Dawgs Win; Noah’s a No-Show

Darrell Huckaby is a syndicated columnist and author of six books including two about Georgia football. Read Huck’s Wit and Wisdom every Wednesday and Sunday. Subscribe at https://dhuck.substack.com/.

Dawgs Win; Noah’s a No-Show

I spent most of last week preparing for the Great Flood of 2026. Not spiritually, you understand. Meteorologically.

For four straight days, every weather forecaster within broadcasting distance of Athens warned us that Saturday was going to be wet. Not just a little damp. We were going to have thunderstorms. Downpours. Lightning. Rain during tailgating. Rain during the Dawg Walk. Rain during the game.

I began wondering whether Kirby Smart was recruiting two of every position.

By Friday night I had ponchos, raincoats and umbrellas piled up like I was outfitting an expedition to the Amazon. Then Saturday arrived. And it didn't rain. Not a drop. Not a sprinkle. Not enough moisture fell out of the sky to dampen a cocktail napkin.

The official game conditions were cloudy and 79 degrees, which turned out to be about as good a football day as anybody could ask for. I kept looking toward the sky waiting for the heavens to open. Nothing.

Apparently the storm system saw Kirby Smart standing on the sideline and decided to go around Athens. And that was just fine with the 93,033 people gathered inside Sanford Stadium for Homecoming.

Georgia beat Vanderbilt 38-14, improved to 5-0 and sent the Commodores back to Nashville with another reminder that while Nashville may be Music City, Athens remains a difficult place to play anything except "Glory, Glory to Ole Georgia."

It wasn't always easy.

Vanderbilt came to play football, which was downright inconsiderate of them. Georgia marched 80 yards on the opening possession, with Gunner Stockton completing all eight of his passes and finishing the drive with a touchdown toss to Landon Roldan.

I figured that was that. Apparently, Vanderbilt had not received the script. The Commodores tied the game 7-7 and later pulled within 21-14 just before halftime. There were a few nervous murmurs around Sanford Stadium. There always are. Georgia fans have developed a remarkable ability to believe disaster is imminent despite all available evidence to the contrary.

Kirby Smart could win 100 consecutive games, be ahead 42-3 with two minutes left in the 101st, and somebody in Section 128 would say, "I don't like the way this is headed." That's who we are.

But Gunner Stockton wasn't worried. The kid just keeps playing football. Stockton completed 25 of 32 passes for a season-high 295 yards and three touchdowns. Georgia finished with 471 yards of offense and held Vanderbilt to 61 yards in the second half. That will usually get the job done.

So will scoring 17 unanswered points after halftime. Final: Georgia 38, Vanderbilt 14.

The Dawgs are 5-0. Life is good. But Saturday was about more than football. It was Homecoming. And Homecoming means more to me every year.

Maybe that's because every year there is more to come home from.

When you're young, Homecoming is about fraternity parties, pretty girls, floats and wondering where everybody is going after the game. When you're older, Homecoming becomes something else. You walk across campus and remember buildings that aren't there anymore.

You see young students hurrying down sidewalks and realize you once walked those same sidewalks with absolutely no idea how quickly the years would pass. You run into somebody you haven't seen in 30 years and immediately recognize them despite the fact that neither one of you looks anything like the person you remember.

You say, "You haven't changed a bit."

This is the traditional Homecoming lie.

Then you hug each other because the truth doesn't matter. You're both still here. That's what matters. I left our tailgate and caught Saturday’s game on TV, but I spent a lot of time remembering.

Georgia has now won 84 Homecoming games against only 18 losses and two ties. Kirby Smart is 60-5 at home. Those are impressive numbers.

But Homecoming isn't really about numbers. It's about coming home. It's about walking into Sanford Stadium and hearing the Redcoats. It's about seeing that big Power G on the helmets. It's about standing when the Dawgs run onto the field and feeling something in your chest that you felt when you were 20 years old.

For a few hours Saturday afternoon, thousands of people who have gotten older, raised families, buried parents, changed jobs, fought illnesses, celebrated grandchildren and watched the world change faster than any of us ever imagined were young again.

They were between the hedges. The Dawgs were winning. And it didn't rain.

Sometimes God gives you more than you deserve.

Saturday He gave us football weather, a Georgia victory and another Homecoming afternoon in Athens. I'll take that every time.

Now it’s on to Tuscaloosa. I hope we are man enough to make the trip.

Darrell Huckaby