ATLANTA (AP) — Quarterback C.J. Stroud and No. 4 Ohio State came up just short, and this one has to hurt.
After dominating No. 1 Georgia for most of the first three quarters, the Buckeyes ended their season early Sunday with a second straight loss. The first one, to archrival Michigan on Nov. 26, was bad enough, but the sting of dropping a national semifinal 42-41 in the Peach Bowl after leading the Bulldogs by 14 in the fourth quarter must feel worse.
The Buckeyes led 41-35 in the closing minute when Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett engineered a 76-yard, five-play drive that ended with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Adonai Mitchell, who beat Denzel Burke in the left corner of the end zone for a one-point lead.
But it wasn’t until Noah Ruggles’ 50-yard field-goal try, a career-long attempt for the fifth-year graduate student, sailed well left that Ohio State (11-2) had its fate sealed.
Stroud completed 23 of 34 passes for 348 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. He scrambled 27 yards to give Ohio State a first down at the Georgia 31 in the closing seconds, but the Buckeyes couldn’t get any closer as Ruggles came on to attempt the kick.
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