Oklahoma
Georgia and Oklahoma’s Rose Bowl Ranked as Top 5 Best College Games of the 2000s
The Georgia Bulldogs 2017 Rose Bowl matchup was ranked as one of the best college football games of the 2000s
Since the turn of the century, college football has witnessed numerous historic matchups that have shaped the sport as we know it today. Games that have become immortalized in the sport and are the standard by which all other college football matchups are judged.
According to The Athletic, the Georgia Bulldogs have played in a handful of these games during the 2000s, with one of them being the Dawgs’ 2017 Rose Bowl matchup with the Oklahoma Sooners. The game landed at the fifth spot for “Best College Football Games of the 2000s”.
Led by Heisman-winning quarterback and soon-to-be number-one overall pick in the NFL Draft Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma’s offense exploded to a 31-14 lead early in the first half. But a questionable onside kick provided the Dawgs with just enough time for a field goal before halftime.
Georgia scored the first 21 points of the second half and took a 38-31 lead before Baker Mayfield orchestrated an 88-yard drive to tie the game once again. Then, disaster struck for the Dawgs as an Oklahoma scoop and score would give the Sooners the lead with just minutes left in the game. The Bulldogs would eventually march down the field and force overtime.
The two teams traded field goals in the first overtime period before a blocked field goal attempt by Georgia’s Lorenzo Carter would provide the Dawgs with an opportunity to seal the deal. Then, on a second and 12, the Bulldogs would call on Sony Michel in their “Wild Dawg” formation. Michel scampered 27 yards for the final score, giving Georgia a historic 54-48 victory in double overtime.
Georgia and Oklahoma’s first and only meeting as college football programs had all the makings of a historic game. A Heisman-winning quarterback, two overtimes, a three-score comeback, a four-touchdown preformance from the game’s MVP, and numerous future NFL stars all combined with the implications of a national championship appearance to make the 2017 Rose Bowl one of college football’s most unforgettable games.
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