Georgia Bulldogs Countdown to Kickoff: 93 Days
It’s day No. 93 in the Georgia Bulldogs Countdown to Kickoff, and that takes us to the year 1993, the first day in fact. Why you may ask? It’s the only time that Georgia has played Ohio State in football, something that I find interesting for two programs with such rich history.
The 1992 Georgia Bulldogs led by Ray Goff went 10-2 and tied for the SEC Eastern Division championship with an SEC record of 6-2. Florida earned the berth to the SEC Championship Game – the first in history – and lost to No. 1 Alabama. However, the Bulldogs would go on to play in the Florida Citrus Bowl against the Buckeyes on New Year’s Day 1993.
If you have any interest in watching the full game, it’s available on YouTube. A condensed version is also available. But I’ll do my best to give you the Sparknotes version.
The hype going into the game was about the running backs, Garrison Hearst of Georgia and Robert Smith of Ohio State. Both rushed for over 1,000 yards during the season and lived up to the hype in-game. Georgia opened the game with a 14-play drive, its longest of the season, and took an early 7-0 lead. They passed only twice. On the Bulldogs’ second touchdown drive, they didn’t complete a pass. Hearst got all 45 yards on the ground. And on their game-winning touchdown drive with 4:32 left in the game, only three of the 11 plays were passes. Talk about old-school football.
Hearst, who took home MVP honors, totaled 163 yards and two touchdowns while Smith ran for 113 and a touchdown. Quarterback Eric Zeier passed for 242 yards to nine different receivers including a 21-yard completion to Shannon Mitchell on the game-winning drive. Frank Harvey punched it in from 1 yard out to give Georgia the win.
As I said before, I find it weird that Georgia and Ohio State have only played once before. That was supposed to change in 2020 and 2021, but Ohio State cancelled the home-and-home agreement in 2012 after the Big Ten and Pac-12 came to a scheduling partnership. It’s supposed to change again in 2030 and 2031 with another home-and-home agreement between the Bulldogs and Buckeyes. So mark your calendars for September 14, 2030. The scarlet and grey are set to take on the red and black between the hedges. Will it happen before then? Maybe. We’ll have to wait and see.
Recent Countdown to Kickoff Stories
No. 94 – Georgia interception leaders with 94 return yards, Remembering Quentin Moses
No. 95 – Taking a trip down I-95 for Georgia-Florida
No. 96 – Jim Donnan’s first season as Georgia head coach in 1996
