Let's get right down to it.
Because while we could bury the lead, try to make Monday Night's national championship game between Georgia and TCU into something it wasn't, let's just get right to the point.
Monday night proved one thing definitively: We have officially entered the "Georgia era" of college football.
If there was any doubt before, it became official Monday night: Georgia has surpassed everyone, including Alabama, as the best program in college football.
Now to be clear, that's not a knock on Bama. They played for a title a year ago, and will be good enough to win it again in 2023.
But the last two years have proven that Georgia is the new gold standard in this sport.
Monday night was the official coronation, the night where anyone holding onto the notion that Georgia is at the top of the college football mountain, officially no longer had a leg left to stand on. The Bulldogs treated TCU like the varsity scrimmaging the JV, moving the ball at will, and leaving the overmatched Frogs will little chance of even making it competitive. Georgia went up 38-7 at the half, with TCU ending the half with more turnovers (three) than scoring drives.
And in the second half, the Dawgs did what they've done to pretty much everyone over the last couple years when they get up big at the half: They took the air out of the ball, chewed up the clock and walked off with a victory.
Basically, they made Monday night's title game look like a Week 2 out of conference game against UAB.
And with it, Monday really was the cherry on top of the Dawgs ascension to the top of college football.
At this point, the Dawgs have both the stats and swagger to back up that statement.
First, there are the stats. They were pretty jarring even before their first title a year ago, winning at least 11 games in every season since 2017, with the exception of the Covid year of 2020. They've won five of the last seven SEC East titles.
But it's really the last two years where Georgia, has really become well, the new Bama.
First, there's the record, and all you need to know is this: Since the start of 2021, Georgia is 29-1 overall.
TWENTY-NINE AND ONE.
During that stretch their only loss was to Alabama, a loss they obviously avenged. Beyond that, there was a survival against Ohio State in the College Football Playoff semi's against Ohio State and a sloppy, late rally against Missouri earlier this season.
Otherwise, it's been one destruction after another. Of their 29 wins the last two years, 26 have been by double figures.
And really, that's why they're the best program in college football, the "new Bama" if you will. It isn't just that they're piling up wins, but how they're doing them. When they walk into the stadium, the goal isn't to just win, but to rip your heart out. Like any great program, they seemingly play their best in their biggest games. A 49-3 win over Oregon to open the season. A bludgeoning of Tennessee when they were No. 1 in the country this year. And Monday's beat down of the Horned Frogs.
At this point, the only question with Georgia - and this is the scary part is: What's next, and is there any reason to think this whole thing slows down?
Really, that was my biggest takeaway from Monday Night: This was supposed to be the year to get Georgia. They were coming off a title, lost 15 players to the NFL Draft, including five first rounders off their defense.
This was the rebuilding year.
Instead, they rolled to a title.
It's interesting, because on Monday, I had former Dawg Aaron Murray on the Aaron Torres Podcast, and he basically said, there's no reason to think this thing will slow down.
Clearly, they recruit at an elite level, are in a talent rich area, the NIL set-up appears to be elite (Kirby Smart said at SEC Media Day that all 95 guys on the roster get something) and they seem to be handling the portal as well as anyone. The Dawgs took no one last year, with Smart bragging "We only take players if they're an improvement over the guys we've got."
Seriously, is there a sicker brag as a head coach than "Our 85 are literally better than any player in the portal."
At this point, the question isn't if Georgia will slow down - that ain't happening, but how long it will take until someone else catches up.
We have officially entered the "Georgia era" of college football.
Good luck to everyone else.
Follow Aaron on Twitter - @Aaron_Torres
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