As I write this, the afterglow of Georgia’s resounding victory over the seemingly invincible Crimson Tide is still bright. Every Dawg on earth wanted it to happen but most of us stifled our normally uproarious enthusiasm. The wound from the SEC Championship game was still fresh in our minds, and we fans conjure all manner of possible defeats and settle into a frame of mind that protects our fragile egos. How could this team led by a former walk-on stop the juggernaut for the West in a game played in Indianapolis?

Georgia’s players, products of Kirby Smart’s outstanding recruiting efforts knew how. They knew that the fanbase was in a funk. They also knew that they were perfectly capable of beating this edition of Saban’s Alabama. They knew that December’s lopsided loss was an outlier. They knew that all that would be required was their concentration and ability and they brought both to Indiana for the college football world to see.

Georgia simply wanted it more and they took it. They have no plans to return it. The Tide has ebbed.

In my mind, Zamir White’s hard runs into the teeth of the Tide defense in the last few minutes of the game are an excellent example of the attitude that brought the team back and cinched the Championship. Brutal, straight-ahead yardage that ate clock and screamed a changing of the guard in college football. Alabama knew what was coming, and they had no answer.

The Bulldogs have learned how to win the big one. There is now a cadre of national championship-winning players who will hit the field for spring practice in a couple of months. They know what it takes. They have watched some of the best leaders in school history simply refuse to let their team lose.

They know that Kirby Smart is just getting started.

They know what it takes to win.

They know we can not wait for September.