The sun did not shine on the Georgia Bulldogs Saturday, and the threatening skies seemed to cast a pall on the Dawgs’ home opener. Samford never challenged, but the home team failed to show the offensive firepower that destroyed Oregon a week earlier. Of course, given the performance of Marshall, Georgia Southern, and App State, maybe UGA should be thankful to get the win.

“Boring” was the term that several people on the sideline used to describe the game to me. I can not say that I was bored during the game, but one could not help wondering where was the offense that blew past Oregon like water off a duck’s back just a week ago. The Bulldogs, who sliced through Oregon’s defense, were forced to settle for four field goals against the outmanned but tenacious defense. Saturday’s game, while characterized by mistakes, was still a blowout win. Plenty of kids saw action for the first time, many for the first time in their careers, and others gained game snaps that will serve the team well as it navigates its SEC schedule.

While the offense had an off day, Georgia’s defense played to its standard. Linebacker Smael Mondon led all tacklers with four stops and 1.5 tackles for loss. The UGA defense held the Bama Bulldogs to only 59 yards of total offense on 23 plays in the first half, and late in the second quarter, the Junkyard Dawgs forced Sanford to turn it over on downs at their own 44, which led to a TD. Samford coach Chris Hatcher said in his postgame interview:

“You win championships with great defense. They are really talented over there. They are always in the right place and they do such a good job of mixing their blitzes and their stunts to keep you off balance and not know where they are coming from.”

Hatcher is right. Defense still wins championships – just like last year. Now onto Columbia.