Even as he celebrated one of the great triumphs of his career, Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson was ready to get in a dig at one of his favorite targets.

In a post-game interview with ESPN following the Yellow Jackets' 49-34 Orange Bowl win over Mississippi State, Johnson poked fun at the SEC and what he considers media obsession with the conference.

He concluded the interview by saying, "And, at least for a week or two, we don't have to hear about the SEC."

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Wednesday, certainly, wasn't a very impressive showing for the conference. No. 12 Tech gave its punishment to No. 7 Mississippi State, which had been ranked No. 1 in the country for five weeks earlier this season. In the Peach Bowl, No. 6 TCU smashed No. 9 Ole Miss 42-3. LSU, a third member of the SEC West, which has been touted as the strongest division in FBS, lost 31-28 to Notre Dame on Tuesday. Overall, through Wednesday, the SEC was 4-3 in bowl games.

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Kirby Smart (left) and Georgia beat Brent Key and Georgia Tech 44-42 in eight overtimes last November in Athens. The Bulldogs and Yellow Jackets bring Clean Old-Fashioned Hate off campus for 2025, playing at 3:30 p.m. Friday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. (Hyosub Shin/AJC 2024)

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Carleigh Knight (left) and her sister, Natalie Rogovin, look at Christmas ornaments while shopping at Kudzu Antiques + Modern in Decatur on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Natrice Miller/AJC)

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