Four years ago, the Winning Smart Victory Post was the responsibility of our dear Podunk, the OG Housemother. When I wrote my first post, she had just passed (the Monday before the game), and we had just beaten Clemson in a very low scoring (no offensive touchdowns for either side) game, so the loss was very new, and very raw.
This year, due to the vagaries of the calendar, the anniversary of her passing was the day before the game was scheduled. Because we were playing Clemson again, my son (who lives near Podunk, Oklahoma) planned to come home with his new girlfriend, and the three of us were planning to attend the game.
To say I was looking forward to this would have been an understatement. August 30 is hard for me (another understatement), but the anticipation of seeing my boy and some good-natured ribbing and watching the game was keeping me (somewhat) in check.
And then, disaster struck. My son had an emergency that kept him in Oklahoma. So now, it’s Friday, my boy isn’t coming, it’s the anniversary, my students are bombing their first test, and I am in full meltdown mode. I have 3 tickets to the game that I can’t bear to go to now, so I post on Facebook because surely I know someone who wants to go to this game and can afford to take the tickets off my hand.
Mr. Squillian has offered to take me to the game, but I don’t even like taking him to Athens, much less Atlanta. He works on the campus of the NATS, so he has a daily hatred of Atlanta traffic. He also hates crowds in general, and the last time I took him to Mercedes-Benz stadium (for the 2021 SECCG), we lost (of course, the boy said I DEFINITELY had to take him). He doesn’t read the blog, so I don’t have to worry about upsetting him (so don’t tell him this next part), but taking him to games means I enjoy myself less.
It’s now 2:15, and the students have just left. My phone rings, and it’s my brother. He NEVER calls when I’m at work, but he knows what day it is, so I pick up the phone. He has seen the Facebook post, so he wants to know what has happened to keep my boy from coming. At that point, I burst into tears again. Through my sobs, I explain the boy’s emergency, and he immediately understands what is going on.
Now, understand: Brother Podunk lives in Connecticut, and works an hour away from his home. He has called as he is leaving work, and it’s 2:15PM. I’m assuming in hindsight that he pulled over, because now he says he didn’t have any plans for this weekend, and he’s online looking to see if there’s a flight available from Providence to Atlanta he can make. It turns out there’s a flight that’s due to leave Providence at 4:55, and if he runs home and packs quickly, and there’s no traffic, maybe he can make the flight and be in Atlanta ~ 9:30PM. There’s NO room for error, traffic, anything. This immediately calms me, and now I’m looking forward to the game again. I take down the FB post and tell Mr. Squillian that Brother Podunk is trying to get here. Remember, I have three tickets, so I can take both of them! (Although, to be fair, Mr. Squillian would have been perfectly fine with the two of us going and him staying home if there had only been two tickets).
The next communication from Brother Podunk is a picture of the traffic jam he’s in just outside of Providence. But by now, I’m home, and I’ve found a Delta flight that doesn’t leave until 6:53, but will be in Atlanta around the same time.
Friends, if you don’t believe in the afterlife, consider the following: Georgia won their first National Championship since 1980 the season immediately following the loss of Podunk. They won the second in an undefeated season immediately following. In any other college football season, we would have made the playoffs last year, and had the opportunity to try for a three-peat.
But back to this year: Because of the aforementioned traffic jam, Brother Podunk was late getting into the airport in Providence, but lo and behold, the flight was delayed, and he was able to get on the flight. But now we’re worried, because the connecting flight in DC is only a 30 minute layover. He gets to DC, and the DC-ATL flight is delayed 30 minutes, so now he has time to eat. Call it luck, karma, whatever you want, but personally, I’m going with Podunk was looking out for me. She knew I needed to be at the game, and she knew I wasn’t going to go by myself or just with Mr. Squillian.
I did have some concern during the first half of the game – it seriously reminded me of the 2021 game. By the middle of the third quarter, I wasn’t worried any more. We have depth, strength, conditioning – Clemson just couldn’t keep up with us. My only concern today is that with the expanded playoff this year, Clemson could still make the playoffs, and we might have to face them again. And we all know the stats about what happens when two teams meet twice in the same season…..
However, it is our intention to celebrate Georgia Bulldog Football wins whenever and wherever they occur. The ugliness or beauty of any particular win is irrelevant for the purposes of the Winning Smart Victory Post. It is therefore my deepest honor and privilege to bring to you this week’s edition of: The Winning Smart Victory Post.
Coach Kirby Smart coached his 111th game this week for the Red & Black. He currently boasts a 95-16 record and a 0.8559 winning percentage, having carded his ninety-fifth win overall in the AFLAC kickoff Bowl against the Sons of Clem.
At the identical juncture in their careers:
Vince Dooley’s 111th game as head coach resulted in a Georgia Bulldogs win over the Maryland Terrapins in the Peach Bowl of the 1973 season, giving Coach Dooley a record of 76-31-5 and 0.7072 percentage.
Coach Mark Richt was 86-25 (0.7748) after a loss to Tennessee in the sixth game of the 2009 season.
One hundred and eleven games into his head coaching career Kirby Smart is nine games ahead of Coach Mark Richt and ahead of Coach Vince Dooley by 19 games. As of now, he is more than holding his own versus the two winningest coaches in Georgia Football History.
As always . . .
Go ‘Dawgs !!!!