Happy holidays from everyone at DawgNation! Before we embark on a short hiatus — the daily newsletter will return Monday with all of your Sugar Bowl coverage — I want to throw it back to the one time Georgia football played on Christmas Eve: the 2000 Oahu Bowl.
The game served as coach Jim Donnan’s final game of his Georgia career, as the program had relieved him of his duties earlier in the month. However, he opted to stay and coach the team to a 37-14 victory over Virginia, finishing the season with a 8-4 record and 5-3 mark in conference play. The win marked Georgia’s fourth consecutive bowl win, a school record.
The thought of Georgia playing in any bowl game other than a New Year’s Six one is now unfathomable. That’s the expectation with coach Kirby Smart at the helm. The Bulldogs have played in nine New Year’s Six bowls during Smart’s 10 seasons as head coach, including an upcoming matchup with Ole Miss on Jan. 1.
We’ll have more coverage on that game Monday, so, for now, sit back, relax and enjoy the holidays with the people you love.
And be sure to check out the rest of our coverage below.
Trivia time
What season did Georgia football play on Christmas Eve?
Answer is at the bottom of the newsletter.
Former Georgia star James Cook takes NFL rushing lead
Former Georgia tailback James Cook has taken over the NFL rushing lead with 1,532 yards through 15 games.
Cook rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries to help lift Buffalo to a 23-20 road win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
Smart said UGA staff once likened Cook’s running style to a mongoose.
“He runs with toughness, he doesn’t have huge weight, but he runs behind his pads,” Smart said in 2021. “Coaches called him ‘The Mongoose’ when he first got here. He’s hard to tackle, he’s always slithering and sliding through there, and he’s hard to get a direct hit on.”
Indianapolis tailback Jonathan Taylor previously led the NFL in rushing for most of the season but was held to 46 yards on 16 carries in the Colts’ 48-27 loss to San Francisco on Monday night, leaving him behind Cook with 1,489 yards.
Both backs have two games remaining in the regular season, as Buffalo plays host to Philadelphia and the New York Jets to close out its slate, while Taylor and Indianapolis finish with a home game against Jacksonville next Sunday followed by a road trip to Houston.
CFB weekly bowl results
Final
- Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Washington State over Utah State, 34-21
- Bush’s Boca Raton Bowl: Louisville over Toledo, 27-22
- New Orleans Bowl: Western Kentucky over Southern Miss, 27-16
- Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl: Ohio over UNLV, 17-10
Thursday
- Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: California vs. Hawaii, 8 p.m.
Friday
- GameAbove Sports Bowl: Central Michigan vs. Northwestern, 1 p.m.
- Rate Bowl: New Mexico vs. Minnesota, 4:30 p.m.
- SERVPRO First Responder Bowl: Florida International vs. UTSA, 8 p.m.
Smart discusses Ole Miss without Lane Kiffin
Life without Lane Kiffin didn’t look all that different for Ole Miss in its most recent game.
The Rebels pounded Tulane 41-10 in the first round of the College Football Playoff. It was the second time Ole Miss played Tulane this year, with the Rebels winning 45-10 during the regular season.
For all that has been made of Kiffin and his departure to LSU, Ole Miss still has quarterback Trinidad Chambliss.
He gave Georgia plenty of problems the first time they met.
“Arguably the quarterback that may be playing the best in the country, in terms of his ability to make throws in all areas,” Smart said. “I mean, the guy’s elite.”
Chambliss finished eighth in Heisman Trophy voting this season, one spot behind Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton. Chambliss powered Ole Miss to touchdowns on their first five drives against the Bulldogs when they met back on Oct. 18. He finished the game with 263 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns.
While Kiffin is no longer standing on the sidelines, the entire Ole Miss offensive staff is back in Oxford, helping push all the right buttons. Charlie Weis Jr. is the team’s offensive coordinator and play caller.
Given how much success Ole Miss had the first time around, Smart is more than wary of what the Rebels can do.
Photo of the day
Quote of the day
Smart on the transfer portal:
“Everybody’s announcing what they’re doing — I’m announcing that I’m going in the portal. I’m announcing that I’m re-signing. How about you announce that you’re getting better, and you’re going to practice and actually do what the 20 and 30 years of college football players did before you? Which was practice in December when they’re on good teams and get better.”
ESPN reveals Georgia’s biggest question mark
Georgia does plenty of things well. It’s a big reason the Bulldogs are in the College Football Playoff after a 12-1 season that saw Georgia win the SEC.
But Georgia is not a perfect team. Like all eight remaining teams in the College Football Playoff, it has flaws.
And the biggest one, per ESPN’s Mark Schlabach, comes on the offensive line.
“Georgia’s offensive line struggled early but improved throughout the season once key players returned from injury,” Schlabach wrote. “Then the Bulldogs lost starting center Drew Bobo to a foot injury in their 16-9 victory against Georgia Tech in the regular-season finale. Bobo, whose father is Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, will miss the CFP because of the injury.”
Trivia answer
2000: It beat Virginia, 37-14, in the Oahu Bowl in Honolulu.
