Georgia beats Ohio State in semifinal on last-minute touchdown

It didn’t help that Georgia missed a 47-yard field goal on the opening drive. The ball returned to the Buckeyes and Stroud used a 24-yard pass to Harrison to move Ohio State into Georgia territory. Later, Stroud took a sniff and Harrison swept — no, rippled — down the field and caught a touchdown.

The Bulldogs retaliated with a touchdown through a quick throw from quarterback Stetson Bennett to Kenny McIntosh, but soon fell behind 21-7 early in the second quarter, due in part to their own mistakes. Bennett, himself a Heisman finalist, had thrown an interception that helped lead to a score at Ohio State, and nerves frayed at Atlanta and Athens, at Norcross and Waycross.

After all, Georgia fans of this particular era aren’t used to being left behind with a double-digit deficit.

Still, Georgia trailed 4 at halftime and eventually geared up for its rise with less than nine minutes left in the game.

After an unfortunate ride in Ohio State, Bennett found Arian Smith alone on the field. The pitch came as Smith’s feet reached the playoff logo at the Ohio State 25. He ran, ran, and ran some more. He could have slowed down a touch because no Buckeye defender was close enough to attempt a lunge to stop him.

Ruggles responded to the touchdown with a 48-yard field goal for Ohio State. Two minutes and 43 seconds left and Georgia, the reigning champion, was six times behind at Atlanta.

This was not a game where many fans left. (Aside from theater, if you paid what some of them did to get in — a mortgage payment or more — you might also have a hard time leaving, regardless of the score.) The stadium, where Georgia had crushed two opponents, remained this season awash with red, scarlet and hoarseness. They were fairly confident that the Peach Bowl would turn out a lot better than the Peach Drop, a local New Year’s Eve party.