3. #15 GEORGIA at #24 NOTRE DAME (2017): BULLDOGS WIN 20-19
This game was the first major non-conference road game that Kirby Smart has been a part of as the Dawgs head coach. I’m only assuming many residents of South Bend, Indiana have probably never seen an ocean, but I can guarantee you they’ve never seen a sea of red that DawgNation brought into college football’s holy land. It is rumored that there were more Georgia fans in attendance than Irish fans, making for a loud game to say the least.
Kirby Smart made the call that freshman quarterback Jake Fromm would make his first start on the road, coming in for an injured Jacob Eason. Fromm threw for 141 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception in the matchup. His touchdown pass to Terry Godwin, who just barely reeled in a one-hander falling out of the corner of the end zone, will always be one of Fromm’s biggest plays of his collegiate career.
Rodrigo Blankenship hit a 26 yarder early on to tie the score at 3-3. Then with 3:34 remaining in the 4th, down 19-17, Hot Rod hit what would be the game winner, securing the Bulldogs 20-19 road win in their first matchup with the Fighting Irish since the 1980 National Championship.
Honorable mention: #5 GEORGIA VS. #15 NOTRE DAME 2019 (BULLDOGS WIN 23-17)
This game was tough to leave out of Kirby’s top-5, but we thought a road win earlier in his career against Notre Dame looks better on his resume.
Don’t undermine the importance and hype of this game, which was the debut of the 4th quarter red lights in Sanford. The closest possible thing to a riot ensued in the streets of downtown Athens after Kirby and the Dawgs took care of business in Sanford Stadium.