Mecole Hardman scored the 67th and final touchdown of Georgia's magical 2017 season.
Midway through the third quarter of January's national championship game against Alabama, the 5-foot-11, 183-pounder hauled in a pass from Jake Fromm, broke free from Crimson Tide defender Tony Brown and managed to stay in bounds for an 80-yard score. Officials had to look at replays to make sure Hardman had indeed dodged Brown's tackle attempt while avoiding the sideline.
"It was a good play, and I've watched it plenty of times," Hardman said this week in a news conference. "It was as close as you could get to out of bounds."
Hardman's score gave Georgia a 20-7 advantage and countered the momentum Alabama was beginning to build with freshman quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. The Bulldogs took a 20-10 lead into the fourth quarter, but the Crimson Tide rallied to force overtime and eventually prevailed 26-23.
Third-year Georgia coach Kirby Smart has stressed the importance of leaving last season's accomplishments - which included the program's first Southeastern Conference championship in 12 seasons and its first Rose Bowl invitation in 75 seasons - in the past.
For Hardman, however, the sting of the overtime loss inside Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium isn't going away.
"It's not going to stop until we get back," he said. "All these guys know that we're practicing for a reason. When you lose a game like that, you don't lose it until you get back to that spot and win it. That's our motivation for this year.
"We don't linger on it or try to get down on it. All we know is that we've got to get back to where we were and use that as motivation."
Hardman was the nation's No. 1 athlete prospect in the 2016 signing class, according to 247Sports.com, and he spent his freshman season playing primarily on special teams and sparingly at cornerback. He moved to receiver last spring and wound up catching 25 passes for 418 yards and four touchdowns.
More than a third of his receiving yards (147) came in Mercedes-Benz against Auburn in the SEC title game and against the Crimson Tide. He had two key third-down receptions against Auburn after the Tigers took an early 7-0 lead and became a primary Fromm target after battling September inconsistencies.
Hardman's breakout game occurred in October, when his early 35-yard touchdown run and his late 59-yard scoring reception helped the Bulldogs dismantle Missouri 53-28.
"Before that I don't know what was going on," Hardman said. "I was dropping things. I wouldn't get open. After that Missouri game, it just clicked, and after that I had a good thing going."
The Bulldogs could have a good thing going at receiver this season with senior Terry Godwin and the junior tandem of Riley Ridley and Hardman. All three are built differently and have different strengths, with Hardman adding the ability to flip the field on punt returns.
"Terry and Riley and Mecole clearly have a presence about them and a confidence about them," Smart said. "They were able to make some plays last year."
Hardman made the last big play for Georgia's offense last season, and he expects to pick up where he left off following the 80-yard score.
"That has given me a lot of momentum, especially on a big stage like that against a great team," he said. "When you do stuff like that, it boosts your confidence to another level."
Odds and ends
The Bulldogs held their fifth spring practice Thursday, which coincided with the start of their annual coaching clinic that is headed this year by the NFL trio of New England's Bill Belichick, Atlanta's Dan Quinn and 2017 coach of the year Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams. ... Freshman quarterback Justin Fields and freshman outside linebacker Brenton Cox are wearing No. 1 jerseys this year, while freshman running back Zamir White is wearing No. 3.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.