How Alabama football beat the Georgia Bulldogs in 2008
Matt Stafford led a bit of a comeback in the second half. However, he needed help along the way. Georgia’s defense finally got the Tide to use their punter on the first two drives of the second half, and a blocked punt gave the Bulldogs excellent field position with a bit of momentum. Thanks to a 4th down conversion and a clutch catch by A.J. Green, Georgia was able to cut the lead to three touchdowns heading into the final quarter of play.
Right after the fourth quarter started, the UGA special teams unit came up with another monster play and returned a punt for a touchdown. This was when John Parker Wilson had to step up and take over this game. He led a key drive to score a field goal and put the Tide back up by 17.
At this point, UGA just ran out of time to come back. The Bulldogs converted a huge 4th-and-18 play, but it was called back due to yet another penalty. Alabama scored a final touchdown to take a 41-17 lead, and Georgia’s futile attempts to come back were too little and too late.
This game placed Alabama football at the top of the mountain in the SEC. After losses from Florida and USC, the Crimson Tide were second in the AP poll. They went on to have an undefeated regular season. This wasn’t the team that brought Nick Saban his first national championship, but it led to the beginning of the Alabama dynasty.
We have seen plenty of great games since Nick Saban took over for Alabama football. However, this one was part of the birth of this era of dominance.