Final AP Top25: Where Did Georgia Finish?
The 2020 college football season is now officially over. After the national championship game featuring Ohio State and Alabama, the final AP top 25 teams were announced Tuesday morning. Here is the list:
1. Alabama (all 61 first-place votes)
2. Ohio State
3. Clemson
4. Texas A&M
5. Notre Dame
6. Oklahoma
7. Georgia
8. Cincinnati
9. Iowa State
10. Northwestern
11. Brigham Young
12. Indiana
13. Florida
14. Coastal Carolina
15. Louisiana-Lafayette
16. Iowa
17. Liberty
18. North Carolina
19. Texas
20. Oklahoma State
21. USC
22. Miami (Fla.)
23. Ball State
24. San Jose State
25. Buffalo
The year starts and finishes with the dynamic team the Crimson Tide fielded. The team had two Heisman Trophy finalists, including eventual winner wide receiver DeVonta Smith. Smith put together one of the most impressive seasons of any receiver in college football history. The Tide steamrolled their way to a national title, blowing away both Notre Dame and Ohio State in the College Football Playoff.
It wasn’t a surprise to anyone that the coronavirus presented its own complications. At one point, the Big Ten and Pac-12 announced they would not be fielding teams in any sport this fall, putting their conference at a competitive and financial disadvantage. The delay ultimately led to a heated discussion around the College Football Playoff, but not for the usual reason of “my team is better than yours.”
Texas A&M, Oklahoma and several other schools put together a resume that was viewed as worthy of making the playoff. Obviously, not everyone can make it, but these schools had a legitimate claim: In the limited action for Ohio State, much of it was lackluster. Notre Dame seemed to be a lock to make the playoff, as they defeated Clemson earlier in the year in large part due to the fact that quarterback Trevor Lawrence was held out of the game due to the coronavirus.
The Group of Five supporters also came out of the wood work, laying claim to the fact that an undefeated season and conference championship should take precedence over any other circumstance. They argued there was no way of telling whether or not these teams could match up against the elite Power-Five schools until the two teams actually played. It is safe to say now that Costal Carolina wouldn’t have much of a shot as their 220-pound middle linebacker came downhill against running back Najee Harris.
The Georgia Bulldogs faced their own troubles this season. While they did an exemplary job at managing the virus, the Bulldogs were tasked with finding their quarterback of the future. After trial and error with the likes of Stetson Bennett and D’Wan Mathis, they eventually found JT Daniels. Daniels led the team to a 4-0 record in his starts and a Peach Bowl win. The expectation in Athens next season is a national championship, thanks to the nucleus and foundation the Bulldogs were able to lay this season.
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