COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Rose Bowl (Oklahoma-Georgia), Sugar Bowl (Alabama-Clemson) semifinal showdowns.

LOS ANGELES» A few days after the Rose Bowl matchup between No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 3 Georgia was set, Sooners coach Lincoln Riley and Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart ran into each other at a high school in Georgia. They were there by themselves to recruit the same player.

“We were waiting for like a crowd of reporters to come out,” Riley said early in Rose Bowl week. “I thought it might have been staged in a way.”

Riley and Smart got a brief chance to catch up again Sunday at a downtown Los Angeles hotel, sharing the stage with The Leishman Trophy that goes to the winner of Monday’s big game in Pasadena. After answering questions from reporters for 25 minutes, Smart and Riley shook hands and posed for pictures with the sterling silver football. It’s a terrific trophy, but the big prize for Oklahoma (12-1) and Georgia (12-1) is a berth in the College Football Playoff championship game in Atlanta on Jan. 8.

“There’s been buildup for this game, like Lincoln said, and it’s time to play,” Smart said.

Riley is in his first season as Oklahoma’s coach. Smart is in year two at his alma mater. They came into their jobs in different ways, but both inherited a ready-made roster, with the talent to make a championship run. The challenge for each coach was to reach that potential.

Smart, the longtime defensive coordinator under Nick Saban at Alabama, was hired by Georgia after former coach Mark Richt was pushed out.

The Bulldogs did not need an overhaul. Smart, 42, was left a roster built on the foundation of top-10 recruiting classes in both 2014 and 2015. Members of those classes make up the majority of Georgia’s starting lineup for the Rose Bowl, including star running back Nick Chubb and All-America linebacker Roquan Smith.

After going 8-5 last season, Georgia won the SEC in 2017.

Riley, 34, was already an integral part of the Oklahoma program when he was promoted from offensive coordinator in June to replace veteran coach Bob Stoops, who had surprisingly decided to retire after 18 years in Norman. The Sooners had won the Big 12 in 2015 and 2016, making the playoff in 2015, with Riley calling plays. They entered 2017 as favorites again, led by star quarterback Baker Mayfield.

With the rest of the OU coaching staff already in place, Riley didn’t necessarily have to win over his players.

The Sooners rolled to another Big 12 title and Mayfield won the Heisman Trophy — and the OU offense is on pace to set a school record for yards per play at 8.44.