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B U L L D A W G I L L U S T R A T E D • 2 0 2 1 N A T I O N A L C H A M P I O N S E D I T I O N 2021 CONNECTED!

Taking orders now for Bulldawg Illustrated’s proudly, produced 172-page perfect-bound glossy “2021 Connected” magazine. The mega-edition National Champions’ issue includes game, scene, fan and final perspective content from Indy, plus over 150 fan photos from the game and the epic 2021 National Title campus celebration in Athens. Available in singles, 5-packs and 10-packs. Order a single copy of the Championship Issue for $33.18 – Click HERE! Order five (5) copies of the Championship Issue for $121.00 – Click HERE! Order ten (10) copies of the Championship Issue for $221.00 – Click HERE! 2021 National Champions Edition

2021 National Champions Edition

Congratulations 2021 National Championship Georgia Bulldogs

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B U L L DAWGI L LU ST R AT E D 2021 NATIONAL IN THIS ISSUE ‘OSKIE’ KELEE RINGO AND ADIOS ALABAMA! CHAMPIONS ISSUE PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE OUR TEAM THE GAME | 16 EDITOR: Vance Leavy CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Cheri Leavy MULTIMEDIA DIRECTOR: Greg Poole CHIEF SPORTS CONTRIBUTOR: Jeff Dantzler ART DIRECTOR: Stacey Nichols SALES: Caroline Kinney SPORTS: Jeff Dantzler, Greg Poole, Davis Baker, Murray Poole MULTIMEDIA SUPPORT: Hamilton Culpepper PHOTOGRAPHY: Greg Poole, Rob Saye, Blane Marable COVER: Rob Saye INSIDE COVER: Vance Leavy CHERI’S CRUSHES DESIGN: Hinge Creative Co. COLUMNISTS: Hamilton Culpepper, Loran Smith, Kevin Butler DELIVERY: John Cook, Wright Cook, Rob Freeman, Anna French, Scarlett French, Flynn Kelly, Caroline Kinney, John Kinney, Lynn McLanahan, Eleanor Morgan, Henry Morgan, James Morgan, Jack Sawyer, Cullen Sewell, Henry Stokes, Champ Vance NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION: February 2, 2022 THE SCENE | 26 THE FANS | 68 THE FINAL PERSPECTIVE | 120 2021 National Champions Edition ON THE COVER: (clock-wise from top) - Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean, Stetson Bennett, Kirby Smart, Julian Rochester, Jamaree Salyer, Zamir White BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 8 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FROM THE EDITOR These 2021 Connected Dawgs are the National Champions, so let the celebration continue with this special commemorative edition from our small, but stalwart team at Bulldawg Illustrated! A s I sit down to write my final note on the 2021 Georgia football season, it’s Tuesday morning, January 25, 2022. It VANCE LEAVY was exactly two weeks ago that I, much EDITOR IN CHIEF like most of you in the Bulldog Nation, awoke knowing that our Dawgs had earned the distinction of being national champions the previous evening. And, my oh my, what a magical day/night, January 10, 2022 was in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was on that same Tuesday morning (post victory over Alabama) that, while still in utter shock that the title had finally occurred, my wheels began to churn. Now, entering our 20th year of Bulldawg Illustrated, our small, but stalwart team has produced around 350 issues. However, never had we been charged with producing a commemorative National Champions edition of Bulldawg Illustrated. Thankfully the morning that I speak of, I made the decision to not rush what this all-important edition of BI needed to be. Instead, I decided to savor the moment of the Dawgs’ incredible 2021 connected season. My goodness, how great is it to be a Georgia Bulldog? Words like proud, relief, determination and gratitude come to mind when thinking about both this 2021 football team and their passionate fans. So needless to say, this edition of Bulldawg Illustrated had to be damn good for every Damn Good Dawg out there. Size certainly doesn’t matter, but I’m very proud of this 172 page National Champions edition that you are about to read. It reflects our BI team’s love of everything University of Georgia. And it captures how proud we are of our football team, led by a terrific group of leaders and head coach, Kirby Smart and his staff. I would be lying, if I didn’t admit that I’m also very relieved that this beast of an edition is about to go to the printer. There have been lots of hard days and nights over the last two weeks for team BI. Caroline Kinney, our sales dynamo, you absolutely rock. Cheri and I are so appreciative. And, our designer, Stacey Nichols, you are the best. Despite the insane hours of late, what drove all of us to finish strong were the hard days and nights that our football program put into bringing this 2021 national championship to our beloved University. The determination of this 2021 team is what I will remember to the end of time. They were projected to be very good, but that certainly doesn’t guarantee the hardware follows. From this time last year, those men at Butts-Mehre connected together determined they could be champions. And guess what? One year later, they are the 2021 National Champions. It’s hard to put into words the gratitude I have for everyone in the Bulldog Nation. As this season proves, we are connected at every level. Fans, players, coaches, support staff. The list is long of the people who literally put sweat and tears into being a Georgia Bulldog. This Connected 2021 edition of Bulldawg Illustrated is for everyone in the Bulldog Nation. On page 12, Jeff Dantzler’s column certainly starts thing off right. Yes, we did, JD. The dream has come true. And thank you for what you mean to this publication and the entire Bulldog Nation. Then don’t miss my partner in all things, Cheri Leavy’s Classic City Crushes on page 14. Almost 20 years of marriage and 20 years of doing BI is a tremendous gig with you by my side. I so love and respect you! Next, you will find four sections inside … The Game, The Scene, The Fans, The Final Perspective. All the content is all about Connected 2021, which graces this issue’s cover, supported by the awesome photography from BI’s Rob Saye. Both Rob’s and Greg Poole’s dynamic photography throughout inside made my job easy when putting this special edition together. Job well done, guys. In The Game section, enjoy our normal commentary that documents our Dawgs 33-18 victory. Our veterans Greg Poole and Kevin Butler once again hit a home-run with their From the Field and Player’s of the Games. Thank y’all for your contribution to BI. And our youngsters, Davis Baker and Bryan Dixon add their passion for writing and covering the Dawgs to the section. Thanks, guys. In The Scene section, I’m happy to announce that I brought longtime BI writer Murray Poole out of retirement for this commemorative edition. A total of 10,000 words netted three amazing features. Murray explores the journey of Kirby Smart, three Georgia players (Kendrick, Podlesny, Bennett IV) and a trio of post-Dooley era Bulldog fans who never wavered in their 41-year quest for a title. Thanks Murray, you are the best and let’s hope we’re right back here again next year. In The Fans section, the BI camera braved the frigid, but lovely confines of Indianapolis. As always, this part of the job is a blast. What’s not to like about capturing Georgia fans doing what they love. Particularly, when the pinnacle is finally reached. And wow, the Parade and Celebration in Athens the Saturday after the victory was the most spectacular sight I have ever witnessed. Please enjoy all the photos from that spectacular day. Finally, in The Final Perspective section, you will find every cover from all 18 BI issues of this 2021 season, coupled with Jeff Dantzler’s hot-takes to capture the essence of the entire journey. I’m so proud of all 18 of those issues and so thankful to our staff and advertisers in support of them. Thank you! Then, Hamilton Culpepper, Loran Smith and Jeff Dantzler close out this mega-edition of BI with a bang. Incredible job guys, thanks. Yes, JD, as your Final Top 15 displays, Georgia is No. 1. These 2021 Connected Dawgs are the national champions, so enjoy this 2021 National Champions edition and team BI will see you with our next issue the week of the G-Day game. Go Dawgs!! 2021 BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 10 National Champions Edition 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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It has finally happened, the 2021 Georgia Bulldogs are national champions and with it comes euphoria, joy, relief and the shared tears of ecstatic disbelief. JEFF DANTZLER @jeffdantzlerTV M y God we did it. a 10-3 victory over Clemson. It would be the front side, what a nice twist, of magnificent bookend pick-sixes. The dream has come true. The University of Georgia Bulldogs are the 2021 national champions of college football. On January 10, 2022 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, Georgia defeated defending national champion Alabama 33-18 to secure the Bulldogs first national title since 1980. So close, so many times. There was Pitt, Penn State and thrice Alabama, and of course heartbreakers to old rivals that stood in the way. Alabama though has been the most notable nemesis. The Crimson Tide beat Georgia 26-23 in the National Championship Game on 1/8/18 in overtime, leading after but one play. The last one. Bama came back to beat Georgia in the 2012 SEC Championship Game, then throttled Notre Dame for the big prize. That could’ve been Georgia. In 2018, Bama came back and beat Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, costing the Bulldogs a playoff berth. The Bulldogs had double digit second half leads in all three heart- piercing losses. The Bulldogs of 2021 were downright dominant, posting a perfect 12-0 regular season, with 11 of those victories coming by at least 17 points. Georgia was No. 1 in the national polls for most of the season. But in Atlanta in the SEC Championship Game, the Crimson Tide again prevailed, dominating the Dogs 41-24. That extended their winning streak against Georgia to seven games. Georgia was bloodied and beaten. But not dead. A playoff berth still came Georgia’s way, and there were questions on how the Bulldogs would react? Kirby Smart’s Dogs came out roaring against Big Ten champion Michigan in the Orange Bowl semifinal, pounding the Wolverines 34-11 in Miami. Earlier that New Year’s Eve Day, Alabama beat Cincinnati 27-6 in the Cotton Bowl semifinal. The rematch was set. Georgia and Alabama. For the national championship. And with one mighty sword, the Georgia Bulldogs slayed two dragons. Georgia has finally reached the mountaintop of college football. This national championship means so much to so many people. It’s a Georgia Bulldogs version of one of the original British Bulldog Sir Winston Churhill’s most famous speeches. Losses truly unify a fan base. Bandwagoners be gone. The hurt from the heartbreak, it brings the die-hards together. The dark days, the lost seasons, the investment, the hurt. The hope. Clemson won the national championship in both 2016 and 2018. The Tigers both times in the title game beat Alabama, a six time national champion under Nick Saban’s watch between 2009 and 2020. Prior to the season, it could be argued that the Clemson game was the least important on the schedule. Lose to the Tigers, run the table, make the playoffs, maybe even win a rematch with Clemson. As it turned out, the Clemson game was the most important. Of the regular season. Georgia gained an immense amount of confidence. Let’s face it, if you can beat Clemson, you can beat Alabama. And everyone in between. The victory also vaulted Georgia to No. 2 in the national polls. Over the next 11 games, Georgia scored at least 30 points in every one of them, while holding the opposition to 17 or fewer points each time out. In those 11 games, culminating with a 45-0 triumph over Tech in Atlanta, the Bulldogs won by at least 17 points. Though it would have been nice to have won a Southeastern Conference title, in this playoff era of college football, what happened in Atlanta proved to be a positive. Georgia was re- centered, re-grounded, and re-focused. In just under four weeks, 27 days to be exact, in one of the most important games in the history of the program, the Bulldogs played maybe their best half in a game of that magnitude ever. Georgia led Big Ten champion Michigan, which has more wins than any team in the history of college football, 27-3 at halftime of the Orange Bowl in the second College Football Playoff semifinal. The Bulldogs, picked against by most in the national media, were hungry and dominant in the 34-11 victory over the Wolverines. Thank all that is good in the Universe the national championship game wasn’t in Atlanta or New Orleans. Too much heartbreak, too many tears in those Southern domed stadiums. Lucas Oil Stadium, right there with Sanford Stadium for the Bulldog faithful as a hieroglyphic expression of the divine. There were times in Indianapolis that the Bulldogs were hanging by a thread. But hang in there Georgia did. Survive. Then thrive. The Bulldogs scored the final 20 points of the game, with a trio of touchdowns giving Georgia the lead, then control and finally victory. Following Kelee Ringo’s iconic interception return for a touchdown, there were 54 seconds and three Alabama timeouts to weather, but the game and national championship belonged to the Georgia Bulldogs. Euphoria, joy, relief. “He who has health, has hope, and he who has hope has everything.” - Sir Thomas Carlyle in his masterpiece Sartor Resartus. The shared tears of ecstatic disbelief. It’s finally happened. There was hope all season long. Hope that this could be the year. It started in Charlotte, North Carolina when Christopher Smith’s 74-yard interception return for a touchdown made the difference in BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED The Dawgs did it ... Georgia is No. 1! 12 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

THE WAIT! H T R O W T NA IONAL P M A CH IONS! SCAN TO SHOP Order at UGAbookstore.com, FREE in-store pick up.

CHERI’S 4. championship crushes ... BY : C H E R I L E AVY 3. 2. 1. 5. 6. 11. 12. 10. (1) UGA Bookstore – I was blown away by all the National Championship gear at the official UGA Bookstore at the Tate Center! This baseball cap comes in red, black and white. You can shop online too. (2) Maggie’s Boutique – I have my name on a list at Maggie’s for a UGA National Championship flag - can’t wait to fly it proudly! Gear is arriving daily at Lady Dawg Headquarters on St. Simons. (3) Onward Reserve – Help Onward support the charitable efforts of these DGDs! Learn about their fund and shop GD product at onward reserve.com (and Athens store) and 20% of sales benefit the fund. (4) Condor Chocolates – Damn good chocolate from two damn good dawgs - Condor is owned by brothers and bulldog graduates Peter and Nick Dale. Check out both locations - downtown and five points. (5) XOXO Sunshine – Spread sunshine and cheer on your beloved Bulldogs in the cutest jackets. Heery’s carries them in Athens or you can create a custom one like mine and pick your patches. (6) Heery’s Clothes Closet – I love one of my favorite stylish friends, Sarah Jordan, in this dress that can be dressed up or down with heels or booties. (7) Leigh Ann Barnes – Game changing accessories – clear bags for the stadiums with chic covers and you are supporting a good cause, VIP Survivors. (8) Maggie Griffin Design – It’s all in the details and Maggie Griffin’s eye for details is so discerning and classically modern. (9) Heidi Hensley Art – Commemorate this winning season with fabulous art by Heidi. I love this one with Stetson Bennett, Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean and Brock Bowers. (10) Amelia’s 5 Points – Gigi Lastinger is one of the most fun and cutest dawg fans I know! (11) Dick Ferguson’s – Peter Millar apparel commemorating the Dawgs National Championship season is starting to roll in Dick Ferguson’s Clothing Store. (12) Appointments at Five – My favorite Antiques in Athens have everything you need to make your tailgate or bulldog party the best in the Classic City. 9. 8. 7.

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NAKOBE DEAN SAVORS BEING NO. 1 PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 16 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

2021 National Champions Edition THE GAME DEADLINE GAME STORY - PG. 18 FROM THE FIELD - PG. 20 KEVIN BUTLER’S PLAYER OF THE GAME - PG. 22 STATS THAT MATTER - PG. 24 BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 17 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

THE GEORGIA BULLDOGS ARE BY: DAVIS BAKER NATIONAL CHAMPIONS GAME STORY FOLLOWING THE 33-18 VICTORY OVER AlaBAMA T hings looked bleak at a point for Georgia. The Bulldogs trailed 18-13 after Alabama was able to convert on a touchdown following a questionable fumble from Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett. With their backs against the wall, trailing with 10 minutes remaining, the Bulldogs saved their best ball of the season for the end. Georgia would go on to score three touchdowns in the final quarter of the game on its way to a 33-18 win over Alabama and the school’s first national championship since 1980. “I’ve never been around a group of players that really wanted it so bad,” said Georgia head coach Kirby Smart after the win. It was not a great start for Bennett, who struggled to make certain throws while stalling out on promising drives. However, a 4 play, 75-yard drive shifted the momentum to Georgia’s side. Bennett found Adonai Mitchell for a 40-yard touchdown on a spectacular catch in the back of the endzone. From there, he led another drive behind a dominant fourth quarter-power rushing attack featuring Zamir White and James Cook slashing through the Alabama defense. That drive ended with a 15-yard touchdown to freshman sensation Brock Bowers to put Georgia up 26-18. With 3:33 left, Georgia’s historic defense needed one more stop to cement its legacy in history. Not only did Georgia get pressure on Heisman Trophy-winning Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, but they forced Young, who does not turn the ball over often, to throw a pick-six which essentially clinched the title for Georgia. “We talked about putting it on our shoulders and it being on us,” said Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean. “When we took the lead, we knew that if they don’t score no more, they don’t win. That’s the only thing that was going through our mind. We took the challenge.” The celebration began from there. Georgia not only won its first national championship in 41 years but also did it by beating Alabama, the team that had haunted the Bulldogs in the previous four matchups in the Kirby Smart-era at Georgia. The buy-in from players began way before this game or even this season started. Star defensive lineman Jordan Davis decided to come back and play his senior season in hopes of accomplishing just what the team did on Monday night. “We had a vision of today what we wanted way back when we were making our decisions to come back,” said Davis. “We took a gamble and cashed out, and it was a big decision on the seniors’ part. We wanted to lead this team the right way. We knew that we had something special brewing, and to see this and to see this season come to fruition and see all of our goals and achieve everything that we wanted, it makes it super special. I wouldn’t change my decision for anything.” The moment was also sweet for Smart, who said he was even preparing for the worst while Kelee Ringo was streaking down the sideline for the longest interception return in national championship history. What made it especially monumental for Smart was coaching his alma mater to a title. “Our guys have accomplished that, something special, and as they say, they’ve become legendary, and I want that for them,” said Smart. “It’s not for me, and I know it’s for the Georgia people and all that, but it’s really for these guys that have given so much, and I certainly appreciate what they’ve done.” JAMES COOK GETS LOOSA AGAINST THE TIDE! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 18 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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2021 National Champions Edition FROM THE FIELD BY GREG POOLE GEORGIA - 33 | ALABAMA - 18 BIG BLOCK FOR BIG JALEN CARTER! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE As I stood on the field in Indianapolis waiting for the gates to open and the teams to arrive, the relative quiet of an empty stadium took me back to early December and a similar scene inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Remembering the confidence that I felt that December day in Atlanta gave me pause. Obviously, my feeling of confidence was misplaced that day, but as much as I wanted to avoid another postgame let-down, nothing had changed. “Georgia is the better team,” I told myself. The SEC Championship was the outlier, I whispered to myself. The Orange Bowl showcased the real Georgia. I had almost convinced myself when the doors opened and all those Red and Black clad fans began streaming into the venue. Crimson faded in the red sea. Then the Bulldogs arrived - stone-face, no joking around, serious - ready. Forty-one years! Much has changed during the intervening four decades, but the passion of the Georgia fan base has not wavered. Yes, defeatist memes have sprung to life in the last few years. The idea that somehow the Bulldogs were cursed with a fatal flaw and would forever bring disappointment to the faithful had flourished. No longer! Amazingly, Georgia navigated the wilderness between championships with only three head coaches between Vince Dooley and Kirby Smart. Contending for another national title was always the goal; it seemed achievable in advance of a season, yet the dream evaporated year after year - decade after decade - finally taking on an almost mocking tone as rivals took turns collecting national honors. Georgia must have been the victim of some voodoo curse, right? No longer Fan ego defense mechanisms, hard-learned lessons from years in the college football wilderness, die hard. Sure, some seasons brought rays of hope to those of us who witnessed January 01, 1981. Still, tragedies like Aaron Murray’s tipped pass in the SEC Championship and Bama’s miracle throw in the same venue after the Dawgs walk-off victory in the Rose Bowl reinforced the widespread belief in a Georgia curse. What else could explain such continued misery? BRYCE-ATTACK BY DEVONTE WYATT! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE No longer! Kirby Smart returned to Athens to confront history with tools learned while serving his Alabama apprenticeship. The close-but-no-cigar Georgia narrative began to change, slowly. UGA opened its wallet to implement Coach Smart’s plan for getting his alma mater to the summit of college football. His method starts with recruiting infrastructure, moves on to recruiting staff, and proceeds to face-to-face recruiting. The best X and O coach who ever lived will only be as successful as the talent level of his players allows him to be. Day-to-day coaching matters, of course, but it all comes down to the Jimmys and Joes. It only took six years to transition from a postseason trip to soulful Memphis to the Indianapolis artic and the pinnacle of the sport. Six years from a program in disarray to a machine-like dismantling of Alabama on college football’s ultimate stage. The Crimson Tide faced by the Bulldogs in Indy may have been affected by injuries, youth, the phase of the moon, or any of the myriad excuses offered by disconsolate Bama fans and face-saving pundits but not one bit of that revisionist history matters. There is but one bottom line in every athletic contest - the scoreboard! Everything else is for the losers. Now, look who’s chanting, “Wait until next year!” GEORGE PICKENS DOING HIS THING! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE The Georgia Bulldogs are national champions for the second time in my life, and number three will follow - soon. Wait until next year has a whole new meaning. BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 20 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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THE O-LINE AND COMPANY OPENED HOLES WHEN IT MATTERED! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE KEVIN BUTLER’S PLAYERS OF THE GAME 2021 Each week, Georgia and Chicago Bears Hall of Fame legend Kevin Butler picks his Players of the Game. A member of numerous Halls of Fame and holder of a slew of records, Butler co- hosts DawgTalk on Georgia Football Saturdays and the famous Bulldog Brunch from the Hilltop Grille on Sundays. — EMOTIONAL PLAY IN GEORGIA HISTORY. Kelee has grown up quickly and his winning attitude is as contagious as covid. Fighting back from a first year injury, Ringo has proven his worth to the Bulldog program, and when he faced his biggest challenge in Alabama, Kelee dominated. Kelee had six solo tackles and a pass deflection and the most electrifying 79-yard interception for a TD that delivered the knockout punch to the big bully Bama. Like I said sitting next to my partner Jeff ”NATTY” Dantzler, to win championships, your players have to make plays and Kelee COMPILED BY JEFF DANTZLER OFFENSIVE PLAYER Offensive Line Switch - Georgia’s offense turned the tide when the Bulldogs made a big move on the offensive line. Give O-Line Coach Matt Luke and Coach Smart a lot of credit for not standing pat. Jamaree Salyer, the team’s best and most versatile lineman, moved from left tackle to right guard. Broderick Jones, a big time recruit and emerging sophomore star, took over at left tackle. Both played great, the whole line did a tremendous job. We will miss Jamaree greatly next year for his talent, ability to play all over the line and leadership. It was also awesome to see the other senior, big Justin Shafer get lathered up. The switch up on the O-Line got the Dawgs going and helped deliver the national championship! Ringo did just that for Bulldogs of all generations. SPECIAL TEAM PLAYER Jake Camarda - I will miss this young man, but I won’t miss seeing him, as he will be kicking in the NFL for a long time. Jake continued to be a factor in the National Championship game, penning Bama deep in their terrority. I can’t remember a UGA punter being such a factor for the defense as Jake ... wait oops! … my son, Drew! Jake kicked his way in front of Drew’s career average with a final performance against Bama of five punts for a 44.6 yd avg, with a long of 55 yards and two downed inside the 20-yard line. That game average vaulted Jake into first in UGA history for career average. Congrats on a wonderful career and you will have a RING to go with that average … and that’s not average at all! DEFENSIVE PLAYER Kelee Ringo - The redshirt freshman not only made the play of the game, he made one that will go down as the MOST BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED National Champions Edition 22 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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STATS THAT MATTER BY: BRYAN DIXON GEORGIA - 33 ALABAMA - 18 10.5 140 A look back at what decided the game between Georgia and Alabama 2021 Redemption and immortality. It is surreal that the 41-year drought is finally over. Georgia is the undisputed national champion. The game was like an emotional rollercoaster for me … anger, elation, frustration and joy. There were a few times I thought the Tide were going to deal the death blow to the Dawgs, but Georgia’s defense rose to the occasion. The penalties nearly caused Georgia to beat themselves, though I felt that some of the calls were outrageous. In the end, I am proud of this group of guys. There were a few events that could have been the catalysts that shifted the momentum into Georgia’s favor. The 52-yard reception by George Pickens, the sack by Channing Tindall, the field goal blocked by Jalen Carter, the 67-yard rush by James Cook, and others. There were so many big plays at key moments that any one of these could be candidates. Everything considered, Georgia as a team played elite. It is difficult to single out a few players who played the best because they all executed well. There were a few unnecessary penalties, which could have cost the Dawgs a lot more, but in the end, the Dawgs triumphed. 10.5 The Dawgs stopped the explosive pass plays downfield. In the SEC Championship, Alabama averaged 16.2 yards per reception and accumulated 421 passing yards. The Dawgs were able to reduce this average to 10.5 yards per reception and 369 passing yards. Also, there were 26 Alabama receptions in the SEC Championship and 35 in the National Championship. This highlights how explosive the passing plays were in the SEC Championship. The Dawgs closed those gaps in their defensive backfield. It was disappointing to see Jameson Williams injure his knee and miss the rest of the game. Williams was Alabama’s main weapon in the SEC Championship, losing him undoubtably affected their offense in a negative way. With their second-best National Champions Edition CHANNING TINDALL IN HOT PURSUIT! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE receiver John Metchie III also unable to play, Young was without his top two targets. The other receivers on the field were talented, but less experienced. -43 In the SEC Championship, Bryce Young was able to scramble for yards at the most inopportune times. The Dawgs were unable to sack him, and he had too much space in the backfield. Young had a total of 40 rushing yards, mainly on 3rd down situations. Fast forward to the National Championship, the Dawgs were able to contain Bryce, sacking him four times, and his total rushing yards were -43. I was ecstatic when in the second quarter when Channing Tindall was able to sack Bryce Young. It was the first sack of the game. The Dawgs made an extra effort to not allow Young to get outside of the pocket. The Georgia defense brought unrelenting pressure, but they were very careful not to overshoot Young, which would have allowed him to scramble in open space. 2 Bryce Young threw two interceptions, one of which was a beautiful pick-six by Kelee Ringo. Stetson Bennett was the one who threw two interceptions in the SEC Championship and a lot of pundits and armchair analysts gave him a hard time. Stetson did fumble the ball in the BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 24 third quarter, but I seriously disagreed with that call. Other than that one hiccup and the jittery start, Stetson dominated. Young played a great game, but this game he was the one under intense pressure. Chris Smith and Kelee Ringo both sneered interceptions by errant throws by Young. Lewis Cine played his best game of the season. Derion Kendrick, William Poole III, the list goes on. Georgia’s defensive backs all played at the top their game. 140 Georgia got their run game going. Zamir White was the first to get a touchdown. This was on the same drive as the 67- yard run from James Cook. Georgia ran the ball 30 times and attempted 26 passes. Georgia had a balanced offense. Much of Georgia’s success this season came from having an elite combination of passing and rushing. By contrast, Alabama ran the ball 28 times while attempting 57 passes. The Tide were very much a one-dimensional offense. Though Georgia was able to stop their running game, the Tide became exhausted in the 4th quarter, which allowed Zamir White to take the carries and wind down the clock. It is fitting for the history of the Georgia Bulldogs that the run game ended this game for a National Championship berth. 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 26 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

2021 THE National Champions Edition PHOTO BY:ROB SAYE Scene KIRBY’S CLIMB TO THE TOP by Murray Poole - PG. 29 JOURNEYS OF KENDRICK, PODLESNY & BENNETT by Murray Poole - PG. 39 THE FANS’ TRAVEL TO INDY by Hamilton Culpepper - PG 47 FINALLY A TITLE FOR POST-DOOLEY ERA FANS by Murray Poole - PG. 86 BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 27 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

As local as…the National Champion Dawgs! Think First. Bank local. www.fabt.bank We’ve been Dawg Fans from Day One! In fact, we first opened our doors in downtown Athens in 1928, one year before Sanford Stadium opened. Since that day, we’ve been cheering the team to three National Championship victories and countless Saturday home game wins in our beautiful town of Athens, GA. Congratulations to the Georgia Football team for one of the greatest seasons in Bulldog history! Alejandra De Leon Craig Meeks Connie Alger Jeff Miller Kemp Gaskill CFP®, CTFA Branch Manager, Hwy 29 President Mortgage Lender VP, Commercial Lending VP and Trust Officer NMLS# 419258 NMLS# 664089 NMLS# 1033555

2021 KS National Champions Edition Kirby Smart SEALED WITH A KISS! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE FROM AN ATHLETIC BAINBRIDGE CHILDHOOD TO A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP COACH BY MURRAY POOLE P assion, perseverance, master motivator, aggressive, leader and builder of young men and an unyielding work ethic. All attributes that aptly define the makeup of Kirby Smart, who has taken the University of Georgia to the top of the college football world and fashioned a 66-15 (.815 winning %) head coaching record in his six years at the helm of the Bulldogs. But Smart, who steered Georgia to a 33-18 win over Alabama in the CFP National Championship Game Jan. 10 in Indianapolis, Indiana and has taken the Bulldogs to two national title game appearances while posting bowl wins in the Liberty, Rose, Sugar, Peach and Orange, didn’t acquire all those leadership qualities just in his All-SEC playing days and head coaching tenure at Georgia. Or even in his assistant coaching time at Valdosta State, Florida State, LSU, Georgia, the Miami Dolphins and Alabama, where he worked under legendary Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban for nine years, the last seven of those being as defensive coordinator. Nope, one has to go back to Smart’s childhood days – while growing up on the dusty ball fields of Bainbridge, Georgia, a small community with a population of 14,468 BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 29 that is tucked away in the extreme southwest corner of the state … just a long punt from the Alabama and Florida state lines. It was there, in Decatur County, where Kirby Smart’s early signs of developing into a future leader began to emerge. And, mind you, we’re not talking simply on the athletic fields here but, more importantly, in the academic realm as well. Smart, as a young boy, was a go-getter in about every endeavor he undertook. “I have said this before and I’m sure it’s out there somewhere, when Kirby went into the 9th grade he set himself a goal to be valedictorian of his class,” recalled Sharon Smart, Kirby’s mother. “Well, he did not get valedictorian, he ended up being Salutatorian. That night at his high school graduation, he talked to his fellow seniors and he was challenging them saying, ‘If you set your goal, you might not make it but look where he ended up… second in the class. He couldn’t stand it if he didn’t do the best academically.” A desire to compete and be good “Well, I don’t know I can draw the specifics … he always loved to play ball of course,” said Sonny Smart, Kirby’s dad. 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

KIRBY SMART GLAD KELEE DIDN’T GO DOWN, COACH? PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE ” He was always willing to work at it. He just had a desire to compete and a desire to be good. He wanted to be good at whatever he did. That was just always there in everything he did. It wasn’t just any one particular thing. He would come get me to take him out to the rec fields and hit ground balls to him, just extra practice where he would do a lot of work to be good. Sonny Smart said his son didn’t play football until the sixth grade in school. “The rec department then really didn’t have football but we did it through the school system and we started with sixth grade. He started playing football there and he was a good player all the way through, He was an exceptional baseball player, he was really good from the time he started playing. He was a gifted athlete but he had a real good understanding of everything that was going on. He was kind of a coach on the field from the time he was nine years old. Sonny Smart coached at Bainbridge High a total of 13 years. “We came to Bainbridge in 1982. I was five years as the defensive coordinator and eight years as the head coach. Kirby’s senior year, we lost in the Class 4-semifinals to Dunwoody, which went on to win the state that year. We had a real good season that year. “In high school, he only played safety,” he said. “He played some quarterback in junior high up until the 9th grade. With us at varsity level, we worked him some there as a backup role but he never played. He was our safety and our kind of guy on defense who lined everybody up, that type thing. Kirby was a really good player. Smart said Kirby didn’t start as a sophomore but played a lot in different situations. “He then started at safety his junior and senior years. My assistant coaches always would BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED tell me I should have been playing him more. Like I say, Kirby was the guy back there that lined everybody up, made the calls on defense, made the adjustments. He was the guy and along with being a good athlete, he had a great understanding of what you were trying to do. He knew the whole picture, knew where everybody was supposed to line up and what their assignments were.” Not a highly recruited player The young Smart had several offers to play college football and took a few visits but had his mind set firmly on the school in Athens. “Kirby wanted to go to Georgia from the time he was five years old,” said Sonny. “Georgia didn’t really offer him a scholarship until late in the recruiting cycle. He was actually up there on an official visit when Coach (Ray) Goff offered him a scholarship. Of course, he accepted it immediately and went to Georgia.” Smart was to redshirt his first year at Georgia in 1994 and didn’t dress for any of the home games. “He was discouraged but he then had an outstanding spring practice and going into that redshirt freshman year, he called us before that first game and told us he thought he might play a little bit,” recalled Sonny Smart. “He was on some special teams and that was the game against South Carolina where he had three sacks in that game and from then on, he gained confidence in himself and his coaches gained confidence in him. He knew what to do and could play and from that point on, he played a lot and was a good leader back there, same as he was in high school. He made the calls and adjustments…that’s just Kirby and always has been.” Smart was named the First Team All-SEC safety in his senior season in 1998. He recorded 13 interceptions in his 30 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

Bulldog career and led the SEC in picks in his final season. Smart was the first player in UGA history – since the rule was introduced in 1988 – to return a blocked PAT for two points, running the blocked kick back 88 yards against New Mexico State in his redshirt freshman season in 1995. “I wanted to say that when Kirby started playing, we went to every one of his games but one and we got to see these wonderful SEC campuses,” said Sharon Smart. “We just really love the SEC and you could do a whole article on the campuses and the traditions. We traveled and it was just so much fun, and there was a group of parents that we would always try to feed those guys (UGA players) afterwards if it was a home game. I mean they were hungry and we were excited to see them and all the mommas prepared for those boys. And now when we go to a tailgate – and we don’t do much tailgating—I’m no longer feeding those big ol’ guys. We’re feeding the kids of those guys. We have treats and things for those little boys. Our Andrew (Kirby and wife Mary Beth’s youngest son) and some of them do games out there in the parking lot behind Clark Howell. It’s been such a beautiful transition to Kirby being the little boy playing then to coaching and now seeing his kids out there,” she said. Great memories of 2017 season The Smarts, prior to watching their son coach the Bulldogs to a 14-1 record and the 33-18 CFP National Championship win over Alabama this past season, still have special memories of the 2017 season when Smart’s second Georgia team won at Notre Dame, captured the SEC title, won the Rose Bowl in a CFP semifinal game by 54-48 over Oklahoma in one of the most dramatic college games ever played, and then went into overtime in the national championship game against Alabama before losing a 26-24 heartbreaker. “Oh, my goodness, going to the Rose Bowl that year and also to Notre Dame, seeing Touchdown Jesus, that was on my bucket list,” said Sharon Smart. “That was special.” “That was just an exceptional year for Georgia fans and Kirby,” said Sonny Smart. ” But you know, you think of all the history there at the University of Georgia. Had they ever played before at Notre Dame? Then the Rose Bowl, back years ago southeastern teams went to the Rose Bowl but in recent history, that just didn’t happen. So that was a very special year. And then winning both games was tremendous.” No doubts Kirby would make a great coach “We never had a doubt Kirby could be successful in coaching,” said Sonny. “We didn’t really know that’s what he wanted to do. I don’t think he knew until he got started in it, that that’s what he wanted to do. But he’s always been around coaches and competition in football and when that opportunity came, I really think he felt like I’ll try this and if it doesn’t work out, I could always do something else. But if you go another route, you might not be able to come back to that. “Kirby has been blessed with a great background. At Georgia he had a great background, especially with Coach (Joe) Kines defensively who worked a lot with him. Then when he went to Valdosta State, he was there with Will (Muschamp). Well, Will had the background of working with a guy named Brother Oliver, who was at Alabama and Auburn. Will had been with him for several years. Then Kirby goes to Florida State and he’s exposed to two years of working directly with Mickey Andrews and Coach (Bobby) Bowden. Coach Kines was the guy that got Kirby to come to Florida State. Then he has that and then he goes to Nick Saban for those years. So when he became the head coach at Georgia, he was well prepared. Kirby had seen a lot of great things and also the things that maybe didn’t work. Kirby’s an intelligent guy and he’s able to take the good and make things his way. And he was primed and he was ready. It was kind of the perfect storm. He really had a good network and background of training to be ready for this position.” Even after the crushing 2017 national championship loss to the Crimson Tide, there was no doubt in the Smart family that their son would soon have the Bulldogs back in the fight for a national crown. “We had the confidence he would do that, for several reasons,” said Sonny Smart. “For one, he was able to get great players. I don’t care what kind of coach you are – if you don’t have great players you’re not gonna win that SO HIS PLAYERS CAN THRIVE! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE NON-STOP PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE ... PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 31 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

KIRBY SMART kind of game. So he was able to get good players. They talk about the process of day to day and all that but that’s where it is. It’s so difficult to get to that game,” said Smart. “You may look up some statistics but I believe the college football playoff started in 2014 and in all that time I think only seven coaches have coached in that game. And Kirby’s been in two of them. The deal is to get to the game and then of course win the game. But it’s very difficult to get to the game. And we know that’s his goal. His goal is to be the best and it always has been. That hasn’t changed. It’s been that way since he was six years old. He’s got a process in mind of how to get there and make it happen. “Yeah, we fully expected it but just because you’re good and get there, it doesn’t mean you’re going to win,” he said. “Just like that game in 2017, we were one snap, one play away. When that ball was snapped, everybody in that stadium would have bet on Georgia to win because they had just sacked Alabama and Alabama didn’t have a very good field goal kicker and everything was just going Georgia’s way. Then one play took it away. That’s just the way the game is played. You just never count on anything. You just go out there and play the game and play the best you can. They were able to get this one (2021 title) and hopefully they can get back there and have another chance. And that’s what he’s working for every day and that’s what he’s been working for every day since he got there. That hasn’t changed and that will not change.” Smart said Kirby and his staff bringing the team back together from all the Covid problems in 2020 eventually paved the way for the great success the 2021 Bulldogs experienced. “I remember when they came back in from the Covid year and the kids couldn’t be in the facility and the coaches worked together and that was brought out to Kirby. And I think that’s where all this came from. He said we’ve got kids who don’t even know each other. They’ve never been together. And they started from that point and working on that connectivity and doing things to try to get those kids to know each other, not just football practice, but to know each other as individuals. Due to Covid, they had become like strangers. And they did a lot of things to try and perpetuate that and I think that paid off. They started working on that at that point and it took a year and half to get to it, but it paid off.” starter and All-SEC in my junior year. A guy named Robert Edwards (former UGA tailback) was the second to the last who was offered. They offered Robert the day before signing day and they offered me like 12 o’clock on signing day. A couple of guys backed out and went somewhere else,” Tolbert chuckled. “Course Robert ended up being drafted first round.” Tolbert said he could tell early on that Smart possessed all the intangibles to be a solid college football player. “First when you go to Georgia, you’re just trying to figure out, ‘can I play here?’ Especially the guys who weren’t heavily recruited or guys that were offered in the last week or signing day, you kind of question things,” he said. “But Kirby had an inner belief in himself and he had the athletic ability, the speed and all that kind of stuff. But he was very smart and you could tell he came from a coach’s family and had been around football a lot. So he kind of knew where to be with situational stuff and alignment. He had determination and he knew when he got there he had to work and all, but he also knew that athletically and mentally he could find a way on the field. And,” said Tolbert, “he found the way on the field very early. Back then, young guys would get redshirted and wait a couple of years, and Kirby got redshirted but he played right off the bat his redshirt freshman year and had those three sacks in his very first game.” Tolbert got drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars. “I ended up in Dallas and played there for the Cowboys for three years but got out there and tore my ACL. I was never hurt at Georgia but I get to the NFL and the injury bug started getting to me. I tore my ACL my second year in Dallas and then tore the other ACL the third year. So that was kind of all she wrote for me in professional football. “The thing I love about Kirby, and he proved it this year,” concluded Tolbert, “is it doesn’t matter if you’re the biggest, baddest 5-star guy that comes into Georgia, if there’s a kid whether he’s a walk-on, or got one star, two stars or three stars, all the stars don’t matter to Kirby once you get there. If you’re the best player at that position, he’s going to put you in there and that’s what he did at the quarterback position with Stetson (Bennett). And to me, that gives hope to any kid who has dreams of playing at the University of Georgia.” WINNER! Former Smart UGA teammate Brandon Tolbert Brandon Tolbert is a former All-SEC outside linebacker for Georgia and played on the Bulldogs’ defense with Smart from 1995 to 1997. He made the All-SEC team in his junior year in ’96 and was captain of the Bulldogs in 1997. “I went from outside linebacker to defensive end in 1997 so I went from 116 or 120 tackles my junior year to probably 70 my senior year. I was a good SAM linebacker at 6-3, 225 (who also ran a 4.4 40) but I was undersize as a defensive end but we had some depth problems and they moved me there.” Tolbert said he and Smart were together at Georgia for four years. “Kirby was redshirted that first year in 1994. So our playing time together was ’95, ’96 and ’97.” Tolbert said he received the last available scholarship in the Bulldogs’ 1993 recruiting class. “I think Kirby and me had similar stories regarding that,” Tolbert said. “Me personally, I wasn’t a highly recruited guy. Like I say, I was the last recruit that Coach Goff offered but got in there and kept my head down and worked hard and ended up being a three-year BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE 32 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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Kendrick, Podlesny and Bennett All Take Unique Journeys to Boost Bulldogs to National Crown BY MURRAY POOLE W ith the possible exception of senior nose tackle Jordan Davis, who captured the Outland Trophy and Chuck Bednarik Award, and junior linebacker Nakobe Dean, winner of the Butkus Award, Georgia’s 2021 national collegiate football champions were devoid of superstar players. Rather, Kirby Smart’s sixth Bulldogs edition was comprised of talented football players who came together with just the right blend of team chemistry, a love for each other and an unrelenting work ethic that enabled this team to win a school-record 14 games enroute to the school’s first national crown since 1980, with the lone setback coming on an off night against Alabama in the SEC Championship Game … a team the Bulldogs would gain sweet revenge against in the January 10 CFP championship in Indianapolis. The contributions to the sterling season came from every member of the ’21 team and here we detail the somewhat unique journeys of three Bulldog players – a transfer student and two walk-on players – who indeed played major roles in sparking Georgia to its biggest football victory in 41 years. interceptions on the year, to go along with 41 tackles. He was named to the All-SEC Second Team in both the Associated Press and Coaches’ voting. So, you can bet that Kendrick’s mom, Shenekia McClinton, was simply ecstatic with her son’s one year spent in Athens, under the coaching of Smart and UGA defensive backfield coach Jahmile Addae. “It’s totally overwhelming but I first just want to thank the University of Georgia and Kirby Smart and the entire coaching staff for welcoming DK and bringing him into the program and mentoring him. And I’ve seen a tremendous growth in him this year, just from being a better son, a better father, a better grandson and a better brother. So, it’s just not about the football aspect but overall just a better man so I’m nothing but proud of him.” McClinton said whenever the family was having the conversation as to where Kendrick would next play football, the one word she wanted him to focus on was, dedication. Kendrick makes the most of his one year at Georgia Most Georgia fans are familiar with the story of Bulldog senior cornerback Derion Kendrick. As a freshman wide receiver at Clemson, Kendrick played for the Tigers against Alabama in the 2018 CFP National Championship Game. After being named Second Team All-ACC in 2019 after moving into the Clemson defensive backfield, Kendrick then earned All-ACC First Team honors in the 2020 football season. But Kendrick’s playing days at Clemson would soon come to an end as he was dismissed from the Tiger team by head coach Dabo Swinney. Kendrick wouldn’t be without a team for long, however, as Georgia head coach Kirby Smart welcomed him as a member of the 2021 Bulldogs family. The rest, as they say, is history. The 6-0, 190-pound cornerback from Rock Hill, South Carolina blossomed in Georgia’s defensive secondary and played a major role in the Bulldogs going a perfect 12-0 during the regular season and then stepped up his game even more in the CFP playoffs. In Georgia’s 34-11 win over Michigan in the Orange Bowl semifinal game, Kendrick was named Defensive MVP after he posted two interceptions and recorded five tackles. Kendrick also performed well in the Bulldogs’ 33-18 win over Alabama in the CFP National Championship Game in Indianapolis. Starting at cornerback in all 15 games as Georgia capped a 14-1 season, Kendrick had a team-high four BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED DERRION KENDRICK AND HIS FAMILY WITH COACH SMART ON SENIOR DAY! 39 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

ORANGE BOWL MVP’S STETSON BENNETT AND DERRION KENDRICK! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE “Regardless of where you go, whatever that atmosphere looked like, just be dedicated to yourself, be dedicated to your teammates,” she said. “And I’ve seen nothing but dedication in him from one week to the next. I didn’t think it would get better from one game to the next but he just continued to excel beyond my expectations … MVP of the Orange Bowl, two interceptions in that game. And we called that before the game,” McClinton said. “I’m the kind of person that I like to put things out in the universe – I like to call it before it even happens, just being able to pray with my son and let him know that nothing but God has brought him this far and just to see him prosper throughout this year is nothing short of amazing. And we can only give all grace to God – He has been the focal point through our life and throughout this entire season as DK ventures on to a new journey. “So we’re just extremely proud of him and the city of Rock Hill is behind DK 100 percent, and we’re thankful for the overwhelming support.” Shenekia McClinton says Derion is now ready to take the next step into professional football. “He’s ready and I saw that even when I dropped him off at the airport that Saturday when he was leaving to go out to Texas for a training camp. He looked me in the eye and said ‘I’m ready’ and I said, ‘Son, go and make me proud!’ I know he’s in good hands and I know he’s going to do whatever it takes to excel on the next level.” McClinton said being a part of the Bulldogs’ fan base this season made for memories she and Derion will never forget. “The Georgia fans are absolutely tremendous,” she said. “No matter where I went, they always raved about how they love DK. They’re so glad he’s a part of the Bulldog Nation and they’re so glad our family is a part of the Dawg Nation. And it just made me feel very, very warm and made us feel like we were at home. We couldn’t have chosen a better program so Dawg Nation, we absolutely love you and we’re going down in history so that’s how I feel about the Dawg Nation!” BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Jack Podlesny: From the soccer field to a clutch place-kicker at Georgia A converted soccer player, Jack Podlesny of St. Simons Island wasn’t giving much thought to college football when he was handling the place-kicking, punting and kickoffs for the Glynn Academy football team in the fall of 2017. That, even though Podlesny was true on 9-of-10 field goal tries and 49-of-51 extra- point kicks that fall enroute to earning First Team All-Region status for the Red Terrors of Coach Rocky Hidalgo. “Jack had no plans of playing college football, to be honest about it,” said Jack’s father, Ike Podlesny, who coached high school soccer at both Frederica Academy on St. Simons Island and at Glynn Academy in Brunswick. “So, he got accepted on an early decision to Georgia in October (as a student). So we’re in the middle of his senior year in high school football and he had a real good senior year, study year. In football, he made those 9-of-10 field goals and missed two extra points … one because of a bad snap and the other I think was blocked. So other than that, he made all his extra points and he also had a decent year punting, averaging about 41 yards a punt.” Podlesny recalled the special teams coach at Glynn Academy, Kip Hall, kept telling Jack that he was capable of playing at the next level, if he desired to do so. “And Jack was like ‘OK, yeah maybe,’ and I don’t think it really hit him at the time,” said Ike. “And then the last game against Lee County (in state 6-A semifinals) he has a really good game and it kind of puts him on the map. He made both his field goal attempts and all his extra points and all his kickoffs were through the end zone.” At that game in Leesburg, a member of the Michigan coaching staff was present to look over a future Wolverine signee, Lee County defensive back Otis Reece. “And so Coach Partridge from Michigan, their linebackers coach, was at that game watching Otis,” said Podlesny. “And as things unfolded, he was watching Jack kick and in the middle of the game he’s texting the Michigan kicking coach and saying, ‘I don’t know who this kid is but please contact him because he’s good’ 40 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

A Unique Journey … or something like that. The next day after the game, which was a Saturday, Jack got up late in the morning and showed me his phone and said, ‘Dad, look who contacted me.’ It was a coach named Tyler Brown, the kicking coach at Michigan. So, he later called Jack about 1 in the afternoon and Jack was up in his room about an hour and then came down and said, ‘Dad, I really like this coach and he wants us to come up and visit.’ I said, ‘Let’s do it.’ With that, the Podlesny family made the trip to Ann Arbor, Mich. to check out the program and the Michigan campus. “So, we went up in January to look at Michigan,” Ike Podlesny said. “We were up there about three days and had a really good visit – the staff was unbelievable. Coach Partridge talked to us a little bit and then Tyler took us around. He basically said we want your kid up here but they weren’t giving any scholarship help until he played. We hemmed and hawed about it but by the time we got back home, Georgia, Western Carolina, Georgia Tech and Mercer all called and then there were several little Division II schools that called. Jack, as I said, had already been accepted at Georgia. Apparently, Kip Hall, who played there, made some contact with the coaches at Georgia. So, we went up to Georgia and we really liked the facilities, we liked the coach and we talked with the special teams coach, Scott Fountain. So we had a good visit and we came back and it basically was down to Michigan and Georgia.” The young Podlesny went on a spring break trip in that spring of 2018 but not before he got a piece of advice from his mom, Elizabeth. “My wife told him you’ve got to make a decision when you come back on where you’re going because it’s getting late in the ball game,” said Ike. “So, he called us in the middle of spring break and told us he was going to Georgia. He said he wanted to go to Georgia because it was close to home and you guys can come up to see me when you want, and if I went to Michigan it’s going to be a plane ride here and a plane ride there.” In Athens, Podlesny was redshirted his first year on campus and was on the depth chart behind the record-breaking and ultra-popular Rodrigo Blankenship the first two seasons. “In his sophomore year, when Covid hit, he came home and said it’s either make or break for me with the kicking and he worked out really hard,” recalled the dad. “It was during Covid when for five or six weeks they sent them home. And so he went into summer camp that year in a good frame of mind and in good shape. Then Jack called me before their first game at Arkansas and said, ‘Dad, I’m the starting kicker.’” And in that 2020 football season Between the Hedges, Jack Podlesny not only was Georgia’s starting place-kicker, he excelled at his job. Podlesny was true on 13-of-16 field goal attempts and made all 38 PAT kicks he tried. He won the Bulldogs’ Peach Bowl game against Cincinnati with a pressurized, career-long 53-yard field goal with just three seconds remaining, giving the Bulldogs a dramatic 26-24 win over the Bearcats. Podlesny also had two other field goals in that game and was named the Peach Bowl MVP and was also named to the AP All-Bowl Team that year. He was also a semi-finalist for the Lou Groza Award, which is given annually to the nation’s top place-kicker, as well as being named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. Then during the Bulldogs’ run to the CFP National Championship this season, the 6-0, 180-pound Podlesny picked up where he left off in 2020, converting 22 of 27 field goal attempts including a season-long 49-yard kick and another 24-yard field goal in the national championship win over Alabama. Podlesny’s two kicks provided Georgia’s only scoring in the first half as the Bulldogs trailed the Crimson Tide 9-6 at the halftime break. “My wife couldn’t be prouder of Jack and what he’s accomplished at Georgia,” Ike Podlesny said. “It’s been very surreal. My wife has a hard time watching because of anxiety, with our son walking out there in the middle of everything. I think the difference between last year and this year was during the Covid year in 2020 there were just 18,000 to 22,000 people in the stands. That was kind of like a big high school game for him. So, this year I think it was a big adjustment for Jack because he’s going from kicking in front of 18,000 to 20,000 fans to kicking in front of 70,000 to 85,000 to 100,000 people. And he had to make a big adjustment to that mentally because that’s a big difference. “The Peach Bowl kick, Scott Cochran, who’s now the special teams coach, his big thing is you take every kick like it’s the same kick, hit the ball with the exact same timing as hard as you can. In pressure situations, just slow your breathing down, sort of relax and let your body do what it’s supposed to do. “This is about Jack and his journey so far and what he’s done, and he’s enjoying the ride right now,” said Podlesny. Jack Podlesny graduated with honors in the Fall commencement exercises and has started his classes for his masters in the same major, Environmental Health. “The Mailman” will keep delivering COACH SMART WITH THE PODLESNY’S, ELIZABETH, JACK, CHARLEY AND IKE BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED All the Georgia faithful fully know the story of Stetson Bennett IV. Coming to UGA as a walk-on quarterback in 2017 after a record- breaking career at Pierce County High in Blackshear, Georgia., Bennett quarterbacked the Bulldogs’ scout team and when Georgia was making ready for the Rose Bowl semifinal playoff game against Oklahoma, he did a splendid job of emulating the Sooners’ Heisman Trophy quarterback, Baker Mayfield. 41 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

A Unique Journey After playing at Jones Community College in Mississippi in 2018, Bennett returned to Georgia in 2019, playing in five of 14 games. Then in the 2020 opener at Arkansas, he came off the bench and rallied the Bulldogs to a 37-10 win over the Razorbacks. Bennett was Georgia’s starting quarterback for five of 10 games that season and finished the year as the Bulldogs’ top passer (by attempts & completions), completing 86-of-155 passes (56%) for 1,179 yards and eight touchdowns. Then came Stetson Bennett’s senior season in 2021 and the 5-11, 190-pound QB fashioned a story line that would put Cinderella and “Rudy” to shame. After incumbent JT Daniels sustained a “Lat” injury, Bennett became the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback for 12 of the 14 games in which he played, including the last 10 consecutive contests. Bennett led Georgia to a perfect 12-0 regular season with the Bulldogs holding the No. 1 national ranking for most of the season. But it was on the big stage of the CFP playoffs where Bennett stepped up his game to another level. Against Michigan in the Orange Bowl semifinal game, he completed 20-of-30 passing attempts for 313 yards and three touchdowns, leading Georgia to a dominating 34-11 win over the 2nd-seeded Wolverines. Bennett was named the bowl’s Offensive MVP. Then, in the Bulldogs’ rematch with No. 1 Alabama in the CFP National Championship Game, Bennett went 17-of-26 for 224 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, both scoring throws coming in a clutch fourth quarter … a 40-yard touchdown strike to freshman Adonai Mitchell and a 15-yard TD pass to freshman All-America tight end Brock Bowers. Bennett completed all four of his fourth-quarter passes in directing two touchdown drives to lift the Bulldogs into a 26-18 lead over the Tide. Freshman cornerback Kelee Ringo then clinched the national title with his 79-yard interception return, making for the 33-18 final tally. Again, Bennett was named the game’s Offensive MVP. For the season, Bennett completed 185-of-287 passing attempts for 2,862 yards and 29 touchdowns, with just seven interceptions. He also used his legs to total 259 yards rushing on 56 carries and a score. Bennett, who tied a school record when he passed for five touchdowns against UAB last fall, ranked fourth in the NCAA in passing efficiency (179.69) and was one of three finalists for the 2021 Burlsworth Trophy, presented annually to the country’s most outstanding player who began his career as a walk-on. And, the big news for the Dawg Nation is that Bennett recently announced he will be returning to Georgia for a final season, taking advantage of the NCAA’s “Super Senior” rule to use the added year of eligibility granted in 2020 because of the pandemic. He has said he plans to enter law school. So, the Mailman will continue to deliver the mail/football for the Bulldogs in the 2022 season! Stetson’s parents, Stetson Bennett III and Denise Bennett, couldn’t be prouder of all their son has accomplished the past few football seasons. “Absolutely, we’re proud of Stet and the traits of stickability … that’s what you want in a child,” said Stetson III. “Somebody tells you that you can’t and you’re bound and determined to make sure that they know you can. Those are the type of employees I like to hire; those are the type of friends I like to have. I mean, it’s just a great story for sure,” he said. The dad said Stetson IV has never lacked confidence at any BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED endeavor he’s undertook. “Absolutely, he’s a great student, he’s a great athlete and just a great kid,” said Stetson III, the father of five children. “He’s a deep thinker and he’s kind of like, ‘Who are you to tell me that I can’t? Who’s writing this narrative that I can’t?’ “I was obviously at all 15 of the games,” said Bennett. “But I was at the Orange Bowl when somebody just called me and right after the game they said this guy – and I don’t know who the announcers were that game – said Stetson Bennett would probably never take a snap in the NFL but would go down as a legend. And they were calling me to say, hey, they’re saying Stet is going to be a legend. But what I heard was just one more person saying something that he couldn’t do. I’m like, when are these people ever going to learn – who says he’ll never take a snap in the NFL?” Bennett said his son simply loves the University of Georgia and loves playing football … good reasons for his wanting to come back and use his final year of eligibility. “If you’re going to play football somewhere, why would you play anywhere other than the place you love to play,” he said. Bennett III feels the Bulldogs have the talent to make another run for the championship in 2022. “We’ve got great athletes on both sides of the ball and have that chemistry,” he said. “I never worried about Stet because I saw how the team treated him. I knew the chemistry that went on in the locker room, you could see it on the field. You could see it on the sidelines. At Neyland Stadium (against Tennessee) this season, if you go back and look, because I actually filmed that play, and I went back and looked; I watched Justin Schaffer and (Jamaree) Salyer, all the ones that were just so excited with Stet scoring on that quarterback run. Everybody was just so excited. When you have the locker room as a quarterback, you’ve got everything!” Bennett said. Stetson III said the 2021 Bulldogs’ chalking up the program’s first national championship in 41 years only whets the Bennetts’ and UGA fans’ appetite for more great things to happen this coming fall. “Absolutely,” he said. “And I’ve got two words for that … ‘Let’s Go!’” THE BENNETT’S - STETSON IV (CENTER), WITH DAD TO HIS RIGHT, STETSON III AND UNCLES (FROM FAR LEFT) RICHARD, WILLIAM AND, JOHN 42 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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2021 National Champions Edition THE FANS’ VICTORY TRAVEL TO INDY COMPILED BY HAMILTON CULPEPPER AND VANCE LEAVY SARA HUGHES, HELEN HUGHES, MATT HUGHES PHOTO BY: AMANDA KING R ain or shine, sleet or snow, the Dawgs travel. To Indianapolis, it was no different. Despite the freezing temperatures, Dawg Nation showed up and showed out. By land or air, the Georgia faithful made the trek north to see the 2021 Dawgs play for a shot at the title. There were essentially three methods of travel to Indy. Those who made a trip out of it and stayed in the city of Indianapolis for a few days, preparing for the game. Then, there were those who stayed in a nearby city for a few days, making a vacation out of that. Finally, there were those who flew north the day of — touching down the morning of the game, attending the game, and getting back home that night or early Tuesday. Enjoy these memories from each group to help better understand the true Indy experience. BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 47 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

THE INDY DEWELLERS BY REIGN STREITER W e made our way up to Indianapolis a few days prior to the game. In Athens, I always host a tailgate, so I had multiple people reaching out to me asking if we were putting a tailgate together. My buddy Rick Floyd, who also throws a big tailgate, and I put our heads together and started planning how we were going to do this. We said we threw an elite tailgate in Charlotte to open the season and we need to close the season out with another elite one. I got turned on to an event space called Crane Bay. It was literally an old, converted warehouse used to build and work on cranes. It was an awesome venue with an old industrial look and high ceilings, but I figured a cool space like this would have already been taken by a big sponsor. Turns out Michigan had booked the space in advance, thinking they’d beat us, but when they lost, the Michigan people canceled a week prior to the national championship. The Thursday before the game, I called them, and they told me I had it, but I needed to wire them quite a substantial amount of money because of how close it was to the game. We came to the consensus that despite the cost we had to do it, so we wired the money and reserved it. I found an ice sculptor, and he carved us three awesome pieces for the entryway. In addition, I contacted the DJ for the Pacers and Colts who had done Super Bowl events when they hosted and many other cool events. He was great and told me after the game he had never seen such an excited fan base. He said he had never been so happy for a fan base because of our loyalty, so we’re trying to get him down to Athens next season and put him up at another tailgate. Towards the beginning of the tailgate Coach (Mark) Richt entered, and it was like the Pope walked in. He got up on stage Tom Allen and Jay Boswell grew up in Athens and attended UGA together. After marrying their wives, Laura and Doree, and their families grew, they all traveled near and far watching the Dawgs. Since this season was so amazing, the families knew they had to travel to Indy to witness a victory over Alabama and a Georgia national championship. Staying in Louisville, the families visited Churchill Downs, had fabulous meals, toasted the Dawgs in a speakeasy, bowled a few pins and even threw some axes. Doree and Laura felt confident in a Dawg win-from finding a Bible in their terminal gate seat to meeting “Hope” from SEC Shorts. They believed these were signs from some of Heaven’s Greatest Dawgs like Clisby Clarke, EH Culpepper, Bullet Moseley and Kid Terrell. Winning was the ultimate prize!! It was Jay’s perfect day and our families’ greatest blessing to have all been together celebrating the Dawgs’ National Championship. THE NEARBY CITY VACATIONERS BY LAURA ALLEN AND DOREE BOSWELL BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED and kicked us off with a message to Dawg Nation. You could’ve heard a pin drop. Everyone was enthralled and so excited to see the former coach; it was a special moment. After we received the payments from all 500 of our guests we had well over what was needed to cover the expenses. Rick and I didn’t do the tailgate to make money; we just wanted to have an elite tailgate for our fans, so we gave the leftover money, about $10,500, to Camp Sunshine. The team gives a lot of time and effort to that program, so we felt we needed to donate to it as well. After the game, the staff of Crane Bay told me we had broken the record for the most alcohol consumed, but they also said we were the nicest guests they had hosted. The Dawg people love a good drink, but our southern hospitality always stays with us! 48 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

ATHENS TO INDY By Sara Hughes - From the moment we landed in Indianapolis on Monday January 10, you could feel the excitement and trepidation in the air. Could our beloved Georgia Bulldogs finally slay the Alabama giant? We all came with hope that we would be heading home No. 1 in 24 hours. Being able to watch the team rush the field, the confetti drop, and celebrating with my mom and brother will be 24 hours I will never forget. By Hamilton Culpepper - I joined the Hughes on their plane in our travels north to Indianapolis. They were kind enough to allow my family and me to join them for what turned out to be the greatest moment in all of our lives. We left Athens around 10 a.m. the day of the game, and landed in Indy a short hour and a half later. It was a prime travel method. Ast time of my life. It is an unforgettable feeling, and quite honestly, one I thought I’d never experience. I love this school and these people who bleed the Red and Black. Go Dafter landing, we checked in our hotel about 20 minutes from the stadium. It was a quick stop because the Dawgs were barking, and we needed to be tailgating. A pleasant uber ride to downtown took us right to the center of the action. In the cold streets of Indy, we ran into many fellow Dawgs. After a full season of sharing great wins with the rest of Dawg Nation, it was great to have one last hoorah with all Georgia faithful who traveled to the Natty. We were stopped on the streets by fraternity brothers of mine and many other close friends. We had a great tailgating experience put on by the University. The band was electric and the great Dawg people were hunkering down. Then … the game. As we all know, it was unreal. I chewed off an entire fingernail because I was so nervous. When Kelee Ringo iced the game with the pick-six, I couldn’t help but break down to tears. Sitting next to my 50 year old father, who saw the 1980 title as a child, embraced each other and kept crying. Neither one of us even saw Kelee score, but we knew the game was ours. I’m still speechless thinking about that special moment and sharing it with my family was truly the greatewgs!! THE DAY OF FLYERS ATLANTA TO INDY By Robert Wolfe - My family has had season tickets since the 1970s. I cried in our driveway at 8 years old in 1980, because my dad wouldn’t take me to New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl. So, I have been chasing a National Championship all 41 years ever since. I sat behind Hamiton Culpepper’s parents and the Leavys in 2017 in Mercedes Benz when 2nd and 26 knocked us out of the quest for a title. When Kelee Ringo picked off the pass and took it to the house, the weight of all those years was too much to bear. During the play, I jumped and cheered, hugged everyone sitting near me, but soon after, the tears came. I thought about Bulldog friends that I have lost, about my dad who introduced our entire family to UGA football, but is getting older and prefers his tv over the hassles of travel. I thought about my wife, who despite battling Multiple Myeloma this year allowed me to go to 14 of 15 games (exception Orange Bowl). The tears flowed for a solid minute or so. I still tear up watching some of the videos that have flooded social media. And very soon on some cold winter Friday night, I will sit down with some bourbon and watch the game in full again. As far as Indianapolis. Due to my wife’s illness and Covid spiking, she decided at the last minute not to go. Our plans of three nights of hotels, dinner, and hanging out with my “football friends” were about to change. I booked a flight for myself, but within a few minutes of booking, I received “need a ride to Indy?” via text. It was from one of my good friends that I met in Russell Hall in the fall of 1989. He has his own plane, so the opportunity for a fun trip with a bunch of loyal Bulldogs was more enticing than traveling solo. I certainly would miss the build-up to the game in Indianapolis with my friends, but this worked well for our family. We were supposed to fly out of PDK at 12 p.m, land in Indianapolis at 1 p.m., but we were held on the ground in Atlanta for about 30 minutes. Then circled a few times due to the activity at the Indianapolis airport. By the time we landed, it was 3 p.m.. There was so much private flight activity, we had to park far away and wait for a shuttle to take us to the terminal. There were 16 of us, so we needed two vans. We made it to the tailgate that Reign Streiter was hosting at about 3:30 p.m. The tailgate was very well done. It was about two blocks from the stadium, had good food and great drink. It was just a fun event to be a part of, other than two or three Alabama fans, it was all Red and Black. We wanted to soak it all in, so at about BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 49 5:30 p.m., we went to the stadium. I thought the stadium was a nice venue. Ticket people, concession workers, everyone involved were more pleasant than my experience in 2017 in Atlanta. After the game and victory, we loaded up to go back to the airport. We did lose one guy, who was either over-served or just got turned around after exiting Lucas Oil. After locating him, we were back to the airport. There must have been 1,000 people crammed into a building waiting for shuttles to get back to their planes. Luckily, we were able to get to the plane, but were told it would be a little while before we could leave. I am not sure exactly how long that was, because we popped a 1980 bottle of Dom Perignon that one of our buddies had brought with us, “just in case”. Hours later, we were able to get out of Indianapolis. I didn’t see much of Indianapolis, only the few blocks between the tailgate and Lucas Oil Stadium. We landed back in Atlanta at 5:30 a.m. Not too bad, because I am certain there were other UGA fans still soaking it all in at that time of the morning on January 11 as well. I expect other great memories of National Championships under Kirby Smart, but the length of time between 1980 and 2021 and this experience will be a memory until the day I die. 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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YES, IT’S REAL BULLDOG NATION! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE FINALLY A TITLE BY MURRAY POOLE POST-DOOLEY GEORGIA FANS REVEL IN AMAZING SEASON, NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP W hen Vince Dooley retired after the 1988 season, capping a splendid 25-year Georgia coaching career with a record of 201 wins, 77 losses and 10 ties – with a national championship, six SEC championships and 20 bowl appearances under his belt – things didn’t go quite as well for the Bulldogs’ program over the following 11 seasons. Certainly, both Ray Goff and Jim Donnan did some very good things in their head coaching tenures at Georgia but, they weren’t able to take the Bulldogs back to the SEC championship. But then Mark Richt assumed the head coaching reins in 2001 and in just his second year at the helm, Richt’s 2002 Dawgs gave the fanbase its first SEC title in 20 years … since Georgia won its third consecutive conference championship in Herschel Walker’s final UGA season in 1982. Richt would go on to chalk up a 145-51 won- loss record in his 15 seasons as head coach, along with two SEC championships. His winning percentage of .740 ranks first among all Georgia coaches over 15 seasons. Putting the Georgia program back on a steady winning course and becoming a yearly championship contender, Richt’s coaching time in Athens set the stage for even loftier things to come under a coach named Kirby Smart, who assumed the head coaching post in 2016. Thus, in the last 32 years or so, the fans of Dawg Nation have ridden the proverbial roller-coaster at times. Georgia lost nine straight times to Tennessee (1989-97) and seven straight times to Florida (1990-96) and lost three of four to South Carolina in the late 1980s-early 90s. Then there were a few tough losses to Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech during that period. Yet, this generation of Bulldog fans didn’t give up and their aspirations and national championship hopes were finally all realized in the recently-completed 2021 season when Smart piloted Georgia to the program’s first national title since 1980. Here, Bulldawg Illustrated talks to three avid Georgia fans (one being former UGA player Des Williams) spanning three different BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED decades, getting their opinions over the euphoria brought by the national championship win over Alabama and the state of the program today under Smart. The Newer Dawg Fans The UGA Spike Squad was established in 2010 and ever since then, the group has become an integral part of Georgia Football. The squad gets to the gate they enter about four hours prior to kickoff for their gameday tradition of painting their full bodies in Georgia colors before putting their signature-spiked shoulder pads on top. And when the gates to the stadium open two hours prior to kickoff, the Spike Squad leads the charge for the student section, where students all rush to save seats for the game. The squad occupies the first two rows of section 109 at every single Georgia home game, standing the entire game and feverishly cheering and urging the Dawgs on to victory. Blake Davis is a fifth-year member of Georgia’s Spike Squad, who recently graduated from UGA and along with his fellow squad members, attended both the Bulldogs’ semifinal win over Michigan in the Orange Bowl and the team’s 33-18 pasting of old nemesis Alabama in the CFP National Championship game in Indianapolis. Davis and the present UGA student body represent a young Bulldog fanbase that has, for the most part, been treated to unparalleled success by their team on the gridiron. Still, under their watch, the students hadn’t ever tasted the sweet fruits of a national championship…until January 10, 2022. “We have seen the Bulldogs do extremely well in our time at Georgia,” said Davis. “We were able to go to the other national championship game (2017 loss to Alabama) that we don’t talk about so much. I was in my dress there, all painted up. Then we had 26 members of our squad in Indiana for this one, thanks to a bunch of donations we got from a number of Bulldog supporters. We asked for some donations after the Orange Bowl and we got enough money to get us all up there and get some student tickets for us. Jump to page 58. 56 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

DOESN’T GET MUCH BETTER THAN THIS.

FINALLY A TITLE “Everybody talks about when the clock hits zero, that was such a relief for me,” he said. “I felt very relieved. It felt almost like I had been trying to will them to win over the past few years with how hard we cheered and all the games we went to. It felt like I needed to be there to cheer them on and so having it happen and finally getting there …. earlier this season I had to come to the realization that no matter how bad I wanted it, I wasn’t on the field and I couldn’t will it to happen. But the way it came about, I thought, ‘can we will this to happen?’ If you want it bad enough, do dreams really come true? That’s kind of how it felt, seeing the whole thing come full circle.” Davis said the Bulldogs’ 34-11 semifinal playoff win over Michigan in the Orange Bowl was also special. “The Orange Bowl, now that was awesome because going into it, we didn’t really know which Georgia team would show up,” he said. “And to have them show up the way they did, it was very surprising to me because I thought it was going to be a really close game. Michigan’s a good team and we matched up really well with them and we were obviously hungry to get back to the place we had been before and play ‘Bama again. So getting that opportunity felt great but it was more like checking the box and now, let’s go get them back.” Davis said, like many Georgia fans, he still wondered if the Bulldogs could finally get over the Alabama hump, what with Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide having posted seven consecutive wins over the Dawgs, a number of them coming in excruciating fashion for the Bulldawg Nation. “Absolutely,” said Davis. “Honestly, for most of the week and the trip leading up to it, I wasn’t real confident we were going to win. But even looking back at the Clemson game in the first week of the season, I knew if we beat them, we had what it took to go to that (national championship) game and probably win because we knew what kind of defense we had, and the offense was getting strong, and if they showed up – and they didn’t really show up in that game as they did throughout the season – I knew we had NOAH WHITE, STEPHANIE REYES, HUNTER STREET, NATHANIEL LEMMONS, GARRETT NOLAN PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE the best team in the country. But it was just the mental hurdles, can we get over them and I wasn’t sure we could get over them. Because Saban is who he is and is one of the greatest coaches of all time and it’s hard to beat that sometimes. So, yeah, I really had no clue. It could have gone either way but I think with it being a defensive game that’s what really helped us and I knew it would have to be that way for us to win, one of those Alabama-LSU type games for the national championship.” Davis said when Kelee Ringo intercepted Bryce Young’s pass and scored on a record-breaking 79-yard interception run to clinch the championship, a lot of emotions came forth from the UGA fans. “A lot of people were wondering, if we win are you gonna cry?” he said. “And a lot of people were crying after the game. But it was with about eight minutes left in the game, I was thinking about how hard the defense had played and thinking back to the times we had played Alabama in the national championship game and also when we played them in the SEC championship game a few years earlier, I had never seen a team fight that hard and want to beat a team so badly. I was thinking about comparing it to that and it seemed like they wanted it even more than they did back TITLE THRILL FOR BLAKE DAVIS PHOTO BY: DANIEL VANHOOZER BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 58 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FINALLY A TITLE DES WILLIAMS WITH HIS NEPHEW GREY WILLIAMS then, and I didn’t think that was even possible at the time. But it was and to be so stout and have such a good cohesive defense against such a good team and a good coach, it finally hit me that no matter what the referees called, how the ball bounced, whatever Nick Saban did, this team was a champion to me and I could absolutely live with how they played because I knew it was the best I had ever seen. Yes, offense and defense were extremely impressive and I’m very proud of them.” Davis said the Bulldogs winning the championship this season was especially gratifying to him. “I learned that I was a fourth-generation Bulldog this year when I graduated as my family gave me my great- grandfather’s class ring and it was from 1942. I first wasn’t sure I was going to go to the championship game but after I got that ring and realized the year, I decided I would have to be there,” said Davis, aware of the significance of 1942, when the Bulldogs of Frank Sinkwich and Charley Trippi captured the first of Georgia’s three national championships in the Rose Bowl. Mark Richt’s Dawgs RENNIE CURRAN AND DES WILLIAMS JULINAN WILLIAM AND DES WILLIAMS Des Williams was a fullback for the Bulldogs, playing for Richt from 2003 to 2006, before graduating from UGA in 2007. “I think for sure we laid the foundation,” said Williams, of his years at Georgia. “I was the first commitment out of that 2003 class. My mindset in high school as a senior, with that 2002 Dawg bunch with Terrance Edwards, a crazy defensive line and David Greene at quarterback, man, if we had had the college football playoff then, that team would have won in 2002 because they had so much momentum,” he said. “They crushed Arkansas in the SEC Championship Game and they beat Florida State in the Sugar Bowl. And I went to the Sugar Bowl that year to watch them so, as a high school senior, I was like, man, we’ve got David Greene, David Pollack, (D.J.) Shockley, Tim Jennings, Thomas Davis, Greg Blue and all those guys coming back and Kedric Golston. I was like we are going to win a national championship while we’re here,” Williams said. “So seeing that momentum like the 2002 class built … I came in with Kregg Lumpkin, who was a 5-star running back behind Reggie Bush; we were kind of poised like we were going to win. We played for the SEC championship in ’03 and lost to LSU but had some great years and talent. Shockley led us to the SEC championship in ’05 by beating LSU and then we kind of pushed momentum to 2007 which was Matt Stafford BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 60 and Knowshon Moreno and everybody.” Williams said the Bulldogs had an abundance of talent in those early seasons under Richt, many who had been recruited earlier by Jim Donnan. “We were so talented,” he said. “Coach Richt came in in 2001 and from the tail end of ’01 to that 2002 class, I really felt we gained momentum from there. That was Richt’s turning point as he was starting to get his recruits in and you know we pushed the envelope right off the bat. And I think our mindset coming in as recruits was we’re going to win the national championship in the next couple of years and, obviously, it’s a lot harder now and we waited so long for it to happen this season. Even in the Richt era, I thought we had a chance when I was there,” Williams said. “Obviously, in 2007 and 2012 we had a chance and then Kirby took over. We wish we could have won it in 2017 but, man, we had a lot of talent and we were so close so many different times.” Williams said the Georgia teams he played on and the entire Richt era unquestionably built a lot of positive momentum for Smart to “come in and do his thing.” “I’ll say too with this transfer portal age, when we were there you committed to the University of Georgia because you love Georgia and we didn’t have a whole lot of people leave,” he pointed out. “Obviously, Shockley was probably the biggest example of that. He could have left and started for any team in the country but he let the chips fall and had one awesome year (in 2005). But because of his character and what he did and what he did in the league for a couple of years, obviously he’s got a great job and career for life (in broadcasting), and I think that’s kind of testament to what we all were. “Myself as a fullback,” said Williams, “I had to wait my time after Jeremy Thomas and when he left I was poised for that starting job. But I got hurt my true sophomore year right before camp and we had Brannan Southerland come in and he did a marvelous job. We were kind of a running back by committee and fullback by committee and it was one of those things where it would have been easy to say I’m gonna go play for Auburn or Tennessee or Georgia Tech. But no, we wanted to all stay together and push the program forward, be there for each other in case somebody got hurt and again try to go and win as much as possible, win that championship.” Williams, who now lives in Buford and owns a successful landscape/pool/lighting business, didn’t get to make the national championship game in Indianapolis due to 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FINALLY A TITLE Don Scully the night before sweet victory, with his UGA Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity brothers, Patrick Jones, Colin Edwards, Steve Edwards, David Abernathy, Trey Manley Mark Langestein, Jeff Tingle helping coach his 12-year-old son’s football game in Buford. But he was blown away by the national championship celebration, with the parade, Dawg Walk and Sanford Stadium ceremony that was held on the UGA campus Jan.15 with close to 100,000 fans attending. “I just think they did an incredible job with the celebration in Athens,” Williams said. “I didn’t know how they were going to do the parade and then turn around and do the Dawg Walk and then get everybody in the stadium in the time of that two-hour span. But they did a tremendous job. I was talking to Sean Chapas who is in development now and he was a fullback a couple of years behind me, and Shaun said they had some initial plans kind of ready before the championship game but as soon as that Monday hit, they went into a go-mode and were able to get it done. “But man, it was just tremendous. They had a really awesome setup on the field for former players and obviously friends and parents and family. And man, just to see that place rocking … I thought D.J. Shockley did a great job of emceeing the event and just the way they pulled everybody in…D’Andre Swift, letting some of the seniors speak and they just really put on a great heartfelt celebration that we all took in. And if you were a recruit, and I think they had about 50 recruits there, you couldn’t help but see this is just a celebration and we got the stadium packed! It just shows what we are as a Bulldog Nation. “As a player, I thought we all were kind of a building block to push the envelope and get the program to where it is now,” said Williams, “but I’m excited and proud like a fan just as much as I am for being a former letterman at Georgia. And I think that speaks a lot for Coach Smart’s excitement what he’s grown this to and everything.” The late 80s/early 90s Dawg fans Don Scully was a student at the University of Georgia from 1986-91. So in his days of supporting the Bulldogs, he’s really experienced the lowest of lows and highest of highs with his football team. “The hardest thing for me, I live in Baton Rouge and the last 20 years, LSU has won three national titles,” Scully said. “And now, we finally got ours! The worse thing about it is watching, Florida, LSU, Alabama and Auburn win national titles with the same talent we’ve got. We have the same talent and we couldn’t put it together. And we finally did it,” he said. “We finally got it done. It took all these years. A load has been taken off. “Like I say, I live in Baton Rouge and everybody here is all upset and sad,” Scully said. “I’m out here in the prairie with the Indians, you understand. So when the Dawgs win, nobody says anything but when the Dawgs lose, everybody says, ‘Hey man, what happened to the Dawgs?’ They rub it in here and here I am. This has been going on for years and so the flip side of that is you win it all and now everybody says congratulations, you finally got off the shot.” Scully said it’s remarkable what Smart has done for the football program over the past six years. BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED “Kirby has paid his dues, learning not only how to be a coach but to develop players and to achieve excellence. I watched Nick Saban here in Baton Rouge taking an LSU team that was pathetic and basically get them into position where no one was going to beat them. And they got stronger as the season went on (en route to 2003 national championship). So I watched what Kirby did and Kirby strived for excellence,” he said. “I watched something last night and they were recapping (the championship game) and this guy was talking on the game and they kept playing what Kirby said, ‘You’re either Elite or you’re not.’ It was incredible and what it is, Kirby actually taught those boys how to win the game. “So after all these years, Kirby finally brought us to the promise land,” declared Scully. “After that 2017 national championship game, Kirby was (upset) and so was I. We had them (Alabama) beat, we put it in the hands of the referees and lost the game but to me it was especially painful because the player that caught the touchdown pass (Devonta Smith) is from right down the road in Baton Rouge. He’s from Hammond, Louisiana. So I’m sitting there watching the game and thinking we’ve got ‘em beat and the next thing you know this player from Hammond is running down the sidelines catching a pass from Tua (Tagovailoa).” Scully believes there is a Biblical analogy in the Bulldogs’ championship run this season. “I’m serious,” he said. “This may sound crazy but it’s been on my heart for years. If you look at the Bible and you look at what happened to the Jewish nation when they escaped Egypt, they wandered in the desert for 40 years. And it was Moses who led them all the way through. But Moses got from God, “you ain’t going into the Promise Land. So Moses wound up dying and it was Joshua who took the tribe of Israel into the Promise Land. So if you look at what we did, we went through 40 years wandering in the desert, no Promise Land…40 years! “I thought 2020 was the year but it wasn’t, it was 2021, “said Scully. “2020 completed 40 years. I used to think that Richt was Moses and Kirby was Joshua but I was wrong. (Former AD Greg) McGarity was Moses and this year guess who our new athletic director is? …Joshua (Brooks)! Just think about it, we completed 40 years in 2020 and last year was the year we fought all our battles. If you look at the battles the Jews fought, they ended up losing only one. We lost only one this past season, and it was Joshua that brought us through. It just lined up perfectly. I’m not saying our athletic director could be responsible for this, I’m just pointing out the typology. And by the way, you know where our athletic director, Joshua, is from? … Hammond, Louisiana! “But I’ve been here through all the pain and suffering and finally, with this championship, it feels like a big load has been lifted off,” Scully said. That’s certainly how most of Bulld0g Nation has to feel as well! 62 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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The past 41 years have seen plenty of ups and downs, but two constants have remained – our commitment to the exceptional quality of Sea Island and St. Simons Island real estate and the Bulldogs’ commitment to excellence on and off the field. Just like the Dawgs never wavered in their pursuit of excellence, we never stop working for you to ensure your Sea Island or St. Simons Island dream home becomes a reality. Congratulations to the Bulldogs players, coaches, and the Bulldog Nation on bringing home the 2021 National Championship. Don Lewis specializes in properties on Sea Island and St. Simons Island, finding well-qualified buyers, and using powerful marketing tools to ensure every transaction is a winner. “Let me work for you!” 1989 – The Cloister and Sea Island featured on “Runaways of the Rich and Famous” (John Martin, soap star on “One Life to Live” and wife Cynthia). 1981 – Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter visit The Cloister grounds. 1980 1981 1980 – Herschel Walker and Co. carry the Dawgs to a perfect 12-0 season under legendary head coach Vince Dooley and beat Notre Dame 17-10 in the Sugar Bowl to win the National Championship. 1982 1988 1989 1988 – Dooley retires from coaching and focuses on his role as Athletic Director. He finishes his coaching career with a 201-77- 10 record and a National Championship. 1982 – Herschel Walker wins the Heisman Trophy as a junior and leads the Dawgs to another SEC championship and an 11-1 season. R. D on L ewis , J R . Associate Broker, Real Estate Sea Island Properties

1992 – Bill Jones III was elected to succeed his father, Bill Jones, Jr., as President of Sea Island Company. 2004 – Sea Island/The Cloister hosted the 30th G-8 Summit. 2001 – Davis Love III surveys the new Retreat course in August 2001 prior to the opening of The Lodge at Sea Island Golf Club. 2008- 2021 2006 – Opening of new Cloister and Spa. 1994 – Margaret Thatcher plants commemorative Oak. 1992 1994 1992 – Garrison Hearst places third in the Heisman voting with 1,871 rushing and receiving yards and 21 TDs and leads the Dawgs to a Citrus Bowl victory and a 10-2 record. 2002 – Head Coach Mark Richt goes 13-1, wins the SEC and the Sugar Bowl and ushers in a new era of winning at UGA. He wins another SEC title in 2005 and finishes with 10 wins 10 times. 2003 – The Cloister celebrates 75 years. 2016 – Philip Anschutz purchases Sea Island. 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2016 2017 2021 – The only resort in the world to achieve four Forbes Five-Stars 13 years in a row. The Cloister. The Georgian Room. The Lodge. The Spa at Sea Island. 2021 2017 – After replacing Richt in 2016, Head Coach Kirby Smart leads the Dawgs to an SEC title and its first National Championship berth since 1980. 351 Sea Island Road, St. Simons Island, GA 31522 c 912-222-4575 • o 912-638-5161 • f 912-634-3248 donlewis@seaisland.com • seaislandproperties.com 2021 – Smart, a historically good defense, and walk-on QB Stetson Bennett end the 41-year drought by going 14-1 and defeating Alabama 33-18 to win the CFP National Championship.

FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Natalie Davidson, Adrian Cate, Elizabeth Brunson Hank Tollison, Maddie Veal, Thomas Veal National Champions Edition Suzanne Leebern, Caroline Ward Lisa Brown, Cheri Leavy, Terry Brown, Ali Brown, Vance Leavy, Taylor Brown, Cole Brown Lee LoPriore, John Parker, Ginny Savini Missy Sinnowitz, Susie Cross, Carrie Shepherd BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 72 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN SPORTS PHOTOS 2021 FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME Ashley Luke, Caroline Ward National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Katie Milner, Karey O’Kelley, Halley Dement, Anne Hamilton Milner Rennie Curran, Morgan Curran Ashlyn Lanier, Drew Aspinwall, Graham Davis, Manning Mercer Max Champion, Mila McClendon, Joyce McClendon Sean Roberts, Brent Hulsey, Jason Eley Drew Brunson, Patrick Brunson, Trey Brunson, Elizabeth Brunson BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 74 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Polly Claxton, Caroline Champion, Parker Claxton, Paula Claxton Caroline Ward, Cissy Cochran, Mary Beth Smart, Lisa Patton, Jill Barrow Bonney Shuman, Abit Massey, Yvette Daniels Rex Ramsey, Jeff Ramsey, Kathy Ramsey, Whit Ramsey Rusty Mansell, Sonny Smart, Sharon Smart Kevin Butler, Robby Kirk, Jeff Dantzler, Allen Miller, Joe Devaney Jordan Davis, Travis Johnson BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 76 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Aaron Murray Bennett Stamper, Richard Stamper, Kim Stamper, Billy Shuman, Bonney Shuman, Mary Ellen Shuman, Thomas Barrow, Billy Shuman, Brent Hadden Billy Payne Audrey Moore, Parker Moore Christian Massey, Abit Massey, Lewis Massey Brian Tucker, Ryan Meyer, Brandon Tucker, Steve Brown & Parker Evans BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Jay Desai, Vick Bhatia, Ram Bhojwani, Ronnie P., Jeff Goddard 78 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Chris Lakos, Steven Colquitt Sarah Jorden, Cheri Leavy, Sadie Jordan, Maggie Jordan Caroline Claveau, Abby Gardner, Mary Ellen Jones, Sarah Beth Poston, Gracie Ackaway, Carson Hamlin, Marion Kronauge, Francis Powell, Lauren Moore, Kylie Scovina, Audrey Fusz Jenny Kohrumel, Tim Kohrumel Bill Fitzpatrick, Trish Fitzpatrick Steve Ratley, Keith Benbenisty BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 80 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

CONGRATULATIONS DAWGS

FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Mary Catherine Arnold, Chris Arnold, Julie Lindsey Bruce Thurmond, Sherry Minick, Brian Peel, Robert Peel Christian Tilton, Luke Tilton, Elijah Tilton Michelle Wiser, Sammie Aiken, Amy Willis, Karen Willis Justin Jones, Amy Jones, Charlotte Hand, Carson Hand, Danny Tran, Jenny Lewandowski, Justin Lewandowski BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 82 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Brent Hall, Jacqueline Hall Pat Fox, Martha Ann Fox, Daryl Robinson, Lane Robinson Duke Lindsay, Landon Heath, Lake Lindsay, Nick Shurling Julia Hellman, Ginny Thompson, Harrison Cobb Jane Toothaker, Weston Smart, Mary Beth Smart, Julia Smart, Kirby Smart, Andrew Smart Richard Stamper, Kim Stamper, Bonney Shuman, Billy Shuman BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Michelle Beckum, Stacy Stephens 84 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Yates Anderson, Nicole Anderson , Kim Holcomb, Ben Holcomb David Norton, Lauren Atteberry Andrienne Brown, Jeff Suits, Brian Ross, Madalyn Suits, Matt Ades, Chad Brown, Grant Campbell, Mark Haskins Christie Mentzer, Sam Tate Joe Dent, Carl Varnedoe, Christina Varnedoe, Amy Dent, Angie Sellers, Ken Sellers Crawford McInnis, Mary McInnis, Lowery May, Charlie May BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Rhodes McLanahan, Clara McLanahan 86 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Justin Jones, Shelly Jones, Charles Clark, Haley Clark, Brandi Clark and Owen Clark Lillie Brooks, Meg Kowalski, Houston Gaines Maggie Mathis, Pfeiffer McKenzie, Shawn McKenzie, Cody Mathis Madison Simpson, Mary Catherine Arnold, Jenny Lewandowski, Julie Linsey, Charlotte Hand BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Bob Shields, Martha Howell 88 Allyson Miller, Bartley Miller 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

(front) Raynor Manley, Trey Manley, Stephanie Manley, Cheri Leavy, Emily Dantzler, (back) Elle Manley, Kelly Call, Sarah Kate Call, Chandler Call, Tom Call, Jimmy Rector, Vance Leavy Lenn Chandler, Paula Chandler, Seth Snyder, Jessica Snyder Jason Eley, Lee Zell Lanier McLeod, Rod McLeod, Brett Marshall, Abbi Windham, Cam Windham Mitt Brumlow, Jake Brumlow BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 89 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Dean Mathison, Nicole Mathison, Ken Wright, Terri Wright, Annie Lindsay, Mather Lindsay Anna Thompson, June Gossling Sonny Seiler, Cheri Leavy Jeff Mewborn, Cindy Mewborn Recardo Cannady, Santrell Davis, Jehlen Cannady, Thomas Porter BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Price West, Adam West, Lanier West 90 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Kaleem Feely, Shenekia McClinton, Derion Kendrick, Taneshia Miller, Quita Miller, Jordan McElveen, Damari Kendrick Scott Kenney, Jane Kenney, Susan Brock, Savannah Brock, David Brock Sarah Ellen Griffies, Matt Griffies, Tracy Carmony, Mark Carmony Jake Richards, Chris Cotton James Whitmire , Brook Whitmire , Allie Whitmire, Davis Orr, Kelley Orr, Jennifer Whitmire BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 92 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

Thank you, Dawgs!!! Thank you, Dawgs!!! Athens Original An An Athens Original UGA Alumni Owned UGA Alumni Owned and Operated and Operated

FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Smisson Neel, Ford Neel, Sanford Caroline Neel, Summer Dawn Neel, John Neel Wayne Cooper, Laurie Cooper Bob Price, Beverly Price, Marc Mercer, Patrick Burkhalter, GiGi Goble, Mary Katelyn Bland, Drew Thomas, Caroline Champion, Sandra Bland, Delbert Bland, Natalia Davidson, Troy Bland, Dallas Davidson Bill Young, Thomas Settles, Margaret Young, William Young, Brandon Young Mitzi Tollison, Lawton Tollison & Dell Staley, Hank Staley Rodney Greene, Rusty McGiboney, Craig Camuso Kevin Aycock, Jordan Aycock, Dan Bailey, Mike Stephens BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 94 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Katie David Mendenhall, Mollie David Graves, Tommy David, Trey Sheppard Cary Chastain. J.D. Mosely, T.J. Perry Chip Hackett, John Crawford, Claire Hackett, Charles Hoke Rebecca Peterson, Chip Peterson, Matt Ryan, Nate Tomlinson, Cole Hixon, John Kinney, Caroline Kinney, Fielding Moore Helen Hughes, Nina Sheffield, Sara Hughes, Apryl Hughes David Long, Orin Whittaker, Emmy Whittaker, Johnny Ellis, Cathy Long, Judy Ellis, Margy Long, Art Ellis, Bennett Ellis BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 96 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME National Champions Edition GEORGIA 33 - ALABAMA 18 Brantley Swindell, Evan Venable, Emma Wistead, Miles Martin John Staton III, Caki Staton, Clara McLanahan, Temple McLanahan, Maggie (McLanahan) Staton, John Staton IV, Hailey Staton, Davis McLanahan, Rhodes McLanahan Caroline Kinney, Jay Hixon Jessica Snyder, Shep Rose Jere Morehead, Josh Brooks David Wilson, Alexis Wilson, Brynna Wilson, Josh Wilson Nakobe Dean, Jack Guest

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Vance Leavy, Tom Call, Mary Peeples, Mary Shaw, Kate Thompson, Emily Jacobs, Mallory Tingle,Kate LaGranduer, Grace Mulroy, Cheri Leavy, Chandler Call, Kelly Call Livia Geiger Joe Randall,Billy Shuman,Bonney Shuman, Susan Thomas, Sherry Howard, Denise Fritze, Kim Stamper, William King, Ed Stamper, Jamie Fritze, Cooper Howard Terrell Johnson, Meredith Johnson, Mary Clifton Carr, Thomas Johnson Tatum Rooker, Evelyn Dukes, Lola Rooker Walt Pipkin, Andrew Forgay, Rochelle Forgay, Christine Anderson, Bayla Pipkin Bryant Gantt, Andrew Smart, Kirby Smart Mojo Williams, Sue Williams, Sarah Jordan, Chuck Jordan BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 100 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

The 41-year Journey has Ended with a TITLE ... Way to go DAWGS!!! Providing Personal, Commercial and Life and Health policies across the Southeast tailored to fit your needs. CAREY STEPHENS | 706-546-8100 | carey.stephens@boswellgroup.org ROBERT NEWSOME | Robert.newsome@boswellgroup.org HENRY PERSONS | Henry.Persons@boswellgroup.org BOSWELLGROUPATHENS.COM

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Carolyn Morgan, Kim Noland, Catherine Marti, Caroline Kinney, Allison Hodge 1980 Seniors raise the 2021 National Championship flag Cain Wachtel, Shelly Wachtel, Cooper Wachtel, Adam Wachtel Scott Shepherd, Carrie Shepherd, Grace Mason, Liza Shepherd, Sara Lynn Bryant, Benjie Bryant, Caroline Bryant, Henry Shepherd, Mel Channell, Holly Stanfill (front) Amp Arnold, Scott Woerner, Rex Robinson, Mike Fisher, Pat McShea (back) Bob Kelly, Coach Whittemore, Robert Miles, Frank Ros , Greg Bell, Coach Kasay, Jeff Harper, Tim Morrison, Keith Middleton, Jeff Hipp Davin Bellamy, Lorenzo Carter Hope Richardson, Victoria Uline, Dashaun Ferguson , Ambria Feth, Madison Winningham BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Rhett Mohney, Lauren Sigmon, Lyndsey Mohney, Sophia Sigmon, Elizabeth Mohney, William Mohney, Jane Higgins, Lyla Mohney 102 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Jimmie Hooks, Olivia Hooks (top) Joshua Cobbs, Joshua Redding, Jordan Foster, Jace Hill, Corey Redding, T’Keyah Holloway-Redding, (bottom) Madison Faust, Brittany Faust and Tony Hampton Marla Howell, Steve Howell, Greg Smith Doug Ford, Andrew Ford Anna Greer George Greer Emma Anderson, Ethan Casas Charlie Atkinson, Lee Atkinson BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 104 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

Congratulations Georgia Bulldogs! 2021 NCAA National Football Champions! Let us help you celebrate all of life’s big milestones at Cloverleaf Farm, a wedding and social event venue just outside of Athens in Arnoldsville, Georgia. magicweddingvenues.com | 706.543.1111

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Sahil Jiwani, Aahil Khetani, Ammaar Alwani, Mira Bhakta, Aahil Madhani, Rhea Merchant, Azim Farishta, Sehrish Surani, Anum Ali, Sabrina Mamdani, Inaara Jiwani, Jaser Doja Holly Kate Lake, Thompson Morris, Kate Murphy Mike Jenkins , Ashley Jenkins Ansley Cotter, Jana Smith, Pryce Lofton, Maggie Hill Billy Copelan, Noah Luskus Parker, Mallory, Jenny, Pierce, Kennedy Rae, Damion, Everlee, Colby, Kayla BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED Sonny Smart, Sharon Smart 106 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Henry Coleman, Jenni Coleman, Chandler Coleman, Walton Coleman Henry Morgan, Eleanor Morgan, Carolyn Morgan, James Morgan, Kim Noland, Caroline Noland, Mary Abbott Noland, Trip Noland Fred Victor, Michael Meshad, John Meshad Julian Nelson, Jayde Nelson Brad Lastinger, Buck Talley, Tyler Talley Erik Kahlstorf, Meredith Kahlstorf, Lacy Sinkwich, Frank Sinkwich III, Frank Sinkwick IV Walton Lee, John Ferguson BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 108 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

Moving, Retiring, or Investing in Athens Homes, Condos, Airbnb, and Student Properties congratulations Dawgs! We Help Clients Make Athens Their Home or a Place to Invest in Homes, Condos, and More home buyer inventory If you are thinking of selling or still looking for the right property, check out our home buyer map and connect with an agent to get started at 5MRealty.com. WWW.5MREALTY.COM | ATHENS, GA | FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR UPDATES

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Stewart McDonald, Pierce McDonald, Tootsie Adams, Lanier Gupton, Porter McDonald, Whit McDonald, Greta Covington, Anna Gupton, Steve Covington, Caroline Thompson, Gene Howard, Margaret Thompson, Anne Thompson, Margaret Howard Sidney Paris, Kkaki Staton John Cook, Emiliano Diaz, Jackson Alexander Laurie Clarke, Layne McHugh Lehomes Taylor, Jamez Kirkland, Dre Lawton Malcolm Mitchell, Jasmine Mitchell, Oakley Mitchell Amarlo Herrera Quinton Williams, Laila Bolton, Shika Middlebrooks BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 110 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

How Bout Them National Champions?! @amelias5points @amelias_madison (706) 850-6373 1738 S Lumpkin Street, Athens (706) 342- 2986 172 South Main Street, Madison

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Zoe Richt, Jadyn Richt, Anna Richt, Jon Allan Richt II (a.k.a. Champ), Katharyn Richt, Mark Richt David Wilson, Carl Shoemaker, Mike Kaplan, John Neel, Ford Neel, Smisson Neal, Drew Hill, Chase Walker, Doug Farley Alyssa Hatten, Elizabeth Buck, William Shelton John Thigpin, Rana Thigpin, Wimberly Thigpin, Dakota Mitchell Vince Dooley, Barbara Dooley, Sam Holmes, Elizabeth Bowers, Lara Holmes, Sam Holmes, Jr. Jeff Tingle, Mallory Tingle Henry Hilsman, Lee Anne Hilsman, Austin Pugmire, Kelly Grow, Ali Hilsman, Lola Hilsman, Rout Pugmire, Mary Hollis Pugmire, Millie Pugmire, Caddie Grow, Wats Dorris, Crawford Grow, Boo Doris, Leslie Dorris, Parker Grow BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 112 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

How ‘bout them dawgs! Condor Chocolates welcomes you to our new factory and café in Downtown Athens Five Points | 1658 S. Lumpkin St. • Downtown Athens | 160 E. Washington St. | condorchocolates.com

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Chandler Johnston, Marcus Mathurin, Morgan Throop Josh Jones, Cassie Wright Alan Zielinski, Kevin Hall Pearce Spurlin, Tom Spurlin, Pearce Spurlin Tate Groseclose, Chuck McConnell, Lindsay McConnell, Hannah Groseclose, Graham Groseclose Jere Morehead, proud president of the No. 1 team in nation Lauren Bartlett Ray Goff, Mark Richt, Vince Dooley, Jim Donnan BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 114 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

Now in Athens Proud locals serving Athens and congratulating the Dawgs! 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS FRONT ROW: CHERI CHERRY, JIM PURCELL, HOLLY PURCELL BACK ROW: GENA KNOX, SABRINA COLLINS, HALLY DEMENT 296 W BROAD STREET, SUITE 2 | ATHENS, GA 30601 | 706.995.7500 BUCKHEAD | INTOWN | NORTH ATL ANTA | EAST COBB | MARIET TA | ATHENS | MOUNTAIN & L AKE | COASTAL All data believed to be accurate but not warranted. If you have any existing brokerage relationship, this is not intended as a solicitation. Equal housing opportunity.

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Jordan Davis loves his Dawgs and Braves Susan Collins, Patti Peach Vince Dooley, Barbara Dooley Jeff Harper, Debby Harper Brian Kemp salutes the No.1 Dawgs Holt Smith, Renee Keeble Smith, Beth Keeble, Rylie Keeble, John Keeble, Adam Smith, Ford Smith Jeff Sentell, Brook Whitmire Kirby kissing the AFCA National Championship Trophy BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 116 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

Congratulations dawgs Congratulations 2021 National Championship Georgia Bulldogs J o e l K . A r l i n e , C PA w w w. a r l i n e w i g g i n s .c o m 1 6 0 6 R e y n o l d s S t r e e t, B r u n s w i c k 2 1 1 E a s t C o u r t S t r e e t, H i n e s v i l l e

FAN PHOTOS 2021 PARADE/CELEBRATION National Champions Edition Luke Bennett, Knox Bennett, Cameron Liss, Denise Bennett, Stetson Bennett Susan Kasey, John Kasay Perry Langston, John Meshad Ross Akins, Eli Akins, Becky Akins, Mark Akins Mary Beth Smart, Weston Smart, Julia Smart, Andrew Smart, Kirby Smart John Rooker, David Dukes James Heery, Trent Fordham Kirby Smart, D.J. Shockley BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 118 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

We are the CHAMPIONS! You want a retirement unlike anyone else’s. Plan Accordingly. Call us at 912.265.3907 Toll Free: 800.451.7844 St Simons Island Office: An Independent Office 3600 Frederica Road Suite 6, St. Simons Island, GA 31522 Investment advisory services offered through Raymond James Financial Services Advisors, Inc. Champion & Magbee Financial Services is not a registered broker/dealer and is independent of Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. | Securities offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. | MemberFINRA/SIPC | Raymond James® is a registered trademark of Raymond James Financial, Inc. You want a retirement unlike anyone else’s. Plan Accordingly. Call us at 912.265.3907 Toll Free: 800.451.7844 St Simons Island Office: An Independent Office 3600 Frederica Road Suite 6, St. Simons Island, GA 31522 Investment advisory services offered through Raymond James Financial Services Advisors, Inc. Champion & Magbee Financial Services is not a registered broker/dealer and is independent of Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. | Securities offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. | MemberFINRA/SIPC | Raymond James® is a registered trademark of Raymond James Financial, Inc.

NOLAN SMITH SAYS GOOD NIGHT! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 120 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

2021 National Champions Edition THE FINAL PERSPECTIVE ALL EIGHTEEN 2021 BI COVERS + JD’s TAKES - PG. 122 LEGENDS NEVER DIE - HAMMY CULPEPPER - PG. 162 ONE OF OURS, KIRBY SMART - LORAN SMITH - PG. 166 JEFF DANTZLER’S FINAL 2021 TOP 15 - PG. 168 BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 121 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

Issue 1 2021 G-Day/Spring National Champions Edition W ith the strong 4-0 close to the 2020 season (highlighted by Jack Podlesny’s field goal winner against Cincinnati), the Bulldogs are carrying a great deal of momentum. Amongst the biggest reasons that Georgia is feeling good coming out of the spring is the quarterback position. JT Daniels put up big numbers to close out last season. Two position groups carry the most concern. One is the offensive line. With a great deal of young talent, the versatility of the team’s best offensive lineman Jamaree Salyer, and the return of Justin Shafer, the pieces are there for O-Line coach Matt Luke. The other area of concern is the secondary. Georgia was hit with massive attrition following the 2020 campaign. Lewis Cine is the unquestioned leader of the position group. Derion Kendrick, the transfer from Clemson is a huge addition. And the blue chipper Kelee Ringo is ready. BY JEFF DANTZLER TOP 8 SPRING BALLERS PG. 20 | WHAT’S THE WORD: JOSH BROOKS PG. 23 | RECRUITING PGS. 24.27 SPORTS KEARIS JACKSON JT DANIELS G D A Y RADING EACH POSITION, PGS 12, 13 NA/DEMANDING THE STANDARD, PGS 14,15 NALYTICS, PGS 16, 17 ARDS AFTER CATCH/ CONTACT, PG 18 BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 122 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION 11 ISSUE ONE • G-DAY/SPRING

H&H Lifestyles and the Brunson family have always been loyal Dawg fans. Congratulations to our College Football National Champions! G O DAWGS! 222 Retreat Village | St. Simons Island, GA | (912) 265-8100 | HandHLifestyles.com Monday-Friday 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM | Saturday 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM | Sunday Closed

Issue 2 Season Preview 2021 National Champions Edition A t the top of any coach’s wish list when preseason camp begins is health. Georgia lost stellar wide receiver, George Pickens, to a knee injury in March, a huge blow. The defensive front seven, which will be leaned upon so heavily is not only healthy, but primed to do something special. Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart talks extensively about “connectivity.” Early signs point upwards. There is great leadership from the best players on the team and balance in the classes. To accomplish what the Bulldogs are aiming to do, it will take all hands on deck. As preseason camp moves past the midpoint, the focus and attention turns to preparation for the mega-showdown with the Clemson Tigers. Georgia will be an underdog in Charlotte in a neutral site, renewed rivalry matchup between top five nationally ranked powerhouses. BY JEFF DANTZLER ALL LEADERSHIP TEAM PG. 18 ALL IMPACT TEAM PG. 20 SPORTS JAMES COOK RUNNING BACK PHOTO BY: TONY WALSH THE ACES OF 2021 & FACES BY: MATTHEW PASEK The 2021 edition of the Georgia Bulldogs is the deepest, most talented roster Kirby Smart has fielded during his tenure in Athens. It is time for the Bulldog Nation to double down and be ready to take down the house by bringing the first National Championship back to Athens since 1980. There are Four Aces, Four Kings and Four Jacks who will lead the way for Georgia. The Aces are superstars who must perform at a high level for the Dawgs to reach the promised land. The Kings are players capable of taking over a game and making game changing plays. The Jacks are versatile players that coaches will use to create mismatches with opponents. (continued on next page) BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 124 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION 13 ISSUE TWO • SEASON PREVIEW

Issue 3 Clemson 2021 National Champions Edition Georgia-10, Clemson-3 | Bank of America Stadium - Charlotte T his was in many ways the least important game of the year. A loss, the door is still open to run the table, make the playoffs and maybe even get a rematch. But it would prove to be so big. Georgia’s prestige and confidence soars with an epic 10-3 victory on Vince Dooley’s birthday. Christopher Smith made the play of the game, and arguably the season, with a 74-yard interception return for a TD. With the pick-six, a special teams turnover, and the end of the half, Georgia’s defense survived being on the field for essentially four straight Tiger possessions. The topping of the Tigers shot Georgia from No. 5 to No. 2 in the national polls, while Clemson fell from third to sixth. The Bulldogs were in the spotlight and the playoff talk naturally had begun. After all the talk and focus on Clemson, Smart’s Dogs would have to handle success. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 20 | DAWG BONES PG. 22 | A VIEW FROM CHARLOTTE PG. 24 PHOTO BY: TONY WALSH SPORTS BY: JEFF DANTZLER Talking season is over, and it is finally time for the highly anticipated showdown between the second ranked Clemson Tigers and No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs Saturday night in Charlotte. make the College Football Playoff. The Tigers have been in football’s final four in each of the last six seasons, highlighted by national championships in 2016 and 2018. Clemson has separated itself from the rest of the pack in the Atlantic Coast Conference, those six playoff appearances coinciding with six straight league titles. All of this success has come under the watch of Dabo Swinney, who took over the program midway through the 2008 campaign. Kirby Smart is in his sixth year as Georgia’s head coach, guiding his alma mater to four consecutive top ten finishes. His Bulldogs won the 2017 Southeastern Conference title and played for the national championship. The next two seasons, 11-1 Georgia teams fell in the SEC Championship Game and were ranked No. 5 in the final poll to determine the playoff. The path to that final four is a much different one in the SEC. Navigating that minefield of a schedule unscathed has been an accomplishment reserved for all-time great teams, placing, perhaps, a greater burden of victory on Georgia’s shoulders. Those aforementioned Bulldogs of 2017 won at Notre Dame in the second week of the season, and that victory over the talented Irish gave the Bulldogs a boost in the playoff pursuit. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at Bank of America Stadium. On a weekend filled with big clashes, this one is college football’s most colossal, as these old foes, who’s picturesque campuses are separated by just 70 miles, renew their rivalry amidst an abundance of hype and expectation. The top five national rankings alone set the stage. For the winner, there is a high, high quality win that could boost the victor into the No. 1 national ranking, and there is margin for error in terms of playoff aspirations. For the loser, every goal can still be accomplished, but there isn’t much wiggle room if there is another slip up. There has not been a two- loss team in the four-team College Football Playoff, which originated in 2014. That 2014 campaign is the last time these two met, with Georgia prevailing 45-21 at Sanford Stadium, marking the Bulldogs sixth win in the last seven meetings with the Tigers, dating back to 1991. Clemson won in Death Valley 38-35 the year prior, in the 2013 season opener. Georgia leads the all- time series 42-18-4. The 2014 season is also the last time Clemson didn’t BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 126 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION Both are hungry for that kind of lift to open this season, while knowing there is a chance these two could renew acquaintances again in January. 15 ISSUE THREE • CLEMSON

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Issue 4 UAB 2021 National Champions Edition Georgia-56, UAB-7 | Sanford Stadium T his was scary coming in. The Blazers had won two of the previous three Conference USA championships. They also won their season opener on Wednesday the week prior, while the Bulldogs played Saturday night away from home. South Carolina and the SEC loomed. Trap. On the second play from scrimmage of the game, Stetson Bennett, getting the start at quarterback, threw a 73-yard touchdown strike to Jermaine Burton and the Bulldogs were off and running. Bennett was incredible and the defense dominant in Georgia’s 56-7 triumph. Freshman tight end Brock Bowers made an All-American play, pulling in a short Bennett pass and racing 89 yards up the North sideline to the West end zone. It was shades of Herschel against South Carolina in 1980. Kevin Butler nicknamed the Napa native “Cab.” Smooth. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM BIRMINGHAM PG. 21 PHOTO BY: TONY WALSH Top Producing Agent on St. Simons since March, 2017 $70 MILLION Under contract/sold in 2021 GEORGIA VS UAB $125 MILLION Under contract/sold since 2020 $225 MILLION Total career under contract and sold WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BUY, SELL OR INVEST, GIVE ME A CALL AT 912-266-2650 291 Sea Island Road | St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 | viclong@bellsouth.net VICTORLONGREALESTATE.COM GAME TIME: 3:30 P.M. CHANNEL: ESPN SPORTS BY: JEFF DANTZLER It’s the home opener for Georgia in 2021, as the Bulldogs host the UAB Blazers Saturday afternoon, with kickoff set for 3:30 p..m. Between the Hedges of Sanford Stadium. Georgia comes in 1-0 with a thrilling 10-3 victory over Clemson. UAB opened its season last Wednesday, September 1, defeating Jacksonville State 31-0 in Montgomery, which gave the Blazers a head start for Saturday’s game. The excitement and enthusiasm from the Georgia people is sky high. Christopher Smith’s 74-yard interception return for a touchdown will go down in Georgia lore, as it was the difference-making play behind a dominating defensive performance. Georgia racked up seven sacks, held the Tigers to two rushing yards and turned Clemson away in numerous critical situations. But as Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart told his players - and a national television audience - immediately after the monumental victory over Clemson, a very good football team is coming to Athens. UAB has been a tremendous success story under the watch of fifth-year head coach Bill Clark. The program was resurrected in 2017, after controversially being done away with following the 2014 season. Under Clark’s watch, the Blazers have been to four bowl games and won two of the last three Conference USA championships, including last BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 128 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION season, and been to three consecutive league title games. The Blazers beat Marshall 22-13 in the Conference USA Championship Game last season, and earned a berth against South Carolina in the Gasparilla Bowl, which wound up being cancelled. UAB brings back 17 starters from last year’s team. Senior quarterback Tyler Johnston III is one of eight offensive returnees, while nine starters are back from a unit that finished seventh nationally a year ago in pass defense. Saturday’s game will be the third all-time meeting between the Bulldogs and Blazers. A top five ranked Georgia team was scared to death the week before going to Jacksonville in 2003, escaping Sanford Stadium with a 16-13 win over UAB. In 2006, the Bulldogs shut out the Blazers 34-0 in Athens. The week prior, Georgia shut out South Carolina 18-0 in Columbia, the day after the great Erk Russell passed away in Statesboro. The shutout of the Gamecocks was Georgia’s first road SEC shutout since the legendary, beloved defensive coordinator’s final season in Athens in 1980. The back to back shutouts were a first since 1980. That season remains the Gold Standard for Georgia football. This Bulldogs team is hungry for such. The duty that comes next on that path, the talented Blazers, aiming to make some history of their own. 13 ISSUE FOUR • UAB

Issue 5 South Carolina 2021 National Champions Edition Georgia-40, South Carolina-13 | Sanford Stadium J T Daniels was back as the starting quarterback and the Georgia offense looked crisp, scoring touchdowns on the first two drives. James Cook behind great blocking dashed in, and then Daniels hit Burton for a long score to give Georgia early control against the Gamecocks. There was some concern, as South Carolina’s standout wide receiver Josh Vann was able to get behind the Bulldogs secondary a couple of times. Due to Vann’s play, the Gamecocks were hanging around. It was 14-6 Georgia when the Bulldogs turned it up. A scoring pass to Adonai Mitchell gave the Bulldogs a 21-6 lead in the 40-13 victory. Georgia then played great complimentary football. A punt downed inside the two. A safety. A good return. Then Jack Podlesny nailed a field goal to give the Dogs a momentum-laden 26-6 halftime lead. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM COLUMBIA PG. 22 Top Producing Agent on St. Simons since March, 2017 SPORTS A RECORD-SETTING DAY FOR STETSON BENNETT $70 MILLION PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE Under contract/sold in 2021 $125 MILLION Under contract/sold since 2020 $225 MILLION Total career under contract and sold WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BUY, SELL OR INVEST, GIVE ME A CALL AT 912-266-2650 291 Sea Island Road | St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 | viclong@bellsouth.net VICTORLONGREALESTATE.COM GEORGIA VS SOUTH CAROLINA GAME TIME: 7:00PM CHANNEL: ESPN BY: JEFF DANTZLER It’s the Southeastern Conference opener for border rivals at Sanford Stadium, as the Georgia Bulldogs host the South Carolina Gamecocks Saturday night at 7 p.m. in a battle of 2-0 unbeaten rivals. Muschamp’s signature win as South Carolina’s head coach came two years ago at Sanford Stadium, as the underdog Gamecocks upset a top five-ranked Georgia team in overtime. The Gamecocks have won five of the last 11 meetings with the Bulldogs dating back to 2010. Under Smart’s watch, Georgia is 4-1 against the Gamecocks, with the aforementioned loss from 2019. So who will line up under center for Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs? South Carolina quarterback Zeb Noland is a remarkable Georgia leads the all time series 52-19-2. For the winner in this next chapter, it’s a leg up in the race for the SEC East Division title. BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 130 story. He came to South Carolina from North Dakota State to be a graduate assistant coach. Injuries, most notably to projected sophomore starter Luke Doty put the Gamecocks in a quarterback quandary. Noland had a year of eligibility remaining, and turned in his whistle for a mouthpiece. To add a little spice, Noland played his high school football at Oconee High School, the campus in Watkinsville just over eight miles from Sanford Stadium. South Carolina opened the season and Shane Beamer’s tenure as their new head coach with a 46-0 blanking of Eastern Illinois. This past Saturday, South Carolina edged, always tough, East Carolina 20-17 at the Pirates home in Greenville, North Carolina. Parker White hit a 36-yard field goal as time expired to deliver the victory, and complete a rally back from a 14-0 first half deficit. Georgia won a battle of top-five nationally-ranked foes in the season-opener, beating Clemson 10-3 in Charlotte. The Bulldogs followed that up with a 56-7 victory over UAB, reigning champions of Conference USA. For this showdown Between the Hedges, the quarterback position will be a center stage storyline. Georgia starter JT Daniels was injured and did not play against the Blazers. Stetson Bennett, who started five games last season, got the call and had a record-setting afternoon, passing for five touchdowns. 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION In South Carolina’s win over East Carolina, Noland completed 13 of 24 passes for 214 yards with a touchdown and an interception Beamer, a former Smart assistant, replaced Will Muschamp as the Gamecocks head coach. Muschamp is now an assistant for his longtime friend Smart at their alma mater in Athens. 13 ISSUE FIVE • SOUTH CAROLINA

Bring L m i i f le e . to Your S At the office of Dr. Suzanne Mericle , not only do we offer a full range of dental services and cosmetic treatments, but we also provide dental sleep medicine to help treat sleep apnea and snoring to help you have a good night’s sleep and feel healthier. We also provide facial treatments to help you. Member ABSA, AADSM MericleDentistry.com We accept: • BCBS • UHL • Cigna • Medicare • Healthgram • Humana • TRICARE 123 MAIN ST., ST. SIMONS ISL AND, GA 31522 • (912) 638-3559 How can a dentist help me sleep better? D r. Suzanne R. Mericle has been practicing dentistry in the Golden Isles for more than 30 years. She began offering Dental Sleep Medicine among her other services to her patients in 2010. Dr. Mericle works closely with several physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician’s assistants to identity patients who may have a sleep disorder such as snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Dr. Mericle is in a unique position because she can see and evaluate the airway when the patient is reclined in the dental chair. She performs an oral examination on all her patients. She is viewing not only the dentition, but also she is performing an oral cancer screening and an airway screening. As part of a routine dental examination, Dr. Mericle can recognize a small upper airway and other anatomic risk factors for OSA and use this opportunity to identify and educate potential patients. Dentists do not diagnose patients with primary snoring or obstructive sleep apnea; only a certified sleep physician can do this. The sleep physician must confirm the diagnosis and may recommend oral appliance therapy (OAT). Dr. Mericle treats OSA patients with a custom, titratable sleep appliance under the care of the patient’s physician. If snoring has you or someone you love sleeping in a separate bedroom, or someone who cannot tolerate their CPAP, gasps, chokes, stops breathing, gets up frequently in the night, has high blood pressure, heart issues, ventricular fibrillation, or excessive daytime sleepiness, please call our office for a complimentary sleep consult. We accept Medicare and are in network with most medical insurance companies. Mericle Dentistry is a member of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine and offers a range of sleep appliances and techniques to treat snoring and sleep apnea so that you wake up refreshed and feeling great.

Issue 6 Vanderbilt 2021 National Champions Edition Georgia-62, Vanderbilt-0 | Vanderbilt Stadium - Nashville I t goes down as one of the great first quarter performances in the history of Georgia football. Completely dominant in all three phases, Georgia led 35-0 at the end of the first quarter. Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey combined for five touchdowns in the 62-0 sinking of the Commodores. JT Daniels was 9-of-10 passing in the first quarter. The lone incompletion was a drop. Stetson Bennett came in for the second quarter, and would never relinquish the reins the rest of the season. Georgia had now given up seven or fewer points in three out of four games. As soon as the Nashville (11:00 am Central kickoff time) nooner was in the books, the attention immediately shifted to Arkansas and the start of a rugged October schedule. Smart challenged Georgia’s great fans to be elite and in their seats early for the noon game of the day versus the Hogs. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM NASHVILLE PG. 22 Top Producing Agent on St. Simons since March, 2017 SPORTS BIG NIGHT FOR JT DANIELS $70 MILLION PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE Under contract/sold in 2021 $125 MILLION Under contract/sold since 2020 $225 MILLION Total career under contract and sold WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BUY, SELL OR INVEST, GIVE ME A CALL AT 912-266-2650 291 Sea Island Road | St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 | viclong@bellsouth.net VICTORLONGREALESTATE.COM GEORGIA VS VANDERBILT GAME TIME: NOON EST CHANNEL: SEC NETWORK GEORGIA VS VANDERBILT BY: JEFF DANTZLER It’s a Southeastern Conference showdown, as the Georgia Bulldogs play the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday in Nashville, with kickoff set for 11a.m. Central, Noon Eastern. The Bulldogs head in with a record of 3-0 and 1-0 in Southeastern Conference play after beating South Carolina 40-13 last week. Vanderbilt lost 41-23 to Stanford this past Saturday, falling to 1-2 on the year. This will be their SEC opener. 132 Last season, Georgia and Vanderbilt did not play. Twice. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series 58-20-2. Vandy beat Georgia 17-16 in 2016 and knocked off Georgia 31-27 in Nashville in 2013. In the last three meetings, Kirby Smart’s Dogs won 45-14 in Nashville in 2017, 41-13 Between the Hedges a year later and then 30-6 to open the 2019 campaign. Vanderbilt has a new head coach in Clark Rea, who came to Nashville from Notre Dame, where he was defensive coordinator for the Fighting Irish. It was a difficult start for the Commodores, as they fell to East Tennessee State 23-3 in the season opener. But Vanderbilt bounced back in Week Two, beating Colorado State 24-21 in Fort Collins. In the Commodores loss to the Cardinal, they got a big boost from running back Rocko Griffin, who carried 19 times for 107 yards. Re’Mahn Davis, a transfer from Temple, carried 12 times for 76 yards and a touchdown. Georgia opened the season with a 10-3 victory over Clemson in a battle of two top five teams in Charlotte. The Bulldogs backed that up with a 56-7 win over defending Conference USA champion UAB. Against the Gamecocks, J. Daniels was 23 of 31 for 303 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. Georgia averaged 5.9 yards per carry. Defensively, Georgia recorded a safety on South Carolina’s BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED final possession of the first half, which led to a field goal. The Bulldogs then chalked up turnovers on the Gamecocks first two possessions of the second half. 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION This Georgia team has championship dreams, and the focus must be there to avoid the upset trap. Things can be a little sleepy with the morning kickoff in Nashville, though there is a good chance that a majority of the fans will be wearing red. The last two weeks, the Bulldogs have come in heavily favored and struck, scoring touchdowns on the first two possessions against both UAB and South Carolina. Kirby Smart’s Dogs, in the aforementioned 2017 victory over Vandy in Nashville en route to the SEC title, raced to a 21-0 lead. It’s the second of eight straight SEC games for the Bulldogs, and in college football, if you are not ready, we all know, anything can happen. 13 ISSUE SIX • VANDERBILT

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Issue 7 Arkansas 2021 National Champions Edition Georgia-37, Arkansas-0 | Sanford Stadium E arly. Loud. Intense. Tough. Electric. Georgia’s fans filled Sanford Stadium well before kickoff and played a huge role in the Bulldogs 37-0 triumph. Georgia came in ranked second at 4-0, while Arkansas, following a huge win over Texas A&M, was also 4-0 and ranked No. 8. The stadium was perhaps the most electric it was all season when the Bulldogs grabbed a 21-0 first quarter lead on a Dan Jackson blocked punt that was recovered by Zamir White for a touchdown. “Zeus” also ran for two touchdowns, as the Bulldogs dominated in a 37-0 triumph. Arkansas, coached by former Georgia assistant Sam Pittman, had an outstanding year. The Hogs beat Texas, Texas A&M and LSU, and then toppled Penn State in the Outback Bowl to finish 9-4 on the campaign. The win over the Hogs may be Georgia’s most complete of the year. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 20 | DAWG BONES PG. 22 | A VIEW FROM FAYETTEVILLE PG. 24 Top Producing Agent on St. Simons since March, 2017 SPORTS KIRBY SMART WANTS IT LOUD FOR THE HIGH-NOONER! $70 MILLION PHOTO BY: TONY WALSH Under contract/sold in 2021 GEORGIA VS ARKANSAS $125 MILLION Under contract/sold since 2020 $225 MILLION Total career under contract and sold WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BUY, SELL OR INVEST, GIVE ME A CALL AT 912-266-2650 291 Sea Island Road | St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 | viclong@bellsouth.net VICTORLONGREALESTATE.COM GAME TIME: NOON EST CHANNEL: ESPN GEORGIA VS ARKANSAS BY: JEFF DANTZLER It’s a high noon top ten mega Southeastern Conference showdown Between the Hedges Saturday, as the Georgia Bulldogs host the Arkansas Razorbacks on Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium. Both teams head into the game with high hopes and great expectations for the 2021 season, and for the winner, those dreams of greatness will be one huge step closer to reality. It was a record setting afternoon at Vanderbilt for Georgia, as the Bulldogs beat the Commodores 62-0 to make it 4-0. Meanwhile in Dallas, the Razorbacks defeated Texas A&M 20-10 to improve to 4-0 and win their SEC opener. Sam Pittman is in his second season as Arkansas’s head coach. The Offensive line assistant for Kirby Smart from 2016-2019 at Georgia, Pittman played a great role in the Bulldogs success. He was a bit of a surprise choice, but the Razorbacks chose wisely. A year ago, Arkansas went 3-7, but were a much improved football team, and were on the verge of an above .500 record. The Razorbacks have made a major jump in 2021, rapidly rising from upstart to contender. It was a bit of a slow start to the season for the Hogs, as they trailed an old Southwest Conference rival Rice 17-7 in the second half. But Arkansas surged back and pulled away for a 38-17 victory. The tone was set and the momentum would carry over to one of the Razorbacks biggest wins of the 21st century. Another old SWC foe visited Fayetteville, and Arkansas crushed blue blood Texas 40-21 behind a powerful 333 yard rushing attack. Razorback fans stormed the field, as this victory signaled that the Hogs were back. There would be no letdown against Georgia Southern, a BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 134 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION classic ‘tweener’ game with the Aggies on deck. Arkansas beat the Eagles 45-10. Then came that second “signature” win, as the Hogs added the Aggies to their hit list. With wins over Rice, Texas and A&M, that’s 3-0 against Lone Star State teams that are old Southwest Conference foes. There is a great deal of familiarity between Pittman and Smart, and both head coaches drive their teams to maximize physicality and win the line of scrimmage. Pittman was a star hire for the young head coach, as Smart was able to pry him away from none other than Arkansas prior to the 2016 season. Smart’s Bulldogs opened with a monumental 10-3 victory over Clemson in a top five Charlotte national showdown. Georgia followed that up with impressive victories between the hedges, beating UAB 56-7 and topping South Carolina 40-13. The victory at Vandy was a strong end to September. Now it is back home for the Bulldogs, and the most complete opponent Georgia has faced this season. The Razorbacks also feel they could be catching a break with the noon kickoff. Will the raucous Sanford Stadium throng be fully lubricated and in top form? A year ago in Fayetteville, things were mighty tight, as Arkansas led 10-5 in the third quarter. Explosive plays by George Pickens and Eric Stokes turned things Georgia’s way and the Bulldogs won 37-10. But in that loss, the signs were there that Arkansas was turning around a program that had been in the bottom half of the SEC West for most of a decade. Now the Hogs are a bona fide contender. 15 ISSUE SEVEN • ARKANSAS

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Issue 8 2021 Auburn National Champions Edition Georgia-34, Auburn-10 | Jordan-Hare Stadium - Auburn A uburn put together an impressive opening drive and grabbed an early 3-0 lead. It marked the first time all season that the Bulldogs had trailed in a game. The Tigers got the ball back with that 3-0 lead, but a Nakobe Dean interception off a tipped pass turned the momentum to Georgia. The Bulldogs scored 24 unanswered points to grab control of the game. Zamir White scored on a nifty short yardage play, then Stetson Bennett hit Adonai Mitchell to go up 17-3. The Dogs had a critical goal line stand late in the first half. A bomb to Ladd McConkey put Georgia up 24-3. Georgia’s 34-10 victory marked the Bulldogs 14th win in the last 17 meetings with the Tigers. That success in the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry is astounding. Through the years, Auburn has spoiled many a great year. The Tigers won seven of eight versus Georgia from 1983- 1990. ZAMIR WHITE AND STETSON BENNETT SHINE IN VICTORY OVER HOGS! BY JEFF DANTZLER OPERATION OPERATION OCTOBER PLAINS! OCTOBER PLAINS! VS. Victor Long 291 Sea Island Road St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 viclong@bellsouth.net VictorLongRealEstate.com A TOP PRODUCING REALTOR® SPECIALIZING IN RESIDENTIAL + INVESTMENT PROPERTIES FOR ST. SIMONS ISLAND AND SEA ISLAND, GA “I HAVE USED VICTOR LONG FOR MULTIPLE TRANSACTIONS BOTH AS A BUYER AND A SELL- ER. HIS KNOWLEDGE OF INVESTMENT PROPERTIES AND THE ST. SIMONS ISLAND MARKET ARE SUPERIOR. HE AND HIS TEAM TOOK THE TIME TO GET TO KNOW ME AND MY GOALS FOR REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS AND I NOW CONSIDER THEM A PART OF MY INVESTMENT TEAM.” - CHRISTI GIBSON FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM AUBURN PG. 22 SPORTS THE HOGS FELT THE SWARM ALL DAY! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE GEORGIA VS AUBURN GAME TIME: 3:30 P.M. CHANNEL: CBS GEORGIA VS AUBURN BY: JEFF DANTZLER It’s another Southeastern Conference mega-showdown, as the Auburn Tigers host the Georgia Bulldogs at Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday. It’s the 126th edition of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry. Spurred on by excellent play from quarterback Bo Nix, a big run from Jarquez Hunter and stout fourth quarter defense, Auburn came back to beat LSU 24-19 in Baton Rouge. The Tigers first win in Baton Rouge since 1999 improves the Tigers to 4-1 on the season, and 1-0 in the SEC. Georgia heads into the game with a record of 5-0, 3-0 in SEC play. The Bulldogs are coming off an impressive 37-0 top ten battle over the Arkansas Razorbacks and are ranked No. 2 nationally. The Dogs and Tigers got it all started back in 1892 at Piedmont Park in Atlanta. This classic series has been filled with classic finishes and startling upsets. The familiarity between the two is extensive. That includes Mike Bobo, Auburn’s offensive coordinator, who played and coached at Georgia. And these two have always been enormous recruiting rivals. A vast majority of the players on both rosters were recruited by both schools. The Tigers opened the season with a pair of record setting victories over Akron and Alabama State. In State College, Auburn lost a 28-20 heartbreaker to Penn State. A comeback victory over Georgia State followed, as the Tigers pulled it out on the plains 34-24. Since 2006, Georgia has won 13 of the past 16 meetings against the Tigers, most notably the 2017 SEC Championship Game. Auburn had won handily on the Plains earlier in the season. With the recent success in the rivalry, the Bulldogs lead the all-time series 61-56-8. The Bulldogs opened the season with a highly anticipated 10-3 victory over Clemson in Charlotte. Since then, Georgia has put up impressive numbers, outscoring the quartet of UAB, South Carolina, Vanderbilt and the Razorbacks by a combined total of 195-20. The stakes are high, as they almost always are, when these two storied SEC programs get together. Auburn attempts to stay in the thick of the SEC West race, and knock off the country’s second ranked team to spoil Georgia’s undefeated season. BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 136 But the old rivals loom and lurk. Jordan-Hare Stadium will certainly be rocking. It will also be Georgia’s first true road test in front of a raucous environment. Georgia played Clemson at a neutral site. The Vanderbilt game in Nashville had substantially more Bulldog fans than Commodore fans. Both teams enter the battle on the Plains on high notes. 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION 13 ISSUE EIGHT • AUBURN

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Issue 9 2021 Kentucky National Champions Edition Georgia-30, Kentucky-13 | Sanford Stadium M uch like the Arkansas contest, it was another battle of unbeatens Between the Hedges with a high noon kickoff. Georgia got off to a slow start offensively in the first quarter, but capitalized on excellent defense and special teams to take a 14-0 lead. The Cats cut it to 14-7 at the half. Georgia grabbed control on a sensational catch by Brock Bowers down the right side of the West End Zone to give the Bulldogs a 21-7 lead. Earlier in the drive, the freshman sensation had a brilliant run-after-catch called back due to a penalty, but scored anyway on the Stetson Bennett aerial. A blocked field goal on a massive push from Jordan Davis and DeVonte Wyatt kept Georgia in front 24-7. Another sterling touchdown connection from Bennett to Bowers to go up 30-7. Kentucky scored in the closing seconds. The victory is Georgia’s 12th straight in the series. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM LEXINGTON PG. 22 SPORTS NAKOBE COMING TO YOUR CITY! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE GEORGIA VS KENTUCKY GAME TIME: 3:30 P.M. CHANNEL: CBS Victor Long 291 Sea Island Road St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 viclong@bellsouth.net VictorLongRealEstate.com A TOP PRODUCING REALTOR® SPECIALIZING IN RESIDENTIAL + INVESTMENT PROPERTIES FOR ST. SIMONS ISLAND AND SEA ISLAND, GA “I HAVE USED VICTOR LONG FOR MULTIPLE TRANSACTIONS BOTH AS A BUYER AND A SELL- ER. HIS KNOWLEDGE OF INVESTMENT PROPERTIES AND THE ST. SIMONS ISLAND MARKET ARE SUPERIOR. HE AND HIS TEAM TOOK THE TIME TO GET TO KNOW ME AND MY GOALS FOR REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS AND I NOW CONSIDER THEM A PART OF MY INVESTMENT TEAM.” - CHRISTI GIBSON GEORGIA VS KENTUCKY BY: JEFF DANTZLER It’s another mega showdown of undefeated championship contenders in the Southeastern Conference, as Georgia battles Kentucky at Sanford Stadium. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. EST Between the Hedges, as the Bulldogs and Wildcats meet with major stakes on the line. At the top of that list, SEC East supremacy and far reaching postseason implications. Georgia is 6-0 this season, and 4-0 in the SEC, coming off of an impressive 34-10 victory over Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Since a 10-3 season opening victory over Clemson, the Bulldogs have outscored a quintet of opponents (UAB, South Carolina, Vanderbilt, Arkansas and Auburn) by a combined total of 229-30. But a tremendous challenge awaits in Kentucky. The Wildcats are 6-0 and 3-0 in the league, flying high after a 42-21 victory over LSU in Lexington. Kentucky’s signature victory came two weeks ago, as the Wildcats took a 20-13 thriller over Florida in Lexington. A blocked field goal returned for a touchdown and a last minute goal line stand delivered the Wildcats their second victory over the Gators in the last four years, and first on the bluegrass since 1986. They were able to back that up with a dominating performance against the Bayou Bengals. Standout running back Chris Rodriguez, one of the best in college football, piled BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 138 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION up 147 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. For Kentucky to beat SEC bluebloods Florida and LSU, both of which have dominated the all-time series with the Wildcats, in back to back weeks is hugely historically significant. The Wildcats opened the season with a 45-10 win over Louisiana-Monroe, and then posted its first signature victory of the year, topping Missouri 35-28 in Lexington. A narrow 28-23 escape against Chattanooga followed. Kentucky made it 4-0, and 2-0 in the SEC with a stout defensive display in a 16-10 victory at South Carolina. That set the stage for the memorable triumphs over the Gators and LSU. Now Kentucky tries to add Georgia to the hit list. This is setting up as an all time great season for Kentucky. In 2018, the Wildcats went 10-3, their best year since 1977, when the Wildcats beat Florida, LSU, Tennessee, Penn State and Georgia. The Bulldogs have won 11 straight meetings with Kentucky, including last season’s 14-3 victory in Lexington. Georgia has great expectations, and now faces its most complete foe of the year, a Wildcat team that has captured the hearts of the Big Blue Bluegrass faithful, enjoying great expectations of their own. 13 ISSUE NINE • KENTUCKY

Issue10 2021 Georgia-Florida National Champions Edition Georgia-34, Florida-7 | TIAA Bank Field - Jacksonville T his annual battle on the banks of the mighty St. John’s marked the end of a brutal October stretch. Georgia’s four opponents in October entered the month with a cumulative record of 14-2. However, the Gators were sliding, and came to Jacksonville with a record of 4-3. The closing two and half minutes of the first half were the key to the game. Turnovers created by Nolan Smith and Trayvon Walker led to a pair of lightning touchdowns. Then Nakobe Dean returned an interception 50 yards for a touchdown and Georgia had a 24-0 halftime lead. The second half, Georgia and Florida fought a defensive battle and the Gators missed a short field goal. Zamir White put the cherry on top with a long touchdown run to make it 34-7. The win marked Georgia’s fourth in the last five meetings over the Gators as Georgia moved to 8-0. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 20 | DAWG BONES PG. 22 | A VIEW FROM JACKSONVILLE PG. 24 SPORTS INT CONVOY - KELEE RINGO, NAKOBE DEAN, QUAY WALKER PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE GEORGIA VS FLORIDA GAME TIME: 3:30 P.M. CHANNEL: CBS GEORGIA VS FLORIDA BY: JEFF DANTZLER For the 100th time, old rivals Georgia and Florida battle on the gridiron. With the exception of 1994 and 1995 (home and home contests) and several locations in the early years, since 1933 all of these games have taken place annually in Jacksonville, with a 50/50 fan split and unique pageantry, earning the Georgia-Florida game the title of “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.” As has usually been the case, there are big stakes on the line for the Bulldogs and Gators. Georgia comes into the game ranked No. 1 nationally with a record of 7-0, 5-0 in the Southeastern Conference. Florida is 4-3 and 2-3 in league play. Both Georgia and Florida had an open date this past Saturday. Kickoff is for just after 3:30 Saturday afternoon from the banks of the majestic St. John’s River at TIAA Bank Field. Since the season-opening, highly anticipated heavyweight showdown between Georgia and Clemson that the Bulldogs won 10-3, Kirby Smart’s team has won six straight by at least 17 points. That includes a 30-13 victory over then 6-0 Kentucky two weekends ago which put the Bulldogs in the top spot in the SEC East Division. Florida is certainly disappointed to have three losses, but these Gators are mighty close to an elite record. Alabama edged Florida 31-29 in Gainesville. The Gators fell 20-13 at Kentucky, with the Wildcats cashing in on a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown. Last time out, two Saturdays ago, Florida fell to LSU in an instant-classic shootout 49-42. BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 140 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION This series has had many twists and turns and runs of dominance. Most notably, Florida went 18-3 against Georgia, including an 11-1 mark under the watch of Gator legend Steve Spurrier during his head coaching tenure, from 1990-2010. The Bulldogs wound up winning six of the ten meetings in the decade of the 2010’s. Georgia won three straight from 2011-2013, with Todd Gurley and Jarvis Jones headlining for Mark Richt’s Bulldogs. Florida won three in a row from 2014-2016. The third of those three was Kirby Smart’s first at the helm of his alma mater. Smart’s Dogs won three straight from 2017-2019, highlight victories in 11-1 regular seasons and SEC Championship Game appearances. Georgia became the first SEC East team to make it to three straight title tilts since Spurrier’s Gators went to the first five from 1992-1996. Last season, Florida defeated Georgia 44-28 and the Gators advanced to Atlanta. These two bluebloods have each been to three SEC Championship Games over the last six years. In the 29 all-time SEC Championship Games, Florida has been to 13, Georgia eight - all of the Bulldogs trips coming since 2002. A victory in this 100th meeting in the series, which Georgia leads 53-44-2, would be another step towards the Bulldogs championship quest. A Florida win would bring back some bad memories from 2002, 2003 and 2005 for the red and black faithful, and leave the Bulldogs zero margin for error. 15 ISSUE TEN • FLORIDA

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Issue11 2021 Missouri National Champions Edition Georgia-43, Missouri-6 | Sanford Stadium F or a third straight game, Georgia got off to a sluggish start offensively. The Bulldogs trailed the underdog Tigers 3-0 late in the first quarter. But Stetson Bennett hit Arian Smith for a clutch fourth down touchdown to give the Bulldogs a 7-3 lead. Georgia would dominate the rest of the way. The victory clinched a berth in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game for the fourth time in five years for the Bulldogs and improved Georgia to 9-0 on the season. It was the 10th win in 11 all-time meetings with Missouri and eight in a row against the Tigers. Following the game, in the Georgia locker room, some of the Bulldogs captains and team leaders spoke up about an unacceptable level of performance in the 43-6 victory. The message was clear. To accomplish the ultimate goal this team strived for, Georgia must do better. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM COLUMBIA PG. 22 SPORTS DOMINATING D WINS THE DAY! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE GEORGIA VS MISSOURI GAME TIME: NOON CHANNEL: ESPN Victor Long 291 Sea Island Road St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 viclong@bellsouth.net VictorLongRealEstate.com A TOP PRODUCING REALTOR® SPECIALIZING IN RESIDENTIAL + INVESTMENT PROPERTIES FOR ST. SIMONS ISLAND AND SEA ISLAND, GA “I HAVE USED VICTOR LONG FOR MULTIPLE TRANSACTIONS BOTH AS A BUYER AND A SELL- ER. HIS KNOWLEDGE OF INVESTMENT PROPERTIES AND THE ST. SIMONS ISLAND MARKET ARE SUPERIOR. HE AND HIS TEAM TOOK THE TIME TO GET TO KNOW ME AND MY GOALS FOR REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS AND I NOW CONSIDER THEM A PART OF MY INVESTMENT TEAM.” - CHRISTI GIBSON GEORGIA VS MISSOURI BY: JEFF DANTZLER Top-ranked Georgia hosts Missouri on Saturday Between the Hedges. The Bulldogs head into the game with an overall record of 8-0 and Southeastern Conference mark of 6-0. Missouri is 4-4 and 1-3 in league play. Both teams are coming in off wins. In the annual Jacksonville rivalry, Georgia forced three Florida turnovers and exploded for a trio of touchdowns in the final 2:08 of the first half to take a 24-0 intermission lead en route to a 34-7 victory. The win marked Georgia’s fourth in the last five meetings with the Gators. Missouri defeated Vanderbilt 37-28 in Nashville behind a balanced offensive attack which produced a touchdown in all four quarters. Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs are in the running for everything, but Georgia’s sixth-year head coach would be the first to tell you that his team is far from a finished product. Most notably, while the Bulldogs cashed in on the aforementioned turnovers against the Gators, Georgia also turned the football over three times in Jacksonville. The win over the Gators marked the end of a very impressive month of October for the Bulldogs. Georgia’s four opponents were a combined 14-2 when the calendar turned from September. The Dogs beat Arkansas 37-0, topped Auburn 34-10, bested Kentucky 30-13 and then recorded the 34-7 over Florida. So now the calendar turns to November. Georgia and Missouri first met on New Year’s Day 1960, as the 1959 Southeastern Conference Bulldogs topped the Tigers 14-0 in the BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 142 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION Orange Bowl to finish the season 10-1 with a No. 5 national ranking. These two would not meet again until 2012, as Missouri and Texas A&M joined the SEC. In the Tigers first intra-conference game as a league member, Georgia defeated Mizzou 41-20 in Columbia. Fran Tarkenton was the star in the first meeting, Jarvis Jones the second. The next season, Missouri came into Athens and rolled to a 41- 26 win en route to the first of two straight Tiger trips to the SEC Championship Game. Those two straight trips to Atlanta sent shockwaves throughout the league. Georgia handed Mizzou its lone league loss in 2014, winning 34-0 in CoMo. That started what is now a seven game winning streak for the Bulldogs in the series, which Georgia now leads 9-1, 8-1 since Missouri joined the SEC. Most of those games have been tight and tough, including Georgia’s 28-27 win in 2016 in Smart’s first season as the head man at his alma mater. The Bulldogs pulled away to win 49-14 last season, but the game was tied 14-14 late in the first half. Then JT. Daniels and George Pickens connected on touchdowns to end the first half and start the second, sending the Bulldogs on their way. Georgia is heavily favored, but there is tremendous respect for the Tigers program and their second year head coach Eli Drinkwitz. And as Smart likes to say, humility is only a week away. The Tigers will put everything they have into pulling off the upset Between the Hedges, while the Bulldogs will try and continue their march to something special. 13 ISSUE ELEVEN • MISSOURI

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Issue12 2021 Tennessee National Champions Edition Georgia-41, Tennessee-17 | Neyland Stadium - Knoxville T he rejuvenated Volunteers of Josh Heupel were smelling an upset, trying to spoil top-ranked Georgia’s undefeated season. Tennessee raced to first quarter leads of 7-0 and 10-7. But the Bulldogs remained focused, steady and grounded and soon grabbed control of the game. The Bulldogs had one of their best quarters of the season in the second period. Podlesny nailed a 40-yard field goal to tie it. Stetson Bennett gave the Bulldogs the lead for the first time on a 9-yard scamper, then threw a beautiful 23-yard scoring toss to James Cook for a 24-10 halftime lead. For the first time since the 1982 SEC champion Bulldogs posted an 11-0 regular season, Georgia had a record of 10-0. The win over Tennessee extended the Bulldogs streak in the series to five in a row, with all of the triumphs decided by at least 23 points. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM KNOXVILLE PG. 22 SPORTS JERMAINE BURTON WITH THE ACROBATIC GRAB! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE GEORGIA VS TENNESSEE GAME TIME: 3:30 PM CHANNEL: CBS GEORGIA VS TENNESSEE BY: JEFF DANTZLER BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 144 Top-ranked Georgia faces one of its toughest challenges of the season, tangling with resurgent Tennessee Saturday afternoon on Rocky Top. Kickoff from Neyland Stadium in Knoxville is set for 3:30 p.m. Georgia heads into the game with a record of 9-0, 7-0 in Southeastern Conference play. The Bulldogs this past weekend defeated the Missouri Tigers 43-6 at Sanford Stadium. It was a sleepy start, with Georgia, a massive 39.5 point favorite, trailing 3-0 late in the first quarter. But the Bulldogs were sparked on a fourth down touchdown, as Stetson Bennett connected with Arian Smith for a 35-yard scoring strike with just 42 seconds to play in the opening period. From there on, Georgia played outstanding complimentary football in all three phases, including a blocked punt for a safety and denying the Tigers a touchdown. . Tennessee is 5-4, and 3-3 on the season. The Volunteers are coming off a thrilling 45-42 victory over Kentucky in Lexington. First year head coach Josh Heupel has guided the Volunteers to outstanding improvement this season. Going through a coaching change and losing over two dozen players to the transfer portal, Tennessee did not enter the season with high expectations. But these Volunteers have been a surprise. A 62-24 win at Missouri is one of the highlight performances. And though it was a loss, Tennessee led for much of the first half against Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Georgia is in the running for everything. Tennessee can ruin the Bulldogs perfect season and give Georgia’s playoff hopes a huge blow, while delivering Heupel’s Volunteers a signature victory. This will also be just the second time the Bulldogs have faced a hostile crowd this season. The other was last month’s 34-10 win at Auburn. Georgia’s wins over Clemson and Florida came at neutral sites, and there was substantially more red than gold at Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville. Georgia last started a season 10-0 in 1982, when the Bulldogs had a perfect 11-0 regular season and won a third straight SEC championship. One of the keys to Tennessee’s improvement has been the play of quarterback Hendon Hooker. A Virginia Tech transfer, Hooker has been sharp and given the Vols big play punch. Against the Wildcats, Hooker completed 15 of 20 passes for 316 yards and four touchdowns, while running for 41 yards. The deeper the Bulldogs go, the more the pressure mounts. As Smart preaches, pressure is a privilege. And that wind is howling on Georgia’s pursuit of the top of the mountain. So far, Georgia has responded in extremely impressive fashion, but the Bulldogs will be in for a huge test against the Vols on Saturday. 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs have won four straight games in the series, including a 44-21 comeback win last season in Athens and a 43-14 victory in Knoxville the year before. Tennessee won back to back games over the Dogs in 2015 and 2016. The Volunteers came back from a 24-3 deficit to defeat Georgia 38-31 in 2015, and then hit the Hail Mary to down the Dogs 34-31 in 2016. Prior to that, Georgia had won five in a row in this rivalry. So that makes for nine wins for the Bulldogs in the last 11 meetings with the Volunteers, and a 25-23-2 lead in the series ... a series Tennessee once led 17-10-2 after winning nine straight from 1989-1999. But this one carries so much weight.

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Issue13 2021 Charleston Southern National Champions Edition Georgia-56, Charleston Southern-7 | Sanford Stadium I t was the final home game of the season, and a crisp November autumn Saturday. The Bulldogs were favored to win by a lot and Georgia did just that. This was a breather after winning eight straight SEC games with the Jackets and then the SEC Championship Game on deck. Jordan Davis shifted to the fullback position, and one of the dominant defenders in college football, on his second carry, struck paydirt to give the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead. Georgia scored 28 points in the first quarter and 21 in the second to grab a 49-0 lead at intermission. Under Kirby Smart’s watch, Georgia posted a perfect record at Sanford Stadium for the fourth time in five seasons. The Bulldogs improved to 11-0 with the win, the first time Georgia had an 11-0 record since the 1982 SEC champions. After this, only championship games remain. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM CHARLESTON PG. 22 Top Producing Agent on St. Simons since March, 2017 STET HITS PAY DIRT ON ROCKY TOP! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE $83+ MILLION Under contract/sold in 2021 $138+ MILLION Under contract/sold since 2020 $243+ MILLION Total career under contract and sold WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BUY, SELL OR INVEST, GIVE ME A CALL AT 912-266-2650 291 Sea Island Road | St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 | viclong@bellsouth.net VICTORLONGREALESTATE.COM BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 146 SPORTS GEORGIA VS CHARLESTON SOUTHERN GAME TIME: NOON CHANNEL: SEC+/ESPN+ GEORGIA VS CHARLESTON SOUTHERN BY: JEFF DANTZLER Top-ranked Georgia hosts Charleston Southern Saturday afternoon at Sanford Stadium. Kickoff is set for high noon Between the Hedges, with the Bulldogs heading into the game with a record of 10-0 and the Buccaneers out of the Big South Conference of Division 1-AA/FCS, 4-5. This past Saturday, Georgia topped Tennessee 41-17 at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville in what was the last of eight straight Southeastern Conference contests. It was Georgia’s final SEC regular season game. After the game with Charleston Southern, the Bulldogs head to Atlanta to play Tech. The Bulldogs have now beaten Tennessee in five consecutive seasons and in 10 of the past 12 years to increase the Bulldogs series lead over the Volunteers to 26-23-2. Georgia has great expectations, and head coach Kirby Smart has preached all season about his team playing to a standard. Despite the success thus far this season, Smart, in the sixth season at the helm of his alma mater, has emphasized that these Bulldogs are far from a finished product. There is some history to touch on with these Bulldogs, who are fighting to leave a championship legacy. Georgia last started a season 10-0 back in 1982, when the Bulldogs posted a perfect 11-0 regular season and won the Southeastern Conference championship for a third straight year. Dating back to last season, when the Bulldogs won their final four 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION games following a loss to Florida - highlighted by a thrilling last-second victory over Cincinnati in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl - Georgia is riding a 14-game winning streak. That’s the third longest winning streak in Bulldogs lore. From the second half of the 1945 season through the perfect 11-0 SEC championship campaign of 1946 through the opener of the 1947 campaign, Georgia won 17 straight games. The Bulldogs beat Tech in the 1979 finale - no bowl for the Dogs that year - then went 12-0 and won the national championship in 1980, followed by victories in the first two games of the 1981 SEC title campaign for a 15-game winning streak. A win over the Buccaneers would match that 15-game winning streak. Charleston Southern is coming off a thrilling 32-24 double overtime win over Gardner-Webb. The Buccaneers have won two of their last three games, beating Campbell 27-14 and losing to N.C. A&T 21-18 prior to the win over Gardner-Webb. The Buccaneers opened the season with a 38-21 win over The Citadel, in-town Charleston rival from. This will be the third Palmetto State team the Bulldogs have played this year. Georgia opened the season with a 10-3 victory over Clemson in Charlotte. In the third game of the year, the Bulldogs bested South Carolina 40-13. Georgia and Charleston Southern will be meeting for the first time ever on the gridiron.

Issue14 2021 Ga Tech National Champions Edition Georgia-45, Tech-0 | Bobby Dodd Stadium - Atlanta G eorgia grabbed early control with top- notched, complimentary football. Stetson Bennett hit Jermaine Burton and Ladd McConkey for scores to go up 17-0. Then Brock Bowers made another spectacular catch and run through six Tech defenders. Bowers opened the second half with a leaping TD grab. With the victory, Georgia improved to 12-0. The last time Georgia was 12-0 was 1980, as the national champion Bulldogs went a perfect 12-0. The Bulldogs also extended their winning streak to 16 games, one off the school record of 17 consecutive wins from 1945-1947. Dating back to 2017, Georgia won for a fourth straight time over the Jackets. Over that stretch, the Bulldogs outscored the Yellow Jackets 180-35. Georgia won for an 11th straight time over the Jackets at Grant Field. The Bulldogs are 17-3 versus Tech since 2001. Sic Vos Non Vobis ++. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM ATLANTA PG. 22 BROCK BOWERS CONTINUES HIS AMAZING FRESHMAN CAMPAIGN! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE Top Producing Agent on St. Simons since March, 2017 $83+ MILLION Under contract/sold in 2021 $138+ MILLION Under contract/sold since 2020 $243+ MILLION Total career under contract and sold SPORTS GEORGIA VS GEORGIA TECH GAME TIME: NOON CHANNEL: ABC GEORGIA VS GEORGIA TECH BY: JEFF DANTZLER WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BUY, SELL OR INVEST, GIVE ME A CALL AT 912-266-2650 291 Sea Island Road | St. Simons Island, GA 31522 912-266-2650 | viclong@bellsouth.net VICTORLONGREALESTATE.COM BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 148 It’s the biggest game of them all when it comes to the Red & Black - and the Old Gold as well - Georgia and Tech, the ancient enemies square off Saturday at high noon from Bobby Dodd Stadium at Historic Grant Field. Tech is coming off a 55-0 loss at Notre Dame. The Yellow Jackets are 3-8 on the season. The game in South Bend was uncharacteristic for Tech. Of the eight losses this season, five have come by nine or fewer points. Georgia improved to 11-0 with a 56-7 win over Charleston Southern on Senior Day in Athens. The Bulldogs had played eight straight games against Southeastern Conference foes. After the tuneup against the Buccaneers, every game is now for a championship. That begins with the battle for the Governor’s Cup and the state championship. Dating back to 2001, Georgia has won 10 consecutive games against Tech at Grant Field. The Bulldogs have won three straight against the Yellow Jackets since 2017. Going back to 2001, Georgia has won 16 of the last 19 overall in the series. Last season, due to … well, everyone knows, these two did not play each other for the first time since 1924. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series with Tech 68-39-5. Kirby Smart, in the sixth season as the head coach at his alma mater, 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION has talked all season about playing to a standard and the Bulldogs, despite tremendous success thus far this season, not being a finished product. Even with the overwhelming 49-point margin of victory against Charleston Southern, there was a lot for Smart to point to for improvement. Namely with turnovers. The Bulldogs had three against Charleston Southern. So as Georgia pursues the state championship, Smart is driving his team to play at a peak performance. Along with the ramifications of this all-important in-state battle, Georgia is also riding some history. Dating back to last season’s 4-0 close to the season, Georgia has won 15 consecutive games. That is tied for the second longest winning streak in school history, along with the 15 straight Georgia won from the 1979 Tech game through the 1981 Cal victory, primarily encompassed by the 12-0 national championship season of 1980. The school record of 17 straight wins was set from the middle of the 1945 campaign through the 1947 season opener, primarily made up of the perfect 11-0 SEC championship season of 1946. The pursuit of history continues, as these Bulldogs try to become the first Georgia team since the 1980 national champions to post a 12-0 record in a season. Spoiling the Bulldogs dreams would make the Jackets season.

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SEC 2021 Championship National Champions Edition Alabama-41, Georgia-24 | Mercedes-Benz Stadium - Atlanta A labama extended its winning streak against Georgia to seven games with the 41-24 win over the Bulldogs in Atlanta. The Crimson Tide came back in strong fashion from a 10-0 deficit to score 24 points in the second quarter. Georgia trailed at halftime for the first time all year. Crimson Tide sophomore quarterback Bryce Young had a spectacular performance and padded his Heisman Trophy resume. A Georgia defense that had given up no more than 17 points on the season struggled against the Young-led Crimson Tide passing attack. Turnovers doomed the Bulldogs. Alabama recorded a pair of second half interceptions, including a pick-six that extended the Crimson Tide’s lead to 38-17. Georgia and Alabama were both 12-1 and playoff bound leaving Atlanta. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW OF THE SEC CHAMPIONSHIP PG. 22 ZEUS, COOK AND COMPANY MUST GET LOOSE IN THE BENZ! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE SPORTS GEORGIA VS ALABAMA GAME TIME: 4:00 PM CHANNEL: CBS GEORGIA VS ALABAMA BY: JEFF DANTZLER It’s a Titanic mega showdown Saturday, as top-ranked Georgia battles No. 2 Alabama in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game. Kickoff from the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is set for 4 p.m., EST. in 12 of the last 14 seasons under Nick Saban’s incredible reign. The Alabama faithful have gotten to relive Paul “Bear” Bryant’s glory days of the 1960s and 1970s. Along with the obvious prize of the SEC title on the line, this matchup has major implications for the four-team College Football Playoff. This will be Georgia’s ninth all-time appearance in the SEC Championship Game (all since 2002), and the fourth in the last five seasons under the watch of sixth year head coach Kirby Smart at his alma mater. The Dogs posted a trio of 11-1 regular seasons from 2017- 2019 en route to Atlanta. These Bulldogs have but one eventual goal, to get where the kingpin Alabama has regularly been, showering in the confetti of a national championship coronation. Alabama is making a record 14th appearance in the league’s title tilt. Georgia comes in with a 12-0 record, the perfect regular season capped with an impressive 45-0 victory over Tech at Grant Field this past Saturday. It was the Bulldogs 11th consecutive victory over the Yellow Jackets on their home field in Atlanta, a streak dating back to 2001. Since defeating Clemson 10-3 in Charlotte in the season-opener on Labor Day Weekend, the Bulldogs have won every game by double digits. The closest margin of victory since Clemson is a 30-13 win over Kentucky. The most points the Bulldogs have surrendered came in Knoxville in a 41-17 triumph over Tennessee. On the history front, this season Georgia is putting together quite a resume. The Bulldogs have won 16 straight regular season games dating back to last season, which is the second longest in program history. Georgia won 17 in a row from the second half of the 1945 campaign through the opener of 1947. This is Georgia’s first 12-0 regular season. Other perfect regular seasons for Georgia came in 1896 (4-0), 1946 (10-0, wound up 11-0), 1980 (11-0, wound up 12-0) and 1982 (11-0, wound up 11-1). Alabama is 11-1, soaring in off a thrilling 24-22 quadruple overtime victory over arch-rival Auburn on the Plains. The defending national champion Crimson Tide have either gone undefeated or lost only once BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 150 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION These two met twice for the SEC crown in Atlanta in the 2010s, and for the 2017 national championship at Mercedes Benz. In all of those games, Georgia had double digit second half leads, but the Crimson Tide would come back to win. Those games represent some of the most significant wins of Saban’s amazing tenure, and are on the bizarro Mt. Rushmore of crushing Georgia losses. Now Bama looms and lurks again for Georgia. Are the Bulldogs already in the playoff? A two-loss team has never made it. What would the seedings be if Alabama wins? All are popular points of conjecture. But here are two certainties: the winner is in, and champions of the SEC. For both of these programs and coaches, that is the focus and the next step on the road to the ultimate dream.

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Issue15 2021 CFP SEMI-Orange Bowl National Champions Edition Georgia-34, Michigan-11 | Hard Rock Stadium - Miami G eorgia dominated Michigan and played the best first half of the season, heading to intermission with a 27-3 lead. The Bulldogs defense was dominant, Jack Podlesny hit a pair of FGs, and the Bulldogs had three TD strikes through the air in the first half, including a sweet halfback pass. It was the fourth Orange Bowl appearance for the Bulldogs and first since January 1, 1960. Georgia and Michigan played for just the third time. The Wolverines won 26-0 in 1957 in Ann Arbor. Georgia upset Michigan 18-7 in the Big House in 1965, two weeks after beating Bama. This was Michigan’s first appearance in the College Football playoff. The Wolverines upset Ohio State then beat Iowa for the Big Ten title. Georgia was in the playoff for the second time under Kirby Smart’s watch. Georgia won a major bowl game for the fourth time in five years. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW FROM MICHIGAN PG. 22 THE REEMERGENCE OF NO. 1 AGAINST MICHIGAN WILL BE VITAL! PHOTO BY: GREG POOLE SPORTS GEORGIA VS MICHIGAN GAME TIME: 7:30 PM CHANNEL: ESPN GEORGIA VS MICHIGAN BY: JEFF DANTZLER College football bluebloods square off in the Orange Bowl, as second-ranked Michigan battles Georgia in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. on New Year’s Eve from Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. Both teams come in with sparkling 12-1 records. Michigan’s lone loss was a 37-33 instant classic against Michigan State. Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh, in the seventh season at the helm of his alma mater, rallied his team to a dominant closing stretch. Michigan, boasting the most ever victories of any college football team, are champions of the Big Ten, smoking hot. Buoyed by an epic 42-27 Big House victory in the snow over Ohio State, the Maize and Blue routed Iowa 42-3 in the Big Ten Championship Game, earning their first CFP appearance. Kirby Smart is in his sixth season as the head coach at his alma mater. Georgia posted a perfect 12-0 regular season before falling to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. Since the College Football Playoff began in 2014, the Bulldogs are the first team to earn a berth after losing their conference championship game. Georgia held the No. 1 national ranking for a majority of the campaign. Following a highly anticipated 10-3 season opening victory over Clemson, the Bulldogs won 11 straight games by at least 17 points, including a 34-7 victory over Florida and 45-0 topping of Tech. This will be Georgia’s fourth ever Orange Bowl appearance. The Bulldogs beat TCU 40-26 on New Year’s Day 1942, fell to Texas BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 152 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION 41-28 in the 1949 Orange Bowl, and then on January 1, 1960, the Bulldogs beat Missouri. For Michigan, this will also be its fourth trip to Miami. Harbaugh’s Wolverines lost a 33-32 classic to Florida State on December 30, 2016. That game’s Most Valuable Player was Dalvin Cook, older brother of current senior Georgia standout running back James Cook. This will be the third all time meeting between these two traditionrich programs. Both games took place in Ann Arbor, with Michigan winning 26-0 in 1957 and the Bulldogs prevailing 15-7 in 1965. The roots of these two head coaches run deep at their schools. Harbaugh was an All-Big Ten quarterback for Michigan in the 1980s. Smart was an All-Southeastern Conference safety for Georgia in the 1990s. Michigan is rising. The victory over the Buckeyes was just their third dating back to 2001, and the Wolverines went on to break a four year Ohio State stranglehold on the Big Ten championship. Georgia is once again amongst the elite of college football. Under Smart’s watch, the Bulldogs will finish in the top ten for a school record fifth straight season. Both teams have had incredible 2021 campaigns. For the winner, the year closes with but one step remaining for the dream season.

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National 2021 Championship National Champions Edition Georgia-33, Alabama-18 | Lucas Oil Stadium - Indianapolis F or the second time in five years, SEC heavyweight Alabama and Georgia met for the national championship. Just over five weeks earlier, the Crimson Tide beat Georgia 41-24 in the SEC Championship Game. This Monday night 1/10/2022 offered a rare college football rematch. Georgia scored the final 20 points of the game to secure the 33-18 victory over the Crimson Tide. Freshmen Adonai Mitchell and Brock Bowers both caught a touchdown against Michigan and Alabama. Kelee Ringo sealed the victory with a 79-yard interception return for a TD. The victory sent the Bulldog Nation into a state of euphoria. After several near misses, Georgia captured its first national championship since 1980. The 14 victories this season set a school record. Kirby Smart joins an elite list of coaches to win national titles for their alma mater. BY JEFF DANTZLER FIVE KEYS PG. 18 | DAWG BONES PG. 20 | A VIEW OF THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP PG. 22 SPORTS MVP STETSON BENNETT DROPPED DIMES AND ORANGES IN MIAMI, NOW HIS TEAM NEEDS ANOTHER SOLID PERFORMANCE IN INDY! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE GEORGIA VS ALABAMA GAME TIME: 8 P.M. CHANNEL: ESPN GEORGIA VS ALABAMA BY: JEFF DANTZLER Top-ranked Alabama and Georgia square off for the national championship Monday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The home of the Indianapolis Colts, the Big Ten Championship Game and numerous Final Fours in basketball serves as the site this season for the title tilt in the College Football playoff. Both the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs were dominant in their major bowl semi-final victories on New Year’s Eve. Alabama shut down previously unbeaten Cincinnati and put up an impressive 27-6 win over the Bearcats in the Cotton Bowl. Georgia raced to a 27-3 halftime lead and posted a sparkling 34-11 triumph over Big Ten Champion Michigan. These two SEC heavyweights collision course has produced a second meeting this season. For the second time in five seasons the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs are playing for the crown. Georgia lost a devastating heartbreaker 26-23 in Atlanta on 1/8/18 for the 2017 national championship. That is the most significant in a streak of seven straight wins for Alabama against the Bulldogs. The streak was extended to seven on December 4, when Bama defeated Georgia 41-24 in Atlanta in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game. That was an identical score to the Tide’s regular season victory over Georgia in 2020. Nick Saban has established himself as arguably the greatest and most successful coach in the history of the sport, right there with the likes of Bear Bryant and Knute Rockne. He is undoubtedly the coach of the 21st century. Saban has led Alabama to six national BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 154 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION championships and, along with the title he led LSU to in 2003, has an astounding seven over the last 18 years. Monday night will mark the 10th time that Saban has coached a team in a BCS or CFP national title game. Smart is in his sixth season at the helm of his alma mater, and has done a tremendous job, driving Georgia into college football’s elite. The former Saban assistant has led the Bulldogs to four major bowl titles and now has Georgia on the brink. There have been so many agonizing close calls, none more so than 1/8/18, as the Bulldogs aim for the program’s first national championship since 1980. Both teams come in supremely confident. Since Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young directed a scintillating 97-yard game-tying drive in Alabama’s overtime victory at Auburn, the Crimson Tide has won the SEC Championship Game and Cotton Bowl over previously undefeated teams by a combined score of 68-30. Not since the fifth-ranked Bulldogs beat No. 2 Tech 34-0 in 1942 en route to the national championship, has Georgia won a top five vs. top five matchup by a margin as impressive as the 23-point win over Michigan. The stage is set. The national title awaits the winner. Will Alabama, ho hum, do it again? Or will these Bulldogs pull it off and register a victory that would mean so much to so many? 13 2022 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

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National 2021 2021 Champions National Champions Edition Commemorative Edition G B U L L D A W G eorgia’s national championship team of 2021 wound up with victories over four schools - Clemson, Auburn, Florida and Alabama - that combined to win 11 of the 15 previous national titles, plus Michigan which has the most wins in the history of college football. I L L U S T R A T E D • Over the last five seasons, Georgia has won the 2021 national championship and four major bowl games: 2018 Rose Bowl, 2020 Sugar Bowl, 2021 Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, 2021 Orange Bowl and finished in the top ten for a school record five consecutive campaigns. 2 0 2 1 Over the last 60 years, only four head coaches have led their alma mater to a college football national championship: Paul “Bear” Bryant at Alabama, Florida’s Steve Spurrier, Phil Fulmer at Tennessee and Kirby Smart’s 2021 National Champion University of Georgia Bulldogs! N A T I O N A L C H A M P I O N S BY JEFF DANTZLER BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED E D I T I O N 2021 NATIONAL 2021 CONNECTED! IN THIS ISSUE ‘OSKIE’ KELEE RINGO AND ADIOS ALABAMA! PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE OUR TEAM THE GAME | 16 THE SCENE | 26 EDITOR: Vance Leavy CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Cheri Leavy MULTIMEDIA DIRECTOR: Greg Poole CHIEF SPORTS CONTRIBUTOR: Jeff Dantzler ART DIRECTOR: Stacey Nichols SALES: Caroline Kinney SPORTS: Jeff Dantzler, Greg Poole, Davis Baker, Murray Poole MULTIMEDIA SUPPORT: Hamilton Culpepper PHOTOGRAPHY: Greg Poole, Rob Saye, Blane Marable COVER: Rob Saye INSIDE COVER: Vance Leavy CHERI’S CRUSHES DESIGN: Hinge Creative Co. COLUMNISTS: Hamilton Culpepper, Loran Smith, Kevin Butler DELIVERY: John Cook, Wright Cook, Rob Freeman, Anna French, Scarlett French, Flynn Kelly, Caroline Kinney, John Kinney, Lynn McLanahan, Eleanor Morgan, Henry Morgan, James Morgan, Jack Sawyer, Cullen Sewell, Henry Stokes, Champ Vance NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION: February 2, 2022 THE FANS | 68 THE FINAL PERSPECTIVE | 120 2021 National Champions Edition ON THE COVER: (clock-wise from top) - Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean, Stetson Bennett, Kirby Smart, Julian Rochester, Jamaree Salyer, Zamir White BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 156 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION CHAMPIONS ISSUE 8 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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A farewell, but never to be forgotten, tribute to Steve Greer … Georgia legend and a Damn Great Dawg! BY: JEFF DANTZLER SPONSORED BY E rk Russell, incomparable legend, once told me that Steve Greer was the toughest player he ever coached. Tenacious, physical, incredibly athletic, lightning fast and yes, titanium tough, Greer, who weighed less than 200 pounds, and was an All-American Defen- sive Guard. One of the greatest players in Georgia’s storied football history, he was a vital part of Bulldogs Southeastern Con- ference championship team of 1968, and was voted Team Captain while earning All-American honors in 1969. Football was an enormous part of his incredible life. After playing professional football in Canada, he went into coaching, and had a stupendous career, primarily at his beloved alma mater, primarily coaching the position he played - the defensive line. Greer was a key member of the Bulldogs coaching staff that led Georgia to the 1980 national championship and three consecutive SEC titles from 1980- 1982. Along with on field coaching, Greer served in several rolls, including recruit- ing coordinator and director of football operations. He was universally adored, admired, re- spected and revered by all of his players, teammates, coaches, fans and everyone associated with Georgia football. Steve Greer passed away at the age of 74 on December 13, 2021. Stricken with ALS, he fought a courageous and inspira- tional battle. He leaves behind his beloved wife Susan, three sons Stephen, Jeff and Michael, and six grandchildren. Tremendous as he was as a player and coach, Greer was an even better husband, father, grandfather, mentor and friend. “Steve was a great player, a great coach, a great husband (Susan was the devoted coach’s wife), and a great father (they were the best hunting and fishing family),” says iconic Bulldogs head coach and athletic director Vince Dooley. “He was an inspiration to us all the way he handled his affliction. God Bless him and his family.” In 2014, Greer was inducted into the Uni- versity of Georgia’s Circle of Honor, the highest distinction a Bulldog athlete or coach can receive. A prep All-American at Greer High School, he was inducted into the state of South Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 2019. At both ceremonies, he was surrounded by his family, friends, former players, coaches and teammates. “He was an inspiration to us all,” says his longtime friend, teammate and fellow Bulldog assistant coach Charlie Whitte- more, All-SEC wide receiver. The bonds of the 1968 SEC champion- ship team have run deep since those glorious days. “Without a doubt, Steve Greer was the best friend, teammate and person that I had the privilege to know,” says his longtime friend, teammate and fellow Bulldog assistant coach Mike Cavan, All-SEC quarterback. “We go back a long way and he was always there for me. He will be missed by many! I truly loved him like a brother!” Greer’s influence spanned numerous generations of Georgia football. Greer was a member of the Georgia foot- ball staff when Kirby Smart played in the 1990s. Greer’s son Michael, a terrific wide receiver, was a teammate of Smart’s. The Bulldogs current Head Football Coach posted this tribute on Twitter following the news of Greer’s death: “Rest In Peace Steve Greer - thank you for everything you’ve done for UGA and me personally. Great coach and mentor! But an even better man and father!! You will be missed terribly.”

Georgia’s J. Reid Parker Director of Athlet- ics Josh Brooks paid tribute to Greer with the following message: “Coach Steve Greer will go down as one of the greatest to ever wear the G. My first boss and mentor at UGA. I will forever be grateful to your guidance, love, and wis- dom you shared with me and my family! He embodied everything it means to be a Bulldog! Rest in Peace Coach.” There were hundreds and hundreds of trib- utes the day Coach Greer passed away. Here are but a few from some great Bulldogs: “Great player, Coach and friend. I will miss him. RIP Coach.” Frank Ros - Captain, 1980 national champions. “Fighter! God Bless Steve Greer.” - Chris Welton, starting Rover 1980 national champions. “Very sad, but glad he is at rest. Rest In Peace Coach.” - Rex Robinson, All-Ameri- can 1980 national champions. “A loving coach. They don’t get any better than Steve Greer.” - Lon Buckler, starting wide receiver 1981 SEC champions. “Sad, sad day. We have lost a great one in Coach Steve Greer.” - David Dukes, four year letterman 1984-1987. “So sad. A great man who is in a better place, no longer suffering.” - John Lasting- er, starting quarterback 1982 and 1983. As an avid, loyal, die-hard Bulldog since my early days growing up in Statesboro, I read, watched and listened to every single thing I could about Georgia. Coach Russell was kind enough to let me hang around and inundate him with questions about the Bulldogs, and I sure realized how special that was. I loved hearing about those players from the 1960s and ‘70s, and Steve Greer was one of Coach Russell’s favorites. When I started school at Georgia in the Fall of 1991, he quickly became one of mine. He was tough on the field, intimidating for sure. But his heart was big, and he always lifted you up. In 1993, I had a very difficult job. I was asked to be on the selection committee to choose the “Georgia Girls” recruiting host- esses. When the process was done, Coach Greer took me to dinner at the famous Charlie Williams Pinecrest Lodge. He also had a cold beer waiting on me. Talk about living the dream. I was with the great Steve Greer, drinking a beer, at Charlie Williams eating a lot of fried shrimp, fried chicken and hush puppies. That was a great night. As I got older, he offered constant encour- agement rich with compliments. Like his family, his players, his coaches, and his teammates, he made me feel great. When I went through a hard time, he called. He was always gracious and appreciative when hearing the numerous times I would talk and write about what a great Bulldog he was. Living with that terrible disease, he never complained. He was always upbeat. The last time I got to interview him, it was in the Autumn of 2020 as part of the University’s 40-For-80 podcast tribute to the 1980 na- tional champions. He was with his old friend Coach Whittemore, and it was wonderful. I always cherished seeing him. Like so many, I loved the man. Steve Greer is running in heaven, now an even richer place. He’s with Coach Russell, Kent Lawrence, Jake Scott, and all his teammates, friends and family members lost throughout the years. His legacy and influence at the University of Georgia will live forever. Steve Greer, Georgia legend and a Damn Great Dawg.

twenty-21 MEMORIES ...

GO DAWGS FROM THE LEE FAMILY!

2021 National Champions Edition WHAT’S THE WORD HAMILTON CULPEPPER Heroes are remembered, but legends never die PHOTOS BY: GEORGIA ATHLETICS & PROVIDED I received a text following the national championship game that the Dawgs up in heaven may not have been there physically, but they had the best seats in the house and alongside “Ol’ Lady Luck” they helped bring our first title in 41 years. I knew I had to write a piece on those who came before and paved the way for the 2021 Dawgs. The truth is this team won that game with grit, determination, physicality, discipline, and a little help from above. There’s many greats that I’m sure we all know who were gathered around a big screen wearing their red and black garb in Heaven, but some of the greatest former Dawgs to walk this earth gave it something a little extra on that Monday night. Legends like Larry Munson and Erk Russell; former teammates and All-Americans, Bill Stanfill, Jake Scott, and Steve Greer; great Georgia contributors like Jack Davis, Bill Hartman, Leroy Dukes, and Dan Magill; even Heisman winner Frank Sinkwich looked down on us and smiled from the other side of the pearly gates. These men gave their minds, bodies, and souls to Georgia. Those sweet souls may no longer be here physically, but on January 10 in Dan Magill Indianapolis, they were with us. The most recent passing of Steve Greer (see tribute on page 158) put into perspective how short and sweet life really is, but how one can make the most of it by giving back to others. Steve Greer was a former player in the 60s who contributed to many great wins in that time. Coach Dooley once said, “In my opinion, pound for pound, the greatest player I ever coached.” Erk Russell, as noted by Jeff Dantzler, said Greer was the toughest player he ever coached. Though his talents on the field measured how great of an athlete he was, his actions as coach, mentor, father, and husband measured how great of a man he was. Dan Magill gave everything he had to the University of Georgia, He gave 34 years of his life to the tennis team, two national titles in that sport; furthermore, he sacrificed even more time as the sports information director. As the 50s seemed to be struggling times for the Georgia football team, Magill traveled around the state, setting up Bulldog Clubs to increase interest in the state school’s team. He even brought the ITA Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame to Athens, now named for him. However, he gave so much more to his athletes, to the fans, and to anyone around him. He showed them love, took care of them, and was always willing to have a good conversation about Georgia athletics. The list goes on with Bill Stanfill and Jake Scott, teammates at Georgia and in the NFL. These two really bled red and black, laid their bodies on the line, and remained friends through it all. The two were mean machines on the gridiron but great friends to their teammates. After football, Scott’s free spirit took him to Hawaii where he lived the good life. When Stanfill was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, the University couldn’t get in touch with Scott to notify him of Stanfill’s great honor, but Scott later said at his friend’s ceremony, “I was out fishing and about three days later I came back in to where the cell phone works — I was way out past where the cell phone works — there was about 15 messages. Usually I have about two messages. I said, ‘Oh hell, somebody’s died.’ Then when I found out, tears came into my eyes.” The two were best pals, best teammates, and now two of the best Hall of Famers in Georgia history. (Continued On Page 164) Jake Scott & Bill Stanfill BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 162 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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WHAT’S THE WORD generations. I can’t even put into words his impact on not only our football program, but the University, Athens, and all of Dawg Nation. As he states, “Two words, two simple words,” all 93,000 and a million more rally behind the one many who united us all through a radio. Larry, you gave us more than we could’ve ever dreamt of, and I hope when the rest of us meet you in Heaven, you have a file of all your calls for the games you’ve witnessed from beyond the clouds. Bill Hartman Jack Davis Jack Davis was the same as the previous four. Loved Georgia and loved people. The University used Davis’ art work throughout his life: on stadium cups, t-shirts, posters, and even our very own BI covers. But have you ever looked closely at his work? He would somehow incorporate his children’s names and later his grandchildren into his art. He was a Damn Good Dawg but a family man at heart. Bill Hartman and Erk Russell were, in my book, two of the top five Georgians in history. Two coaches for one team who gave it all to their players. Discipline but loving. Strict but funny. They knew how to coach but they really knew how to be role models or father figures or anything their players needed them to be. I’ve interviewed many of their athletes, and every one of them says their humor is what made them great coaches and so enjoyable to be around. Erk Russell Leroy Dukes A smile unlike any other, a laugh louder than any other, and a personality greater than most, our next honored Dawg who aided in the Dawgs’ title run was the one and only Leroy Dukes. Graduating in 1964, Leroy was on Coach Dooley’s first team, but the Athens icon never strayed too far from the Classic City after his graduation. Like many of the others I’ve mentioned, Leroy was a leader in the community, one who put others before himself. If you walked into Hilltop Grille, there was always a booming voice coming from the bar; it was Leroy with a cold beverage in his hand. Then, there’s Heisman winner Frank Sinkwich. That alone should speak for itself. He brought something to Georgia no one had ever done to date, a Heisman Trophy and a Rose Bowl win. When he died, Coach Dooley remarked, “He was not only a great player but a wonderful person and citizen of Athens.” A true community man. He did more for Athens and this school than most, and he did that while just in college, but he continued to give back even after his playing days, making him the kind man he was. Finally, good ol’ Larry. The voice of the Dawgs. His voice rings throughout the Classic City; his calls are unforgettable. He gave us something to savor every Saturday, a few words that we remember throughout BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 164 Frank Sinkwich Aside from their love for Georgia football, the men I mentioned had one more thing in common, a giving attitude and a love for those around them. When I think about this historic win we just witnessed, I could only think of these great souls sitting in the rafters of Lucas Oil Stadium smiling down on the men below. I never knew any of these Georgia forebears, but from stories and interviews, I know these are the men we should aspire to be. We want to love the Dawgs as they did, but we also need to strive to give like they did. These Damn Good Dawgs had one more gift for us, a national title, and I speak for all when I say thank you for what you did while you walked this earth and thank you for your help from above on that chilly January night. Heroes are remembered, but legends never die. larry Munson 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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WHADDAYA GOT LORAN 2021 LORAN SMITH National Champions Edition Kirby’s first title means so much to so many because we love him more than normal, because he is ours, UGA class of ’99 M idway of the fourth quarter in that glorious encounter in Indianapolis that confirmed the University of Georgia Bulldogs are, without question, the greatest football team in the land, Davey Pollack nervously said: “Please tell me we are going to win this thing.” My response was, “You tell me, you are the expert.” He noted that he had never been involved in a national championship and remarked, “If we win, you get to enjoy that experience twice—how lucky you are.” That pride in alma mater made one of Georgia’s greatest players savor the moment to the fullest. He was like a kid enjoying his greatest Christmas.” This little interlude caused me to reflect as the clock was winding down, just how much Kirby’s first (and I truly believe there will be more) title means to so many. The entire state, including all those who matriculated at Auburn, are enjoying this high moment. For years I have traveled the four corners of the “Empire State of the South,” not just the main thoroughfares, but the back roads where you find Georgia’s “G” as prominent as pine trees. Mailboxes with logos and banners, professing allegiance to UGA—hanging from barns, front porches and storefronts. There are countless bumper stickers and car tags that reflect a connection with UGA. A state university has tentacles that stretch into every town and county. If you didn’t matriculate in Athens, chances are that your school teacher or your lawyer, or your banker, or your doctor, or your dentist, or your accountant, or your business leaders, or your county agent, or your editor, or your minister did. Georgia is a Red and Black state. What makes the story so refreshing is that two small town boys are now celebrated icons taking bows—the quarterback from Blackshear, named for a general, David Blackshear, and the coach from Bainbridge, named for a man who once commanded Old Ironsides, William Bainbridge. Stetson Bennett and Kirby Smart are household names, especially in their home state. That is the enduring beauty of sport. Barefoot country boys can survive the slings and arrows of an impatient and carping constituency to a presence on ABC’s Good Morning America and ESPN’s prime time programs. If you experienced the mountain top moment of 1980, you remember how it was, an unending toast to the champions of the collegiate football world. Books were written, Coca-Cola produced celebratory bottles which were never opened and consumed but proudly displayed for the ages. Merchandize, with that iconic “G,” videos, posters and No. 34 jerseys went viral. That team and this team had much in common in that both exemplified the meaning of the word team. Team doesn’t mean the eleven most talented players but the best group of selfless individuals who subordinate personal goals to that of the entire roster, bent on taking home the championship trophy. Indianapolis — Nick Saban and Kirby Smart. There is no disclaimer or dissenting view here, but I think it’s crystal clear to those who have any up close and personal connection with the Georgia program. Those talented “hosses” must have cogent and inspiring leadership. The Bulldogs could not have a greater generalissimo than Kirby Smart. You begin with his surname. He is a smart dude. He is indefatigable. He may be the hardest working coach to ever wear the Red & Black, in my opinion. He is not driven by ego. He is a positive thinker, and he has so many enduring qualities that make him especial. His sideline energy reflects who he is. He is into the game with leaps and bounds but never losing his composure or control. He has a grasp of the moment, but incorporated in his thinking is factoring PHOTO BY: VANCE LEAVY Even today when that ’80 team gathers for reunions, student managers, student trainers, cheerleaders, and staff members from the grounds keepers to the dining hall supervisor are included. Not sure what it will be like with this current team in 10 years or 25 years, but I suspect the same attitude and modus operandi will prevail. The story lines have not all been revealed, but that will come with the passing of time. Remember the age old saw that the players are the difference makers when it comes to championships. You can’t win without the “hosses,” a view professed with the greatest of impact and clarity by the two head coaches in BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 166 in what might be of essence for the next play, the next series, the next quarter. Like the consummate chess player. He has a remarkable ability to say the right thing. He keeps strident opinion under cover, he doesn’t get even in print. He will never lose a game with his mouth. Yet he is honest and insightful. Underneath it all, he is a hard-edged competitor who has a burning desire to win championships. All Georgia alumni, fans and gridiron brethren are proud of him. We love him more than normal, because he is ours, UGA class of ’99. And now the class of college football ++ 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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PHOTO BY: ROB SAYE 2021 JD’S TOP 15 — Jeff Dantzler It was a dream season for the Georgia Bulldogs, who beat Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Three different SEC schools have won the last three national titles. Cincinnati crashed the big boys party and made the playoffs. Michigan beat Ohio State and made the playoffs. Clemson, Oklahoma and Ohio State all missed out on their conference championship games. It was a refreshing year. Especially in Athens. 1. GEORGIA - The Bulldogs scored the final 20 points of the National Championship Game to beat Alabama 33-18. Georgia outscored the opposition by an average of 28.4 points. Kirby Smart has done an incredible job, and now the Dogs have the national title. 2. ALABAMA - For the sixth time in seven seasons, Nick Saban led Alabama to the national title game. Sophomore quarterback Blake Young won the Heisman Trophy and is a big reason the Tide will likely be preseason No. 1 for 2022. 3. MICHIGAN - The victory over Ohio State in the snow of the Big House is one of the grand scenes of college football. Jim Harbaugh led the Wolverines past the Buckeyes, to the Big Ten championship and to their first playoff appearance in the Orange Bowl. 4. CINCINNATI - For the first time in the playoff era, a non “Big Boy” got the berth in the playoffs. A perfect regular season and American championship earned a Cotton Bowl berth. Last two years, their only two losses are to Georgia and Alabama. 5. BAYLOR - The Bears won the Big XII Championship Game against Oklahoma State by inches and then played great defense in the Sugar Bowl triumph over Ole Miss. Dave Aranda has kept the Bears amongst the best in the Big XII. 6. OHIO STATE - The Buckeyes won a thriller over Utah in the Rose Bowl. It was a typical high scoring Pasadena affair. Ohio State’s two losses came to Oregon and Michigan. The Buckeyes are a good bet to be preseason No. 2 in 2022. 7. MICHIGAN STATE - Mel Tucker led the Spartans to an 11-2 record and Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl win over Pitt. The Big Ten East was loaded this season and Sparty made their mark with a memorable victory over Michigan. 8. OKLAHOMA STATE - It was a painful end to the Big XII Championship Game and then an awful start in the Fiesta Bowl. But the Cowboys came back from a 28-7 deficit to Notre Dame to beat the Fighting Irish 37-35 in Tempe. BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED National Champions Edition 9. NOTRE DAME - Marcus Freeman has had a meteoric rise and is now the head coach of Notre Dame. In his first game as the head man, the Irish lost a heartbreaker to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl. Brian Kelly is now at LSU. 10. OKLAHOMA - It was a stunner with Lincoln Riley bolting for Southern Cal. Bob Stoops stepped in as interim coach, and the Sooners rolled past Oregon to finish 11-2. Brent Venables is the new head coach, as Oklahoma’s days in the Big XII wind down. 11. OLE MISS - It was a tremendous regular season for the Rebels, and a tough loss to Baylor in the Sugar Bowl. Losing Matt Corrall in the game was a tough blow. Lane Kiffin surprised a lot of fans by staying on in Oxford. 12. UTAH - The Running Utes made a name for themselves with a strong close to the season, highlighted by a pair of wins over Oregon and the PAC-12 championship. It was a tough loss in Pasadena to Ohio State. Kyle Whittingham has done a great job at Utah. 13. PITTSBURGH - The ACC champions lost a tight one to Michigan State in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl. Pat Narduzzi has done a very good job in Steel City. It was disappointing that Kenny Pickett didn’t play in Atlanta. 14. CLEMSON - The Tigers got going offensively late in the season, including impressive wins over Wake Forest and South Carolina. Their defense is one of the nation’s best. The Cheez-It Bowl win over Iowa State pushed Clemson to 10-3 on the year. 15. KENTUCKY - For the second time in four years, the Wildcats posted a 10-3 record. That’s big news in Big Blue Basketball Nation. Mark Stoops has done a fine job in Lexington. His Wildcats won a physical slugfest over Iowa 20-17 in the Citrus Bowl. 168 2021 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS EDITION

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