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DANIA BEACH, Fla. — Georgia‘s hopes for a third straight national championship ended with a loss to Alabama in the SEC championship game, but coach Kirby Smart said his players refused to let that moment be their final memories of the 2023 season.

The Bulldogs enter Saturday’s Capital One Orange Bowl against Florida State with no players who have publicly opted out of the game, and Smart said that’s a credit to the team’s leadership.

“The leaders of the team spearheaded that,” Smart said Friday. “I stayed out of it. I met with each player who was draft-eligible and the seniors, and I was very honest. Then they had to make a decision with their family. But they want to go out on top. They don’t want their last Georgia outing to be the SEC championship.”

Smart said the decisions to play in the bowl game were “kind of contagious,” where after one or two players announced their intention, everyone else got on board.

Still, Smart said a rash of injuries coming out of the SEC title game has created more opportunities for younger players to get reps during bowl preparation.

“We’ve had a lot of guys who weren’t able to practice during this bowl run,” Smart said.

Chief among them is tight end Brock Bowers, who remains questionable for the Orange Bowl. Smart played coy with the media Friday, saying “we’ll see” whether Bowers would be available for the game.

Linebacker Damon Wilson returned to practice Thursday, Smart said, and wide receiver Arian Smith is expected to be back Friday.

“They want to finish together,” Smart said. “I think finishing is important, and we don’t talk enough about it. Everybody says, ‘This is what you should do.’ Kids who love football, they want to play football. And it’s the Orange Bowl. That’s an opportunity that’s not given to everybody.”

One member of the team who won’t be a part of the Orange Bowl is offensive line coach Stacy Searels. Smart said Searels felt sick ahead of Christmas break, but the assumption was that a few days away would have him back on his feet. Instead, Searels ended up hospitalized in Athens, Georgia.

“He’s moving around the hospital, but I don’t think he’s going to make it down for the game,” Smart said. “But he’s up and moving and recovering, and his wife, Trish, said he’s ornery as hell.”

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Georgia Tech stuns Clemson with walk-off FG

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Georgia Tech stuns Clemson with walk-off FG

ATLANTA — Aidan Birr made a 55-yard field goal as time expired and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets upset the No. 12 Clemson Tigers on Saturday.

With no timeouts left and the clock running with under 20 seconds to play, the Georgia Tech special teams squad sprinted onto the field and lined up.

And on fourth-and-3, Birr connected and the home crowd rushed the field.

Quarterback Haynes King returned from a lower-body injury that kept him out of Georgia Tech’s Sept. 6 win over Gardener-Webb.

King was 19-for-27 for 216 yards and added 25 carries for 103 yards and a touchdown on a 1-yard quarterback sneak in the fourth quarter for the Yellow Jackets (3-0, 1-0 ACC).

King’s score and the 2-point conversion gave the Yellow Jackets a 21-14 lead.

Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik had an uneven performance in which he turned the ball over twice — one fumble and one interception.

Klubnik was 15-for-26 for 207 yards, including a 73-yard touchdown pass to Bryant Wesco early in the second half to give the Tigers a 14-13 lead. Klubnik added 62 yards and one touchdown on the ground.

For the second straight week, Clemson (1-2, 0-1) had to overcome a slow start and halftime deficit.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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Simpson, Williams shine as Tide roll Wisconsin

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Simpson, Williams shine as Tide roll Wisconsin

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Ty Simpson threw for 382 yards and four touchdowns, including two to returning star Ryan Williams, and No. 19 Alabama overpowered Wisconsin for the second consecutive year, winning 38-14 on Saturday.

Simpson completed 24 of 29 passes, with two of his misses being drops by Williams and freshman Lotzier Brooks. Williams finished with five receptions for 165 yards after missing last week’s game because of a concussion.

Simpson, who was equally solid last week against Louisiana-Monroe, joined Mac Jones (2020) as the only quarterbacks in school history to complete at least 80% of their passes and throw three TDs in consecutive games.

The Byrant-Denny Stadium crowd erupted as Williams took a screen pass and went 75 yards on the first play of the second half. It gave Williams his first 100-yard game since facing Georgia last September.

Bray Hubbard‘s two interceptions led an Alabama (2-1) defense that held Wisconsin to 209 yards. The Crimson Tide notched four sacks.

Danny O’Neil, subbing for injured Wisconsin starter Billy Edwards Jr., completed 11 of 17 passes for 117 yards. His 41-yard TD pass to Jayden Ballard was one of the few highlights for the Badgers (2-1). Vinny Anthony II also returned a kickoff 95 yards for a score.

The injury-riddled Badgers couldn’t find a rhythm on either side of the ball and have dropped consecutive games to Alabama by a combined score of 80-24, while the Tide have outscored their last two opponents by a combined score of 111-14 following their season-opening loss to Florida State.

Alabama defensive end LT Overton left the game in the third quarter with an undisclosed injury and did not return. He walked to the locker room without assistance.

Wisconsin returns home to face Maryland next Saturday in the Big Ten opener for both teams.

Alabama gets the week off before opening conference play against No. 6 Georgia.

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OU’s Thomas tossed, faces suspension next week

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OU's Thomas tossed, faces suspension next week

Oklahoma defensive lineman R Mason Thomas will be suspended for the first half of the Sooners’ Week 4 visit from No. 24 Auburn following a targeting ejection Saturday.

Thomas, Oklahoma’s 2024 sack leader, was ejected in the third quarter of the program’s Week 3 visit to Temple on Saturday afternoon following a high hit on Owls quarterback Evan Simon.

Thomas was initially penalized for roughing the passer with the Sooners leading 28-3. The penalty was upgraded to targeting following an official review. Per NCAA rules, targeting penalties incurred in the second half of a game result in a first-half suspension in the subsequent game.

Thomas’ ejection will leave the 13th-ranked Sooners without one of their top defenders for the first half of next week’s SEC opener against Auburn. That game also marks the return of former Sooner and current Tigers starting quarterback Jackson Arnold to Norman, where the former five-star quarterback made nine starts for OU last season before entering the transfer portal and landing with Auburn last December.

Thomas’ ejection aside, Oklahoma faced very little adversity Saturday against Temple. Quarterback John Mateer threw for 282 yards and a touchdown and had a 51-yard rushing score, and running back Tory Blaylock rushed for 100 yards and a pair of TDs in the 42-3 victory.

The Sooners (3-0) took a 25-0 lead in the first half of the game, which was played at Lincoln Financial Field, home of the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, and never looked back.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

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