[su_spacer size=”20″] A rainy day in Athens, Georgia on a football Saturday is better than a sunny work day anytime. The Georgia Bulldogs took a breather from their SEC schedule to play an out of conference and lone FCS opponent Southern, who hails from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Saturday marked a historic day for the University of Georgia as this was the first time the Bulldogs had the privilege to square off against one of only 105 HBCU’s (Historically Black Colleges and Universities). All of the schools identified in the HBCU fraternity were created prior to 1964, with the particular goal in mind to provide quality higher education to young black men and women. The significance of the day was not lost on the DawgNation or the players. Georgia senior and defensive end Sterling Bailey was quoted as saying, “It’s a great feeling to be playing an HBC for the first time. It’s a great milestone.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] THE GOOD:
[su_spacer size=”40″] Let’s be honest. It’s football. No matter how big your school or how many resources you have available or how many fans fit in your stands, you can only put 11 out on the field at any one time and you can only play the teams on your schedule. In short, anything can happen. Georgia, for the most part, made sure not to peer over the horizon at the “Crimson Wave” that is way off in the distance working its way east; but instead gave the Jaguars their proper attention. That, in and of itself, is a very good thing and shows a sign of maturity that this team will need the rest of the way.
[su_spacer size=”40″] On the surface, the numbers were good for the Bulldogs. ON OFFENSE: 532 total yards, 27 first downs, 271 yards passing, 261 yards rushing, 33 rush attempts, 24 pass attempts. ON DEFENSE: The Dawgs only gave up 6 points (all in the 2^nd quarter), 184 total yards, 10 first downs, 105 rushing yards, 79 passing yards, and only 4 third downs converted on 16 attempts.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Particularly in a game like this for the Bulldogs, they gave their opponent the attention they deserved and seemingly came away unscathed in terms of injuries.
[su_spacer size=”40″] THE BAD:
[su_spacer size=”40″] Southern may have come out of the FCS Subdivision and may be a much smaller school, but they didn’t show up intimidated, and they didn’t show up not prepared to fight.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Georgia’s offensive line proved a little sluggish in the 1^st half against the Jags. There were some missed assignments early in the game. On one occasion, Jeb Blazevich was pulling into the guard gap to fill on the LB and Southern’s sophomore Kentavious Preston absolutely blew up the play knocking Chubb backward for a loss; something you don’t see very often. Nick Chubb had only 31 yards on nine carries at the end of the 1^st half; a stat that didn’t sit well with Coach Mark Richt. In fact, the Dawgs had a mere 35 yards total rushing in the 1^st half, which was their lowest first-half output since they were held to 21 yards against Vandy in 2013. Further, the Dawgs were 0 for three on 3^rd down conversions and held the ball for seven fewer minutes than the Jags.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Georgia’s defensive front seemed to get moved off the line a bit more than would have been thought possible in this game. Although the defense had good overall numbers, Southern’s run game seemed to find ways to gash the Dawgs at times. The Jaguars put up 150 yards of total offense in the 1^st half and just under 100 of that was on the ground.
[su_spacer size=”40″] THE UGLY:
[su_spacer size=”40″] Football is a contact sport. Regardless of wins and losses, coaches, players, and fans want games to end with everyone leaving, the field in virtually the same condition in which they came, if not better. A very scary moment came with about 2:08 left in the 3^rd quarter. With Georgia leading 48 – 6 and Southern returning the kickoff, Jaguars’ sophomore Devon Gales, from Baton Rouge himself, made blocking contact with Marshall Morgan. Gales immediately collapsed on the field and was as quickly attended to by the Bulldawg staff and Southern Staff. He was placed on a backboard and swiftly carted off the field and taken to Athens Regional Hospital for additional testing and treatment for what was described as a spinal cord injury. It was reported that Gales had movement in his hands, and additional testing and monitoring would take place.
[su_spacer size=”40″] PLEASE JOIN THE Southern family and the Bulldawg Nation in offering thoughts and prayers to this young man and his family for a speedy and full recovery!
[su_spacer size=”40″] THROW ‘EM A BONE:
[su_spacer size=”40″] Malcolm & Malkom. Mitchell and Parrish both had excellent games for the Dawgs on either side of the ball. Defensively Parrish had some nice tackles and partially blocked a punt on special teams. Mitchell had five catches for 96 yards and a touchdown.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Jayson Stanley, the true freshman, had two catches for 23 yards.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Greyson Lambert continues to defy logic. But moreover, he is spreading the ball around by connecting with 11 different wide receivers.
[su_spacer size=”40″] After only 31 yards on nine carries, Nick Chubb carried the ball only six more times and amassed 100 more yards to extend his record-tying streak to 12 games with over 100 yards rushing.
[su_spacer size=”40″] GIVE SOUTHERN SOME LOVE:
[su_spacer size=”40″] Willie Quinn is 5’5 and weighs 145 lbs. But he played big, as he had three receptions for 20 yards and more impressive four kick returns for 82 yards and a long of 32 yards.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Georgia’s defensive streak for turnovers came to an end at 19 consecutive games as Southern never gave the Bulldawgs the ball on turnovers.
[su_spacer size=”40″] ***SPECIAL BONES*** Dr. Ron Courson has been the Director of Sports Medicine for University of Georgia Athletics since 1995. He is one of the absolute best, and he was quick on the scene to help in the care of injured player Devon Gales! You hate to have to “need ‘em”, but you love to “have ‘em”! Dr. Ron Courson a “DAMN GOOD DAWG”!
[su_spacer size=”40″] NO BONES ‘BOUT IT:
[su_spacer size=”40″] To quote one of my favorite films (see if you can guess?!) “The truth is…we don’t know what the TRUTH is.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] We know Georgia will end September 4 – 0 with two of those victories coming against SEC East opponents. We know Greyson Lambert’s last two games have provided unprecedented numbers, 33 completions on 35 attempts (94.2%), five touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. We know Georgia leads the nation in completion percentage at 76.1%, which is a testament to the receiving corps as well as the quarterback play. We know Georgia’s offensive line has helped pave the way for a Top-20 rushing attack that has amassed over 1000 yards, 14 touchdowns, and a per-carry average of 6.87 yards per attempt. We know Pruitt’s version of the “Junkyard Dawgs” ranks in the Top 15 in total defense. The Dawgs are giving up less than 4.25 yards per play attempt and have only given up six touchdowns all season long.
[su_spacer size=”40″] What does all this mean? We don’t know. Many in the media, prognosticators, and experts had pegged Auburn as a national title contender. How’s that prediction working out? Tennessee let another “can’t lose” double-digit lead slip away in “the Swamp”. And it is quite possible the best team the Dawgs have faced thus far is Vanderbilt.
[su_spacer size=”40″] So the truth regarding this Bulldawg team is that we don’t know what the truth is. We don’t know if they are a great team or a team loaded with great individual talent. We don’t know how they will fair against the elites in the SEC. We don’t know how this group will handle genuine adversity. We don’t know how far this Georgia team can go.
[su_spacer size=”40″] One thing is for sure. After next Saturday, when Alabama and Nick Saban leave Athens, we’ll know a lot more. No Bones ‘Bout It!
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