The game started slow offensively, as a field goal on Alabama's opening drive proved to be the only points of the first quarter.

A Georgia field goal with just over three minutes in the first half narrowed the deficit to three points, and the game went to halftime with Alabama leading 9–6.

Trying to hold on to an eight point lead with Alabama driving with less than a minute to go, Kelee Ringo intercepted a pass and ran it 79 yards to seal the game for Georgia with a touchdown.

On November 1, 2017, Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, was announced as the site for the eighth College Football Playoff (CFP) National Championship.

[21] The top-ranked Crimson Tide, led by 15th-year head coach Nick Saban, opened their season with a neutral site kickoff game, as they faced No.

[22] The game ended with an Alabama victory, as the Tide won convincingly to earn a 1–0 start to their national title defense.

[25] Alabama would rout Southern Miss the following week, in a game that featured Jameson Williams record three touchdowns of 80 yards or more,[26] before defeating No.

[27] The Tide suffered their first and only regular season setback the following week, when they were upset by Texas A&M in College Station thanks to Seth Small's 28-yard field goal as time expired,[28] which gave the Aggies a three-point victory.

5 in the AP Poll,[30] though they were able to rebound with impressive wins over Mississippi State and Tennessee to put their record at 7–1 entering their bye week.

21 Arkansas;[35] Alabama won by only a touchdown despite quarterback Bryce Young's school-record 559 passing yards,[36] and the Tide dropped to No.

4 Cincinnati in their semifinal matchup at the 2021 Cotton Bowl Classic, earning them a championship game berth, and ensuring that no team finishing the season unbeaten.

[50] The Bulldogs returned to neutral site play when they faced Florida following a bye week; they defeated the Gators 34–7, with their three touchdowns in just over three minutes at the end of the game's second quarter contributing to the win.

[51] This was also the week that Georgia clinched the SEC East's berth in the championship game, as a result of Kentucky's loss to Mississippi State.

[52] The Bulldogs finished their conference season in much the same style as the games before; they defeated Missouri 43–6,[53] and allowed a season-high 17 points to Tennessee, though still managed to win by three possessions.

[13] Source:[58] Scheduled for an 8:00 p.m. EST start, the game began at 8:16 p.m. with Jake Camarda's opening kickoff resulting in a touchback.

Brian Robinson Jr. got each of the game's first two carries, and Bryce Young completed passes to Slade Bolden and Jameson Williams to get first downs on the drive.

Driving to the Georgia 19-yard-line, Young's pass was incomplete, forcing a 37-yard field goal attempt for Alabama, which was made by Will Reichard.

Alabama also found themselves unable to gain a first down, and they were forced to punt the ball back to the Bulldogs four plays later after their first three-and-out of the game.

[60] Young completed several more short passes on the drive but could not pick up another first down, and Alabama retook the lead on a 45-yard Will Reichard field goal with just over eleven minutes to play.

However, Alabama's offense stalled, gaining two yards on the next two plays and then losing 13 on a sack by Channing Tindall, forcing a field goal try.

A sack by Dallas Turner on the following play set Georgia behind the sticks and they were ultimately not able to recover; Jack Podlesny converted a 49-yard field goal on 4th & 6, narrowing the margin to three.

Looking to run out the clock, Zamir White ran the ball three straight times for a net total of 15 yards, which concluded the second quarter.

An intentional grounding penalty called on Bennett on the next play, a flea flicker, set Georgia back to 2nd & 19, and they were unable to recover.

Reichard's field goal attempt was the first of the night to be unsuccessful, as the 48-yard try was blocked by Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter, giving the Bulldogs possession at their own 20-yard-line.

Zamir White carried the ball on each of Georgia's next four plays, gaining two first downs, and the Bulldogs got another by virtue of a pass interference call on Kool-Aid McKinstry.

Three plays later, Bennett connected with tight end Brock Bowers for a 15-yard touchdown, giving Georgia an eight-point lead.

On 3rd & 10, following two incompletions, Young's pass downfield was intercepted by Kelee Ringo who returned it 79 yards for a touchdown, giving Georgia a lead of fifteen points.

[67] ESPN Radio's broadcast team consisted of Sean McDonough and Todd Blackledge, who shared the commentary booth for a College Football Playoff National Championship for the sixth time, as well as Ian Fitzsimmons and Kris Budden, who both reported from the sidelines.

[75] During the postgame handshake, Saban told Smart, "you guys kicked our ass in the fourth quarter," referring to Georgia's three unanswered touchdowns to conclude the game which propelled them from a five-point deficit to a fifteen-point lead.

[76] This was the final game for Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning before his departure for the head coaching position at Oregon.