Divergent paths for Georgia, Clemson since 2021 ‘kickoff game’

Organizers and TV executives got exactly what they wanted. Chris Smith’s 74-yard interception return for touchdown in the second quarter ended up being the difference for Georgia in an incredibly competitive game played before a record crowd of 74,187.

To say neither program has been the same since is not a stretch.

The Bulldogs, of course, went on to win the 2021 national championship and the next season’s as well. In fact, Georgia has lost a total of two games in the three years since.

In contrast, Clemson has lost another nine games since then. That’s not bad in the grand scheme, but it’s not up to the standards established during the Dabo Swinney Era. That included national championships in 2016 and ‘18 and an appearance in every College Football Playoff from 2015-20.

Set to meet again Saturday in Atlanta in the Aflac Kickoff game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (noon, ABC), the No. 14 Tigers enter as a two-touchdown underdog to Georgia. The Bulldogs are a consensus pick in the 2024 preseason as the nation’s No. 1 team.

Informed that no preseason No. 1 has lost a season opener since 1990, Swinney said this week he was well aware.

“Heck, I was a redshirt sophomore wearing (number) 88 for the Tide, and (Clemson football chief of staff) Woody McCorvey still had black hair. That’s a long time ago!” Clemson’s 16th-year coach cracked. “I mean, there’s a reason why. They might screw up a lot of those other (polls), but most of the time they know who the No. 1 team is coming out the gate. So, that’s a pretty good stat. But it’s also a good opportunity to do something that hasn’t been done in (34) years.”

Here’s little-known fun fact about that 2021 Clemson-Georgia matchup in Charlotte: It was intended to be played in Atlanta.

At least, that was the hope of the schools’ respective athletic directors from then. UGA’s Greg McGarity and Clemson’s Dan Radakovich approached Peach Bowl CEO Gary Stokan about meeting in what then was known as the Chick-fil-A Kickoff game. The trouble was the 2021 Chick-fil-A game already was set. In fact, they had two games on the docket.

“We had Alabama-Miami on Saturday and Ole Miss-Louisville already scheduled,” Stokan said. “So, when Dan and Greg called, I said, ‘I’d love to have you, but I’ve got games Saturday and Monday.’ They wound up moving the game to Charlotte. But that’s how we got (this year’s) game. We started looking forward, and ‘24 worked for them and for us.”

At the time, Stokan said Clemson and Georgia were trying to work out a home-and-home arrangement in 2022 and ‘23. “I said, ‘Well, play those and come here and play the rubber match (in ‘24).’ Now we’re going to have to do the rubber match before they do the home-and-home.”

Conference expansion and realignment also have taken place since that 2021 season. Also added have been some new things called NIL and the transfer portal. Meanwhile, the College Football Playoff has expanded to 12 teams.

So, there have been a lot of changes since Clemson and Georgia last met. One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is the desire of the schools located less than 75 miles apart to keep playing one another. There are at least four more matchups on the books. The teams currently are contracted to meet at Clemson in 2029 and 2033 and at Georgia in 2030 and 2032.

“It’s a rivalry that, when you look back, I didn’t realize how many years consecutively Georgia played Clemson for a long time,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said this week. “Just a lot of respect for their program and what Dabo has done. He’s done an incredible job. He’s got a great culture there, a great environment.”

Said Swinney: “Honestly, I wish we played Georgia every year. For one, it’d save everybody a lot of money, especially the fans. I don’t know why we’ve got to go out to Texas (A&M) or LSU like we do in a couple of years. … The schools are close, there’s tradition and it’s a hard game, a tough, tough game.”

At one time, Clemson and Georgia did play annually. They met for 15 consecutive years from 1973-87 and were two seasons from making it 24 years in a row from 1962-87.

It has been regular but less frequent since then. Saturday’s matchup will be the teams’ 10th in the past 24 seasons. Overall, this will be their 66th game in 127 years. Georgia leads the series 43-18-4.

The schools did not, however, meet during what would be considered Clemson’s most recent heyday. Conversely, starting with that game in 2021, the Bulldogs are fully immersed in what must be considered their glory days.

Georgia has won 46 of its past 48 games, dating to the final four games of the 2020 COVID-19 season. And that sits in the craw of the Clemson faithful, especially those who take a long view of this rivalry.

“Clemson fans have probably taken more time to stew over Georgia’s recent success and probably more time to gloat over their own successes over Georgia than is reasonable,” said Larry Williams, a senior writer for TigerIllustrated.com, the Rivals website that covers Clemson. “When Clemson was winning national titles in ‘16 and ‘18, they took great delight in those two quarterbacks (Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence) coming from right under the noses of Georgia, just like Homer Jordan did in 1981. That fits into their narrative.”

Georgia winning that 2021 game and 41 of the 43 games since, does not.

Said Williams: “It’s tough enough for Clemson fans just to have dropped from that elite tier in the last few years. But to have Georgia 70-something miles down the road to be the first team in forever to win back-to-back titles and to be two-touchdown favorites over them now in Atlanta in what’s basically a home game for them, that’s hard for them to swallow. There’s a lot of different factors, but it all adds up to a specific kind of angst, maybe dread, they’re feeling about this game.”

As does most of the time in football, the divergence comes down to quarterback play. Heading into that 2021 game in Charlotte, the Tigers strongly felt that factor was still working in their favor. D.J. Uiagalelei had looked fantastic in appearances as Lawrence’s backup. The thought with Uiagalelei before kicking off against Georgia on Sept. 4, 2021, is Clemson would get more of the same.

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs felt pretty good about their own guy. JT Daniels, a transfer from Southern Cal, was entering his first full season as QB1 after winning the job in the last half of the 2020 season.

As it would turn out, neither quarterback played particularly well as defense dominated the day. Daniels would finish with 135 yards on 22-of-30 passing with an interception, and Uiagalelei was 19-of-37 for 178 yards and a very notable pick. They key stat, though, was that Clemson’s quarterback was sacked eight times and pressured countless others. Daniels was dropped once but hit several other times.

As it turned out, Daniels injured his back in that game. He was sidelined the next week, and a former walk-on named Stetson Bennett IV took over, refusing to relinquish the No. 1 spot again.

“It was a crazy game, first off,” said Carson Beck, who traveled to Charlotte as Daniels’ backup. “I remember their defense being really good that year. Our defense was really good that year as well. Going back, obviously it’s a very different situation compared to now. It’s crazy to see how time goes, how things can change.”

Now a senior, Beck is the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback, and a proven one at that. Listed by Las Vegas oddsmakers as one of the favorites to contend for the Heisman Trophy, Beck’s return for a fifth season is a primary factor Georgia is favored by 13.5 points.

Clemson counters with a second-year starter at quarterback in Cade Klubnik and an established running back. Both teams are coming in with great defenses – again.

Both also come in with high hopes. That’s always the case in season openers, especially those played on big stages like Mercedes-Benz Stadium and Bank of America Stadium. Georgia also played in this game in 2022, defeating Oregon 49-3. Clemson played Georgia Tech there two days later, winning 41-10.

“I like it,” Smart said of playing in “kickoff games.” “You play a quality opponent right from the get-go and, when you get into conference play, you’re battle tested probably better than a team that doesn’t play that kind of matchup. You find out more about your team. It’s great for the fans, and it’s great for recruiting and exposure.”

Clemson fans will arrive with more consternation.

“There’s pessimistic optimism, if you will,” Williams said. “I don’t know what you’d call it, but there’s baggage there. There’s a particular kind of angst. … Dabo gets bent out of shape when people talk about Clemson’s decline. I mean, they haven’t contended for a national title in the last three years, but they’re not as far away as people think. Their roster is still pretty freaking good.”