Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart looks on against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the first half at Caesars Superdome. Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Georgia HC Kirby Smart shares his one regret during halftime interview

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated Jan 2, 2025 6:18 PM ET

Kirby Smart has a regret over the way he handled things during the first half of his Georgia Bulldogs’ College Football Playoff quarterfinal game against Notre Dame at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Thursday.

Georgia went into halftime down, 13-3, against the Fighting Irish. The Bulldogs scored the first points of the game and led 3-0 early in the second quarter. Notre Dame responded with two field goals before there was a big change.

With 33 seconds left in the half, Georgia decided to be aggressive and put the ball in quarterback Gunner Stockton’s hands. Stockton lost a fumble that was recovered by Notre Dame at the Georgia 13, putting the Fighting Irish in great position to score some points.

They capitalized on the next play with a 13-yard touchdown pass from Riley Leonard to Beaux Collins to go up 13-3.

Notre Dame forces another Georgia fumble and finds the end zone on the next play! #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/95Vy8yS1Wj
— ESPN (@espn) January 2, 2025

That was a big momentum change, and Smart knew it.

“I would say that we tried to be aggressive intwo2-minute and probably regret it. Go to the half, 6-3. We want to show confidence in our quarterback, let him go play. We didn’t get the block we needed to get. They made a good play,” Smart said during his halftime interview.

Though his team went into halftime with a 10-point lead, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman wasn’t about to celebrate. He pointed out that Georgia has frequently come back to win games this season (seven times).

Stockton is Georgia’s backup quarterback but got the start against Notre Dame due to Carson Beck’s elbow injury.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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