In mid-October, the Atlanta Braves, after losing Game 6 of the NLCS against the Los Angeles Dodgers, came up with the social media slogan to “#KillTheNarrative.” This was in regards to the idea that Georgia sports teams are somehow cursed. They can’t win the big games and either blow it in historic fashion or just fall short from capturing the elusive title. For the Braves, they had to conquer the team that had denied them so much in the playoffs time and again — the Dodgers — and finally capture their first World Series title in 26 years. When the final out was made in Game 6 of the World Series, that narrative was finally slain. An eerily similar story is currently happening to the Georgia football program.  The Bulldogs have come short of a national title and have been denied by one team time and again: the Alabama Crimson Tide. Another team has a chance to change the story of their fortune in Atlanta, and it’s now a better time than ever to finally #KillTheNarrative.

Kirby Smart’s squad has been here before. For the fourth time in six years under Smart, Georgia is three wins away from a national title. And in two of those years, that mighty team from Tuscaloosa has been in its way. Both matchups resulted with Alabama lifting a trophy and Georgia walking into the locker room in defeat.

This year is different though — at least it should be. Georgia is coming off of a perfect season where it really wasn’t challenged, albeit a 10-3 win to open the season against Clemson. Alabama, on the other hand, has struggled as of late. The Tide failed to score a touchdown for 59.5 minutes last week against Auburn before tying the game and eventually winning in the fourth overtime, and have let other mediocre teams stay close over the past few weeks. Nevertheless, if history has any indication, this is gonna be a heck of a game.

This is the fourth time since 2012 that Georgia and Alabama will be facing off in a championship level game. In all three prior instances, Alabama would win on last-minute, game-winning touchdowns. In the 2012 SEC Championship Game, Georgia had the ball inside the 5 when a tipped pass was caught before the goal line and time expired. In the 2018 College Football Playoff Championship Game, the infamous second-and-26 play happened when Tua Tagovailoa hit DeVonta Smith for a walk-off touchdown. Lastly, the 2019 SEC championship game featured a similar story as the previous year’s title game, where Alabama again scored late to take the lead for good, breaking the Dawgs’ hearts again.

On paper, this year’s matchup shows that the Dawgs finally have the upper hand. They have the better record —12-0 vs. Bama’s 11-1 record — and have also dominated the teams that Alabama have played close games against. Now, I know how you play against similar opponents is not an indication of how the game is going to go, but it should have Georgia fans confident. Also, the Georgia defense has been historically good all season. The most points the Bulldogs have allowed all season is 17 against Tennessee, which scored a late touchdown against the third-string defense after the game had already been decided. 

It is easy to talk about the defense, but let’s not brush aside the Georgia offense. Led by a former walk-on quarterback in Stetson Bennett IV, this offense has proven its ability to score against anyone. The Bulldogs also seem to be getting healthy at the right time. Former 5-star receivers George Pickens and Dominick Blaylock have seen their first playing time of the season over the past few weeks after recovering from torn ACLs. Star tight end Darnell Washington has also seemed to be back to speed after missing the early part of the season with a broken foot. Lastly, it appears that Georgia has found it’s next star in tight end Brock Bowers, who has taken the country by storm. 

This is probably the most talented team that Coach Smart has ever taken into a matchup against Alabama, and it is finally time to get the monkey off his back. The entire state of Georgia has been able to see one of its teams finally exorcise their demons of the past and get crowned the champions. While a national championship is still a little ways away for Georgia, there are still plenty of demons to exorcise when the team steps on the field on Saturday afternoon. It will be up to them if they too will reach that pinnacle. The state of Georgia, and the country, are anxiously waiting for them to do just that. The stage is yours UGA — time to pull that excalibur out, strap up that shield, and #KillTheNarrative.