on the line. Check that box again for Saturday night.