The game turned when Georgia started passing on first down, when Alabama was expecting the run. Bennett suddenly had time to throw and he and he came up with the big play. And Georgia didn't fade as the game when on. their pressure on Young got greater and greater. The loss of Young's two top targets, Metchie and Williams, hurt him badly but so did Georgia's constant pressure.
The game reminded me of a couple of things. One was the 1995 orange Bowl where Nebraska, having lost six times to the Florida powers, (3 each to Miami and Florida State) in bowls games over the previous decade, including three previous times with the national championship on the line, took over with their mighty offensive line and running game in the fourth quarter and smashed their way to victory. I also remember watching Texas players and fans after the 2006 Rose Bowl, in which they won their first national championship in 36 years singing "The Eyes of Texas" and tearing up as if I'd been a Texas fan all that time, empathizing with their feelings.
I also remember when the Red Sox came back form that 3-0 deficit to beat the Yankees in 2004 and then swept the Cardinals, who had twice won famous seven game world series over them to exorcise all of their demons.
Now Georgia has finally beaten Alabama, taking command of the game in the fourth quarter and won their first national championship in 41 years.
The thing about those other occasions was that it was a battle of overdogs, teams with financial and other advantages over most of their opposition. It was just that one overdog hadn't beaten the other when it counted in a very long time.
But it was still fun.
