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Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton got off to a much faster start against Alabama in Saturday’s SEC Championship than he did last week against rival Georgia Tech.
Stockton finished the Bulldogs’ dominant 28-7 victory over the Crimson Tide at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta with three touchdowns to secure Georgia’s berth in the College Football Playoff (CFP).
While winning the SEC title put Georgia in position for a spot in the first round of the playoffs, Alabama suffered its third loss of the year. The Tide are now in danger of missing out on one of the 12 coveted CFB playoff spots.
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Parker Brailsford of the Alabama Crimson Tide prepares to snap the ball against the Georgia Bulldogs during the first quarter of the 2025 SEC Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Saturday in Atlanta. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The victory for head coach Kirby Smart and Georgia also ended Alabama’s dominance in recent matchups between the schools.
The Tide had won each of the last four meetings in the SEC Championship Game, and Smart was just 1-7 overall against Alabama. Before Saturday, the 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship marked Smart’s only victory against the neighboring public school.
Smart has now coached Georgia to four conference titles.
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The Crimson Tide were thought to be in a good position when they climbed to ninth place in last week’s CFP rankings, but the lopsided loss to the Bulldogs renewed concerns that Alabama could miss the playoffs for the second straight season under head coach Kalen DeBoer.
After the loss, DeBoer argued that the ninth-ranked Crimson Tide fell out of contention for the CFP.
Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen Deboer attends Saturday’s game against Georgia in the SEC Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
“I think you have to look at the games we played throughout the season, but if you really look at that game, I mean, it was a 14-point game with seven and a half minutes left, and we had the ball,” DeBoer said. “You look at the things that didn’t go well – we gave them four short fields. And again, I don’t want to take anything away from what Georgia did.
“The field position battle is part of it. But we gave them four short fields. I mean, that speaks to the resiliency of our defense.”
Late in the first quarter, Daylen Everette’s interception of Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson’s pass deflected by KJ Bolden gave the Bulldogs the ball near midfield. Stockton’s 1-yard pass to Dillon Bell gave Georgia a 14-0 lead.
Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson throws against the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday in Atlanta. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
A block by London Humphreys helped Nate Frazier score easily on a 9-yard run to cap Georgia’s first possession of the second half, extending the lead to three touchdowns.
Alabama recorded the greatest comeback in SEC championship game history by beating Georgia 35-28 in 2018 after trailing by 14 points.
The latest CFP rankings and first round pairings will be released on Sunday.
