ATLANTA — The third-ranked Georgia football team captured its second straight SEC championship and got a bit of revenge against No. 9 Alabama on Saturday night in front of a crowd of 77,247 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. After losing 24-21 to the ninth-ranked Crimson Tide in Athens back in September, the Bulldogs dominated for long stretches of their 28-7 win to clinch the program’s 16th SEC crown.
Georgia (12-1) held the Crimson Tide (10-3) scoreless through the first three quarters, didn’t allow the Tide to top 100 yards until the final play of the third, and also made big plays in all three phases of the game. A blocked punt in the first quarter was the first key play, setting up the Bulldogs’ first score. The Bulldogs, playing in their fifth straight SEC Championship Game, tying Florida (1992-96) for the most ever, earned back-to-back SEC titles for the first time since winning three in a row from 1980-82.
The Bulldogs were 0-4 against Alabama in the SEC Championship Game and 1-7 against the Tide under head coach Kirby Smart. But none of the previous games mattered when the teams took the field Saturday in front of a spirited crowd that was split about evenly between Bulldog and Tide fans. Georgia’s fans had a lot more to cheer about.
In a matchup of two good defenses, both offenses struggled at times to move the ball; Alabama hadn’t scored fewer than 17 points all season. For the game, Georgia out-gained Alabama 297-209, and Bulldog quarterback Gunner Stockton finished 20 of 26 for 156 yards and three touchdowns, while Tide QB Ty Simpson was held to 212 yards on 19 of 39 passing, was sacked three times for minus-23 yards and threw an interception. On the ground, Georgia ran 41 times for 141 yards; the Bulldog defense held the Tide to minus-3 yards on 16 attempts.
Safety JaCorey Thomas led the defense with six stops, including a sack, while linebackers CJ Allen, Raylen Wilson and Chris Cole had five each.
It was Georgia’s special teams that made the game’s first huge play. Midway through the opening quarter, with Alabama’s Blake Doud punting on fourth down from the Tide 21-yard line, the Bulldogs’ Cole Speer got free into the backfield and blocked the punt. Georgia’s Justin Williams recovered the ball at the Alabama 25 and returned it four yards to the 21.
Georgia, which had already been forced to punt twice, took over deep in Tide territory and soon got into the end zone. On first down at the 21, Nate Frazier ran 14 yards to the 7. Three plays later, Stockton rolled to his right and hit running back Roderick Robinson II for an easy touchdown and a 7-0 lead with 4:36 to go in the first quarter. It was Robinson’s first touchdown of the season and first since 2023.
It was Georgia’s defense that made the next big play, with cornerback Daylen Everette intercepting a Simpson pass around the UGA 27. Safety KJ Bolden tipped the pass just ahead of Everette, and the Bulldog offense was soon back on the field late in the first quarter.
Georgia pushed its lead to 14-0 with 8:43 to play in the half when the Bulldogs capped a 14-play drive after the interception with a 5-yard touchdown from Stockton to wideout Dillon Bell. A few plays earlier, Bell had a 19-yard reception to move the ball to the 4.
The Bulldogs led 14-0 at the half, making it four straight quarters that their defense had held the Tide scoreless. In Alabama’s 24-21 win in Athens in September, Georgia blanked Bama in the second half but couldn’t rally for the win. At the break Saturday, Georgia had 168 yards of offense to Bama’s 70, with a 10-4 advantage in first downs and a 19:59-10:01 advantage in time of possession.
The scoreless first half made it 11 straight quarters over the past four games in which Georgia’s defense had not allowed a touchdown. The last time an opponent got into the end zone was when Texas scored with 5:27 to go in the third quarter on Nov. 15, and the Bulldogs scored 21 unanswered after that to win 35-10.
A sack by Thomas on third-and-9 at the Tide 26 on the opening drive of the second half made sure that streak kept going for a while. And Zachariah Branch’s 24-yard punt return gave the Bulldogs great field position at the Tide 40. Georgia made the most of the return and the field position, taking a 21-0 lead with 10:47 to go in the third quarter on running back Nate Frazier’s 9-yard run to the left side of the end zone.
Georgia led 21-0 heading into the fourth quarter, with Alabama just passing 100 yards of offense on the final play of the third.
Alabama finally got into the end zone with 12:33 to play in the game, scoring on a 23-yard pass from Simpson to receiver Germie Bernard. That cut Georgia’s lead to 21-7 and snapped a streak of five-plus quarters without any points against the Bulldog defense.
The Crimson Tide forced a punt on Georgia’s next possession, one that returner Cole Adams fumbled and recovered at the Bama 4 with 9:08 remaining. Georgia’s defense kept up the pressure, and when the Tide went for it on fourth-and-2 at its 12, Simpson threw incomplete.
After two runs were stuffed, Georgia faced a third-and-11 from the 13. When it looked like the Bulldogs might have to settle for a field goal that might still give the Tide a chance at a comeback, Stockton hit Branch on a short pass to the left, and the speedy wideout ran the ball in for a 13-yard touchdown and a 28-7 lead with 6:51 to go.
Georgia again stopped the Tide on fourth down, with 3:22 remaining at the Bulldog 18. The Bulldogs then took over, and a Chauncey Bowens 19-yard rush gave Georgia some room. After the 2-minute timeout, Georgia was able to run out the clock and celebrate another SEC championship.
The College Football Playoff 12-team field and bracket will be announced during the selection show Sunday at noon on ESPN. The Bulldogs will be in the Playoff for the fourth time in the last five years.
POST-GAME NOTES
*Record-Tying 5th Straight SEC Championship Game And 16th Overall SEC Title: Georgia now has won the SECG six times including back-to-back titles to give the Bulldogs their 16th SEC crown in school history. Under Kirby Smart, the Bulldogs now have won the SEC four times (2017, 2022, 2024, 2025). With tonight’s appearance, Georgia joined Florida (1992-96) as the only teams to ever make a record five consecutive SEC Championship Games. Overall, Georgia made its 13th appearance, tying Florida for 2nd most in SEC history.
*Dominating Dawgs Win SEC Crown: With today’s 28-7 win, the third-ranked Bulldogs move to 12-1, and the Senior Class improves to 51-5. The Bulldogs have won nine straight. The 51 wins by this senior class is the second most in school history, trailing only the 2024 group that went 53-5.
*Now in his 10th season, Smart’s record is 117-20, which is the most FBS wins by a coach in his first 10 seasons in the modern era. Georgia now has six seasons with at least 12 wins in the Smart era plus four SEC titles (2017. 2022, 2024, 2025). Georgia is 4-0 in rematches during a season under Smart. The Bulldogs have won back-to-back SEC titles for the first time since a three-year run from 1980-82.
*Up Next: Third-ranked and SEC Champion Georgia (12-1, 7-1 SEC) advances to another CFP quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl. It will learn Sunday where it lands in the CFP bracket and who it will face after the first round of the playoffs. Kickoff in New Orelans will be at 8 p.m. ET on Jan. 1.
*A Look At The Defense: Third-ranked Georgia limited No. 9 UA to just seven points and 209 total yards (212 passing and minus three yards). The minus three rushing yards was the lowest in the Kirby Smart era, the previous low was -2 by Texas A&M in 2019 on 20 attempts in a 19-13 win.
*Georgia’s leading tacklers were senior JaCorey Thomas with a career-high six plus one TFL and juniors Raylen Wilson and CJ Alllen with five each.
*The Bulldogs had three sacks today. Sophomores Quintavius Johnson and Chris Cole combined for a sack in the 4th quarter while freshman Zayden Walker notched one too. Senior JaCorey Thomas had his first career sack in the first half.
*In the 4th quarter, UA had a 91-yard scoring drive in nine plays along with a pair of Bulldog penalties to cut it to 21-7 with 12:33 left in the contest.
*Down 21-7 with 9:08 left to play, UA began its drive at the 4 and were stopped on 4th-and-2 at the UA 12.
*Going to the 4th quarter, Georgia’s defense had extended its streak of not allowing a TD in the past 12 quarters, dating to the 3rd quarter of the 35-10 win over No. 10 Texas on Nov. 15.
*Down 14-0, UA got the football to start the 2nd half and was forced to punt on a three-and-out following the first career sack by senior JaCorey Thomas.
*Down 21-0, UA was forced to punt after another three-and-out on its second drive of the 2nd half. On its third, it was another three-and-out.
*The Bulldogs blanked No. 9 UA in the first half and led 14-0. UA finished with 70 yards of offense on 21 plays, gaining 17 rushing yards and 53 through the air. Georgia shut out UA in the second half of the regular season meeting in Athens in a 24-21 loss. Also, Georgia blanked Marshall in the first half of the season opener in an eventual 45-7 win.
*Senior Daylen Everette notched his first interception of the season and fourth of his career off a tip by KJ Bolden to give Georgia the ball at the UA45. It was the team’s ninth and first return of the season for 34 yards. It led to a TD and a 14-0 lead with 8:43 left in the first half.
*Offense Led By SECCG MVP Gunner Stockton: The Bulldogs posted a 28-7 win over No. 9 UA for its 16th SEC title as redshirt junior QB Gunner Stockton was named MVP. He finished 20-for-26 with 156 yards and three TDs plus had 39 rushing yards.
In the first half, he led Georgia to a 14-0 lead and was 12-for-17 for 88 yards with 2 TDs plus a team-high 32 rushing yards on seven carries.
*In their first possession of the 3rd quarter, the Bulldogs went 40 yards in six plays in 2:32 for a TD as Nate Frazier scored on 3rd-and-goal with a nine-yard run for a 21-0 lead. It was his sixth rushing TD of the year.
*Up 21-7 with 8:13 left to play, Georgia took over at the UA 12 following a fourth down stop. It led to a 13-yard TD pass from Stockton to Zachariah Branch on 3rd-and-11 to make it 28-7 with 6:51 left in the game.
*At the half, Georgia led 14-0. The Bulldogs tallied 168 yards of offense on 39 plays (88-rushing, 80-passing). The Bulldogs improve to 92-4 when leading at halftime including 1-3 against UA.
*Georgia’s first score was a 21-yard drive after a blocked punt. The drive was capped by a 1-yard TD pass to Roderick Robinson II to make it 7-0 with 4:36 left in the first quarter. It was only the fourth career catch by Robinson and his first for a TD. The drive featured a 14-yard run by Nate Frazier.
*Georgia’s next scoring drive came after an INT as it went 57 yards in 14 plays in 7:44. It featured a 4th-and-1 conversion by Stockton at the UA 26 as the Bulldogs improved to 12-for-16 on 4th down this year. The would add another 4th down conversion later in the second quarter on 4th-and-1 frrom the UGA 49 to improve to 13-for-17 on the year. Georgia came in ranked sixthth nationally with a 73% conversion rate on 4th down. Also on 3rd-and-goal from the 5, Stockton connected with Dillon Bell for a score. It was Bell’s second TD of the year. The Bulldogs turned an INT into seven points and a 14-0 lead.
*Sophomore RB Nate Frazier posted 52 rushing yards on 13 carries while senior Dillon Bell had four carries for 24 yards. Bell had a four receptions for 45 yards and one TD.
*Junior WR Zachariah Branch had five receptions for 53 yards. Branch now has 73 receptions on the season, which ranks second in school history. The record belongs to Brice Hunter who had 76 in 1993.
*Special Teams Update: Junior PK Peyton Woodring tallied four points on PATs plus he handled the kickoffs.
*Senior Cole Speer blocked a punt to set up Georgia at the UA 21. It led to a TD and a 7-0 lead in the first quarter. It was Georgia’s second blocked punt of the season, the first came in the season opener against Marshall by KJ Bolden. It was the third blocked punt in an SEC Championship Game by the Bulldogs, joining DeCory Bryant (2002 vs. Arkansas) and Bryan McClendon (2005 vs. LSU).
*Senior Brett Thorson finished with seven punts for a 45.3 avg. including a long of 59 with minus three on a return, five inside the 20 and one touchback.
*Junior Zachariah Branch had a 22-yard punt return in the third quarter to give the offense the ball at the UA 42. It led to a TD and a 21-0 edge/
*Captains, Coin Toss And For Starters: Georgia’s captais were Zachary Branch, Earnest Green III, CJ Allen and Christen Miller.
*Alabama won the toss and elected to defer the football until the second half.
*The longest starting streak on the team belongs to redshirt junior QB Gunner Stockton at 14 games.
*Redshirt freshman Malachi Toliver got the start at center for the injured Drew Bobo. It was his second of the season and career. Freshman safety Rasean Dinkins made his first career start. Dinkins is the 18th first-time starter this season.
POST-GAME QUOTES
Coming soon.