Ohio State University was treated to a “welcome dinner” after the team arrived on Sunday evening. The Buckeyes and Bulldogs took a private tour of the College Football Hall of Fame on Marietta Street on Monday night. In between, they gathered for an official welcome dinner at the Bowl.
A hospital visit awaits each team on Tuesday. That night there is a basketball challenge in which the teams compete. The race will take place on Wednesday night at Andretti Indoor Karting in Marietta, but the teams will be competing separately.
“I’ve never ridden a go-kart because it’s always been too small,” says Cedric Van Pran, a sophomore center in Redshirt, Georgia, who stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 310 pounds. “I expect it again.”
Balance is everything when it comes to planned activities, including a trip to Ebenezer Baptist Church to hear a message from Andrew Young and Bill Curry.
“I am so grateful to Chick-fil-A Bowl for giving me the opportunity to do all these wonderful things,” Van Pran said. We want to focus on the game and stay focused.I think for some people it’s good to go outside and get away and relax.But ultimately, we We know what our goals are.”
This is where the philosophical differences between the bowl game and the playoff system that determines the national champion collide. The playoffs are set to expand to 12 teams by his 2026. For now, bowls are included in the plans to conduct these games, but in the future, it promises fewer visits to amusement parks and tighter pre-game preparation and secrecy.
“The merger is unique among CFP, playoff games and bowl games,” Coach Kirby Smart said during the Bulldogs’ post-practice videoconference in Atlanta on Monday. “The bowl game has traditions, beliefs and sponsors, and those traditions are important to the bowl. Every playoff game you play has a bowl tradition. I went to a bowl game.
“So their traditions are important. The playoffs and the meaning of the game are also important, but you have to balance those two. need to be understood. But we are here for a purpose. ”
The idyllic part of the encounter in the semi-finals is, at this point, almost as the saying goes, “the hay is in the barn.” The team has been practicing and studying their opponents for three weeks since deciding who they will face on December 4th. Ohio State actually took another week to recover after losing to Michigan in the regular season finale and missing out on the Big Ten Championship.
Refining your game plan and rehearsing your play is important at this point.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day said, “You have to keep things routine as much as possible. It’s a little different. Some things are out of the ordinary. But our players do a good job of keeping us focused on what’s really important here – playing on Saturday at 8 o’clock. I think you will.”
Georgia has benefited from recent experience in this regard. Last year, Orange His Bowl in downtown Miami housed Bulldog at the Intercontinental across the Causeway to the South Beach Strip. Georgia didn’t look distracted as he beat Michigan 34-11 to reach the final in Indianapolis.
“The biggest thing I’ve been trying to emphasize to people is using your time wisely,” Van Pran said. “It can really get away from you. You’re thinking, ‘We’re in a hotel.'” Just meetings and practice, not your typical daily schedule. But you need to use your time wisely and understand that you are here for a reason. ”