Watson said it first and MaconDawg said it best, but the point deserves repetition and amplification. We've had more than 24 hours to come to grips with the fact that Georgia will be facing Hawaii in the postseason, and it is time to accept that fact and move forward with getting ready for the game.
Yes, the Peach State had been admitted to the Union twice before the Aloha State had been admitted even once. Yes, the University of Hawaii at Manoa was founded in 1907, more than a century after the University of Georgia began holding classes in Athens. Yes, Sanford Stadium opened during the Roaring '20s and Aloha Stadium opened during the Me Decade. However, it could be worse . . . we could be playing another dadgum bowl game against Virginia.
Also, just for the record, I don't take Colt Brennan and the Warriors for granted; I know that, in this season of all seasons, any team can beat any other team on any given day, and Georgia had better show up prepared to play. The first sixteen minutes of the 2006 Sugar Bowl ought to be airing on a continuous loop throughout the athletic offices in the Classic City 24 hours a day for the next month.
Let us, therefore, focus on the matter at hand. This is, after all, the Sugar Bowl, and, as disheartening as it is to be facing this particular opponent, it would be far worse to lose to them, so let's get our heads in the game and mull over these data:
- Under June Jones, the Warriors are 8-10 against B.C.S. conference competition. During that span, the Warriors have gone 0-3 against major conference opponents on the mainland, falling to Southern California in Los Angeles in 2003, to Michigan State in East Lansing in 2005, and to Alabama in Tuscaloosa in 2006.
- No Mark Richt-coached Georgia team has ever lost a non-conference game to a team from outside a B.C.S. conference.
- The Bulldogs' all-time record against Western Athletic Conference competition is 2-0. The Red and Black defeated Brigham Young in 1982 and Boise State in 2005.
Forget that it's Hawaii; just know that the goal is to make Mark Richt the first coach in school history to lead the Classic City Canines to two Sugar Bowl victories. That's what matters.
Go 'Dawgs!