University of Georgia football coach Kirby Smart told a near-capacity crowd at Sanford Stadium on Saturday that the Bulldogs don't plan to wait another 41 years for their next national championship.
"It's moments and events like this that allow us to look back and allow us to look forward," said Smart, a defensive back at Georgia in the late 1990s who took over as head coach at his alma mater in 2016. "... We're burning the boats, baby, and we're coming back! Go Dogs!"
The celebration in Athens, attended by Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, followed a parade down fan-lined Lumpkin Street to the Bulldogs' 92,746-seat stadium. Georgia announced Friday it had no more tickets available for the gathering at Sanford.
Georgia finished 14-1 and No. 1 in the final AP Top 25 after its 33-18 win over Alabama in the national championship game Monday night in Indianapolis. That came after College Football Playoff semifinal victories by the Bulldogs (34-11 against Michigan in the Orange Bowl) and the Crimson Tide (27-6 against Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl), as well as an SEC title game in which Alabama beat Georgia 41-24.
"As the commissioner of the Southeastern Conference, I think the four-team playoff worked pretty well this year, didn't it?" Sankey asked, referring to efforts to expand the playoff.
Only 10 weeks after hundreds of thousands of baseball fans attended a two-stage parade in Atlanta to celebrate the Braves' first World Series title since 1995, the Peach State witnessed another championship celebration.
Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis, a key figure in the Bulldogs' first national crown since 1980, didn't miss the opportunity to pay tribute to the tandem of titles.
"Go Braves and go Dogs!" Davis said before lifting his CFP hoodie to reveal a Braves jersey. The crowd responded with an impromptu tomahawk chop and chant.
Smart, wife Mary Beth - a former Lady Bulldogs basketball player - and their three children took selfie photos as they stood in the back of a pickup truck at the start of the parade. Other pickups, convertibles and flatbed trucks carried players and assistant coaches on the short ride from the team's Butts-Mehre football facility to Sanford Stadium.
Smart began looking ahead to the 2022 season immediately after Monday night's win over Alabama. Although Smart knew he would lose some of his top players as NFL draft hopefuls, a process that is underway, quarterback Stetson Bennett has said he intends to return in 2022 to use his final season of eligibility.
The former walk-on player has long-term plans to enter law school.