SPORTS LEDGER January 2025 Read Free Online at www.TheSportsLedger.com Page 6 The
Alabama Falls To Michigan In ReliaQuest Bowl Myra W. Pierce The Sports Ledger The 39th annual to 16-0 at the end of the first quarter. The total offensive
ReliaQuest Bowl was held on Tuesday, December 31, 2024 in Tampa, FL. The University of Alabama and Michigan Wolverines competed in the rain early, and finished with a sunny second half, in front of a crowd of 51,439 people who watched Michigan hold off a last-minute rally from the Crimson Tide to win the game 19-13. The ReliaQuest Bowl is one of the most prestigious bowl games and it has contributed more than $176 million to universities over its history, which includes several years under its former title, which was the "Outback” Bowl. In the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl, the Crimson Tide turned their first possession over on downs as Quarterback Jalen Milroe was sacked on fourth down. It was one of the first of three fourth down turnovers from Alabama on the afternoon, as the Crimson Tide squandered additional opportunities including in the final seconds, to give Michigan the win. The Wolverine’s first points came on a 45-yard kick by Dominic Zvada. Following the second Alabama turnover, Michigan tried to cross the goal line but failed. Zvada kicked his second field goal, this time splitting the uprights from 30-yards away to make it a 6-0 game. Milroe continued to struggle in the opening quarter, as the Crimson Tide quarterback was picked off by Michigan’s Wesley Walker at the Alabama 19- yard line. Walker returned the football three yards to give the Wolverines the football at the 16-yard line. Three plays later, Michigan found the end zone for the first time when quarterback Davis Warren passed to Fredrick Moore for a 13- yard touchdown. Zvada added the extra point to give his team a 13-0 advantage over Alabama. Another Milroe sack enabled Michigan to add its third field goal of the first quarter to increase the score
yards in the opening quarter for Michigan were only 43 and Alabama was in the red, with negative -2 yards. The Crimson Tide only had 13 yards passing and lost 15 yards on the ground. With 4:06 left in the second quarter, Alabama’s Milroe completed a 25-yard touchdown pass to Robbie Ouzts. Graham Nicholson added the extra point to help the Crimson Tide cut Michigan’s lead to 16-7. Alabama added a 24- yard field goal by Nicholson to make the game 16-10 at halftime. After half-time it was a defensive battle, as neither team scored in the third quarter. Finally, with 7:21 left in the fourth quarter, Zvada added a 37-yard field goal to put the Wolverines on top by two scores, 19-10. With 4:38 to go, Alabama’s Nicholson kicked a 51-yard field goal cutting the Michigan lead to only six points, at 19-13. With 2:18 left in the game, Alabama’s Ryan Williams returned a punt for 38 yards. The play gave Alabama life, and a chance, but the Crimson Tide turned the ball over on downs with :49 left in the game and Michigan took a knee to seal the ReliaQuest Bowl victory. Alabama could not succeed in scoring. Despite the win, Michigan only had 190 total yards on offense against the Crimson Tide. Alabama had 260 total yards. Milroe paced Alabama with 192 yards passing and a touchdown. He was sacked five times by the Wolverine’s defense. He finished the game with only seven yards rushing. Rico Scott paced the Crimson Tide ground game with 28 yards rushing. Teammate Jamarion Miller had 27 yards on the ground. Michigan’s Jordan Marshall led all-rushers with 100 yards and was named the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl MVP. Teammate Benjamin Hall had 28 yards in the win.
Photo By Brandon K. Pierce, The Sports Ledger
Notre Dame Defeats Georgia Vanderbilt's Chris Manon (#30) blocks this Tennessee shot attempt in the final seconds of the game to help the Commodores hold on for a one point, 76-75, victory over the visiting Volunteers on Saturday, January 18, 2025 in Nashville. This blocked shot, and a missed free throw by the Vols, helped Vanderbilt pull off the thrilling upset. Jason Edwards led the Commodores with 18 points. Jaylen Carey had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Vanderbilt's Tyler Nickel had 13 points, while teammate AJ Hoggard added 11 points. Chaz Lanier led Tennessee with 17 points. Zakai Zeigler had a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Felix Okpara and Igor Milicic Jr. had 16 points each for the Vols. Vanderbilt Upsets Tennessee
The No. 2 Georgia football team’s season came to an end in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals at the Allstate Sugar Bowl, where the Bulldogs fell to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 23-10. The game, postponed a day following the deadly terrorist attack on Bourbon Street in the early hours of New Year’s Day, started slowly, with neither team doing much on offense in a scoreless first quarter. Gunner Stockton, who was making his first career start as the Bulldogs quarterback, completed his first seven passes, help UGA (11-3) jump out to an early 3-0 lead. However, the Irish scored the final 13 points of the first half. Stockton, who replaced starter Carson Beck in the second half of the SEC Championship Game after Beck was injured, completed 20 of 32 passes for 234 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame, but was sacked four times. Including sacks, the Irish defense held the Bulldogs to 62 yards rushing on 29 attempts. Notre Dame (12-1), which has won 12 straight games, will face No. 6 Penn State in the semifinals in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 9. Georgia’s defense held the Irish to 244 yards, while the Bulldog offense gained 296. Late in the first quarter, Notre Dame made the first big play of the game, at the end of a long Georgia drive. On third-and-1 at the Irish 16, the Irish’s Adon Shuler knocked the ball out of Georgia running back Trevor Etienne’s hands and Notre Dame recovered the fumble at its 10-yard line. Georgia’s defense got a stop after that to keep the game scoreless.
Photo By Tony Walsh, UGA Athletics
University of Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart
Early in the second quarter, after forcing Notre Dame to punt for the second time, Stockton fired deep up the right side to wideout Arian Smith for a 66-yard gain. However, Georgia was penalized for a sideline infraction on the play that moved the ball back to the Irish 26. Georgia eventually had to settle for a 41-yard Peyton Woodring field goal and a 3-0 lead with 12:14 to play in the half. It was the first time the Irish had trailed in a game since October. They didn’t trail for long, tying the game with 8:20 to go in the second quarter on a 44- yard Mitch Jeter field goal. With 39 seconds left in the half, Jeter connected on a 48-yard field goal to put the Irish ahead 6-3. On Georgia’s first play of the ensuing possession, Stockton was sacked, stripped and Notre Dame recovered the fumble at the UGA 13. The Irish scored on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Riley Leonard to Beaux Collins on the next play, taking a 13-3 lead into halftime.
It was the seventh time that the Bulldogs had trailed at the half this season, with Georgia rallying to win four of those games. The rally got a lot harder after the opening kickoff of the third quarter. The Irish took full command of the game when Jayden Harrison returned the kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown and a 20-3 lead. Between the end of the first half and the explosive start to the second, the Irish scored 17 points in less than a minute of game action. Georgia responded in strong fashion, eventually scoring its only touchdown of the game on a 32-yard completion to Cash Jones out of the backfield, cutting the lead to 20-10 with 9:36 left in the third. The Bulldog defense got the ball back after stopping Leonard short on fourth-and-1 at the 50. The Irish then stopped Georgia short on a fourth-and-2 attempt at the Notre Dame 42. Georgia came in having converted 75% of its fourth- down attempts this season but finished 0-for-3 against
the Irish.
Notre Dame added to its lead early in the fourth quarter with a 47-yard field goal, making it 23-10 with 13:47 remaining. Georgia drove inside the Irish 30 on the ensuing possession and caught a break when Notre Dame was flagged for pass interference on a fourth- and-13 attempt. On fourth- and-5 at the 9, however, Stockton’s pass toward tight end Lawson Luckie fell incomplete with 9:25 to play. Notre Dame chewed up the clock on its next possession, a 13-play drive that lasted more than seven minutes. After the Irish punted, Georgia got the ball back with 1:49 remaining. But the Bulldogs weren’t able to mount a comeback and keep their season alive. The Bulldogs, the SEC champions for the second time in three years, won double-digit games for the seventh time in coach Kirby Smart’s nine seasons as head coach. This was also Georgia’s fourth College Football Playoff appearance in the Smart era.
Alabama's Ryan Williams returns a punt to set up the Crimson Tide's final possession in the ReliaQuest Bowl at Raymond James Stadium. Photo By Brandon K. Pierce, The Sports Ledger
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