By: Kipp Branch

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

The 5^th ranked Georgia Bulldogs playing shorthanded at key positions and out hustled, out hit, out coached and out played the 7^th ranked Baylor Bears in a 26-14 victory in the 86^th annual Allstate Sugar Bowl.

The Dawgs led 19-0 at the half, but Baylor came out and scored a couple of second half TD’s. However, as they have most of the season, the UGA defense took over the contest in the 4^th quarter and Georgia finished off the Bears to finish 12-2 on the season.

The UGA senior class finishes their career with a 44-12 record which ties for most wins in school history with an SEC Championship, 3 straight SEC East Titles, wins in the Liberty, Rose, and Sugar Bowl, a college football playoff appearance, and a national title game appearance.

Observations from the Sugar Bowl win over Baylor:

1.George Pickens is a superstar in the making.

The freshman WR tied a Georgia record for receptions in a bowl game with 12 for 175 yards and a TD.

Pickens gave the Baylor secondary fits all night long pumped some much needed life into the UGA passing game.

Pickens now will be the leader of a talented wide receiver group going into 2020 that goes from a weakness in 2019 to a team strength in 2020.

Remember this point next fall when you hear teams like Florida making excuses because they lost their top 4 wide receivers from 2019.

2.The UGA coaching staff out-coached the Baylor staff.

The naysayers criticize Kirby Smart’s coaching abilities, by hurling veiled back handed compliments lauding Smart’s recruiting abilities, but saying he is not a good game day coach.

Georgia was better prepared and better motivated than a Baylor squad that has a head coach linked to current NFL openings.

Kirby Smart is now 8-4 against top 10 teams in his 4 years at UGA.

You don’t just throw 4-5 star recruits on the field and say just freelance and conquer. You have to coach them up. Give Kirby Smart some credit for being an all-around pretty good football coach.

3.The 2019 UGA football team became the fifth team in school history to win 12 games or more in a season.

Kirby Smart has coached two of those five teams in four years. Never let facts stand in your way on a good internet troll attempt, right?

4.You got a pretty good sneak peek at the 2020 defense in the Sugar Bowl. Did you like what you saw? The rest of the SEC did not, and trust me they were watching.

5.Zamir White, once fully recovered from back to back ACL injuries, will be in beast mode in 2020.

6.Georgia arrived in New Orleans missing 12 players that started a game at one time or another in 2019. Including three starting offensive lineman, two All-SEC players on defense and did not seem to miss a beat against an 11-win Baylor team.

Recruiting and roster management is an essential component in being a quality football coach.

UGA is now, annually, a legitimate contender for a spot in the college football playoff.

The 2019 Georgia Bulldogs won’t be remembered for style points during this 12-2 season. They will be remembered as a tough, physical football team that beat Notre Dame at Sanford Stadium, got upset at home by South Carolina, lost the SEC title game to a generational QB in Joe Burrow and LSU, won the SEC East and beat Florida for the third straight year, while holding them to 21 yards rushing, and last but not least the 2019 Dawgs will be remembered as your 2020 Sugar Bowl Champions.

Always remember you can’t spell sugar without UGA.