ATLANTA — Bryce Young stunningly carved up the nation’s top-rated defense, giving Nick Saban and Alabama a shot at another national championship.
Young threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as the fourth-ranked Crimson Tide rolled over No. 1 Georgia 41-24 in the Southeastern Conference championship game Saturday, a result that likely sends both powerhouse programs to the four-team College Football Playoff.
Young set SEC championship records with 421 yards passing and 461 yards total offense.
Georgia (12-1, No. 1 CFP) cruised through the regular season, barely challenged and a unanimous choice as the nation’s No. 1 team for the past two months. The Bulldogs boasted a fearsome defensive unit that had allowed only 6.9 points a game.
Young was the title game MVP and made Georgia’s vaunted defense look like a scout team, surely bolstering his Heisman Trophy chances as well as moving on to an even bigger game on the final day of 2021.
The playoff field will be announced Sunday, with the semifinals set for the Orange and Cotton bowls on Dec. 31.
Alabama (12-1, No. 3 CFP) had six offensive scoring drives — five covering at least 75 yards, the other 62 — and finished with a staggering 536 yards against a team that was giving up just under 231 per game.
The Tide’s defense wasn’t too shabby, either, essentially sealing the victory with Jordan Battle’s 42-yard interception return to the end zone with about 12 minutes remaining.
Georgia’s Stetson Bennett threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns, but he also had two crucial picks. Freshman Brock Bowers made 10 catches for 139 yards.
This one, however, will be remembered for Alabama’s dismantling of the Georgia defense, which had not allowed more than 17 points in a game during the perfect regular season.
After falling into a 10-0 hole on the first play of the second quarter, Alabama outscored the Bulldogs 41-14 the rest of the way. Not even an apparent knee injury that knocked top receiver John Metchie out of the game just before halftime could sidetrack the Tide.
Jameson Williams more than picked up the slack for his injured teammate, finishing with 184 yards on seven receptions.
Coming off a surprisingly difficult win over Auburn and already saddled with a loss, the Tide knew they needed a victory to ensure a trip to the playoff for the seventh time in its eight-year history.
No problem.
The reigning national champions gave Saban a chance to add to his record seven titles — six of them coming since he arrived in Tuscaloosa in 2007 to lead a storied program that has become perhaps the greatest dynasty in college football history.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart, a former defensive coordinator at Alabama, continues to be stymied by his former boss.
Smart dropped to 0-4 against Saban, with three of those losses coming in huge games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
During the 2017 season, Alabama beat the Bulldogs in overtime in the national championship game. The next year, the Tide prevailed in another thriller to capture the SEC championship.
And now, yet another setback for Smart with the conference title on the line.
Young set the tone during a dominant second quarter, guiding four straight scoring drives — three of them for touchdowns — to give the Tide a 24-17 lead at the break.
Young set an SEC championship game record for first-half passing yards with 286, sparked by a 67-yard touchdown pass to Williams — the longest play the Bulldogs have given up this season.
Young was just getting warmed up.
He zipped one to Metchie for a 13-yard score, drove the Tide into position for Will Reichard’s 33-yard field goal, and capped off his brilliant quarter by running 13 yards for a TD with just 26 seconds left in the half.
In a single quarter of football, Alabama put up more points on Georgia than any team had all year, also becoming the first to score more than two TDs in a game against the Bulldogs.
During the regular season, Georgia allowed only 29 points — in all 12 games combined — in the first half.
THE TAKEAWAY
Georgia: This could be a devastating blow to the psyche of a team that had looked unbeatable most the season. Smart will need to do the best coaching job of his career over the new few weeks to restore the Bulldogs’ confidence.
Alabama: Few gave the Tide much of a chance after their lackluster showing in the Iron Bowl, but the offensive line looked like an entirely different unit against Georgia’s massive front. Young had plenty of time to throw, and he took advantage of it.
UP NEXT
Depending on the playoff seedings, the SEC behemoths could be headed for a rematch in the semifinals. It would be the second time the league has placed two teams in the playoff, the other coming in 2017.
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