According to Vegas, this game leaned in the Dawgs favor. But for the first time in a long time, this truly was anybody’s game. Despite Georgia’s objective success—back-to-back national championships, 29-game winning streak, et cetera—with Alabama as the set opponent going into the SEC Championship Game, it still felt like the Tide were a looming threat to the three-peat that seemed to be in such close grasp. And it turns out they were.

In an unpredictable and hard-fought game that came down to the final possessions, the Georgia Bulldogs failed to take home the 2023 SEC Championship in a twenty-seven to twenty-three loss against the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Facing the most talented defense he’s seen all season, Carson Beck found himself in a heightened amount of duress in the pocket. Alabama’s front was exceptionally physical, that’s not hard to point out. But it’s important to note that on top of that, Georgia’s first string and projected first round right tackle Amarius Mims didn’t play after the second offensive series of the game.

It’s fitting given the opponent, but this was the least comfortable Beck has been all season, and you could see it in this inability to make throws. There were multiple instances where Beck was forced to roll out of the pocket and throw off platform. The ball almost wound up in the defense’s hands once or twice, but luckily enough for Beck, they were dropped—though interceptions were not the difference in this game.

Those who watched the game may say the difference was the refs. Isaiah Bond’s supposed fourth-down-converting catch that led to a touchdown was problematic to say the least. But Georgia can blame itself for its inability to execute on offense and inability to keep up with the athlete that is Jalen Milroe on defense.

On the defensive side of the ball, pass rush was really hit or miss. If Georgia wasn’t sacking him (which they did four times), Milroe was eluding rushers to get first downs.

Though Alabama was giving Georgia fits on multiple fronts, the Dawgs respectfully remained composed and resilient throughout the game—as is their mantra. It just wasn’t enough to get them over the mountain.

At the end of the day, this SEC Championship was an exhibition of the two best teams in college football. An elite Georgia team was taken down by an Alabama who’s proving to the world that they still got it. To some, this was college football’s national championship.

Speaking of which, the implications of this game on the College Football Playoff have yet to be decided, but let it be known that Coach Kirby Smart emphasized in his post-game presser that the CFP is about the “four BEST” teams in the country:

“If you’re going to tell me somebody sitting in that committee room doesn’t think that that Georgia team’s not one of the best four teams, I don’t know if they’re in the right profession.”