5 craziest wins of Kirby Smart's career as Georgia coach turns 49

Kirby Smart turned 49 on Monday. The Georgia Bulldogs coach has become one of the best in college football. With two national championships and a couple of Southeastern Conference titles under his belt, he has turned the Bulldogs into a modern powerhouse.

Georgia is again the mix for the national title, as it's three wins away from crowning another year in the last game of the season.

To celebrate Kirby Smart’s birthday as he prepares for a Sugar Bowl date against Notre Dame, here's a look back at the five wildest wins of his career.

5 craziest wins of Kirby Smart's career at Georgia

Carson Beck and Georgia needed eight overtimes to get past Georgia Tech. - Source: Imagn

#5, 2019: Georgia Bulldogs 23, Notre Dame Fighting Irish 17

The score was closer than what the game felt like, as the Irish scored a late touchdown. Yet the game was the second time Georgia defeated Notre Dame in three years. But the wildest part of the game wasn’t anything that happened on the field.

This was also the first time the red lights were lit for the fourth quarter at Sanford Stadium. The trick still serves Kirby Smart as a pitch to bring in recruits.

#4, 2024: Georgia Bulldogs 44, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 42 (8 OT)

Recency bias aside, this game was an eight-overtime extravaganza that kept the Bulldogs' national title hopes alive. With two losses on the season already, Georgia was down 20-6 entering the final quarter. Carson Beck led the Bulldogs on three fourth-quarter touchdown drives.

After seven nerve-wracking overtimes going back and forth, Nate Frazier’s two-point conversion run finally put an end to the game and kept the Dawgs season on track.

#3, 2022 Peach Bowl: Georgia Bulldogs 42, Ohio State Buckeyes 41

After Ohio State backed into the CFP despite losing to Michigan in the final game of the regular season, the Buckeyes gave Georgia everything it could handle. Ryan Day’s team led 38-24 entering the fourth.

Stetson Bennett led three fourth-quarter scoring drives, capping them off with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Adonai Mitchell to put the score 42-41 with 54 seconds left.

C.J. Stroud had time for one more drive and he led the Buckeyes to the Georgia 32. However, Noah Ruggles couldn’t hit the 50-yard field goal and the Dawgs advanced to the championship game.

#2. 2018 Rose Bowl: Georgia Bulldogs 54, Oklahoma Sooners 48 (2 OT)

This game had it all and was arguably the moment the Bulldogs jumped onto the national stage. In Kirby Smart’s second season, the Bulldogs were looking for a berth in their first championship game in the College Football Playoff era.

Baker Mayfield and the Sooners started strong, taking a 14-point halftime lead. The Bulldogs kept coming back and tied the game on a Nick Chubb 2-yard touchdown run with 55 seconds left.

After the teams traded field goals in overtime, Sony Michel scored on a 27-yard touchdown run to send Georgia to the national championship game. Both schools combined for over 1,000 yards of total offense and 13 touchdowns on the day.

#1, 2022 National Championship Game: Georgia Bulldogs 33, Alabama Crimson Tide 18

After coming close so many times before, Kirby Smart’s squad struggled in the first half and went into the locker room trailing 9-6. The offense finally opened up in the second half en route to a 33-18 win.

Stetson Bennett threw for 224 yards and two scores. However, it was Kelee Ringo’s 79-yard interception return for a touchdown that sealed the deal and handed Georgia its first national championship in 41 years.