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Defending champ Georgia vs. Cinderella TCU for College Football Playoff title

By Bruce Kropp Jan 1, 2023 | 8:36 AM

After the best semifinal day in the nine-year history of the College Football Playoff, the title game will match the defending national champion against the closest thing the sport has had in years to a Cinderella team. It will be No. 1 Georgia, looking for its second straight championship, against upstart and No. 3 TCU on Jan. 9 at Sofi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The four-team playoff has been littered with lopsided semifinal games, but these were thrillers. The Bulldogs came from 14 points down to beat No. 4 Ohio State 42-41 in the Peach Bowl. TCU upset No. 2 Michigan 51-45 in the Fiesta Bowl.

No. 1 Georgia rallies to beat No. 4 Ohio State 42-41 in semi

ATLANTA (AP) — Stetson Bennett capped No. 1 Georgia’s comeback from a two-touchdown, fourth-quarter deficit with a 10-yard, last-minute scoring pass to Adonai Mitchell in a 42-41 victory over No. 4 Ohio State for a shot at its second straight national title. The comeback in the College Football Playoff Peach Bowl semifinal held just after midnight Sunday when Noah Ruggles’ 50-yard field goal attempt for Ohio State with three seconds remaining sailed wide left, setting off a celebration on the Georgia sideline. Georgia (14-0) will play No. 3 TCU, which beat No. 2 Michigan 51-45 in the Fiesta Bowl semifinal, on Jan. 9 for the national championship. C.J. Stroud threw four touchdown passes for Ohio State (11-2), which led 38-24 in the fourth quarter.

No. 3 TCU upsets No. 2 Michigan 51-45 in wild CFP semifinal

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Max Duggan accounted for four touchdowns, TCU returned two interceptions for scores and the third-ranked Horned Frogs withstood a frenetic second-half surge by No. 2 Michigan to win the Fiesta Bowl 51-45 and advance to the College Football Playoff national championship. TCU, the most unlikely team to ever reach the four-team playoff in its nine-year history, has one more game to play in its improbable season and it will come against No. 1 Georgia, a 42-41 semifinal winner over No. 4 Ohio State, on Jan. 9 for the national championship at Sofi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The Horned Frogs will try to win the program’s first national championship since 1938.