DAWG BONE OFFENSE – GEORGIA
Saturday in Jacksonville the Dawgs played their best football game of the year on offense. Coach James Coley was stubborn with the run both on the inside and on the outside. However, when Georgia needed to throw the ball, the coaches trusted Fromm and his receivers to make plays. Against Missouri, who has a Top 10 defense statistically, expect more of the same from Georgia on offense. A second consecutive solid, efficient and physical performance would be a huge confidence builder for this offense and put them in position to hit their stride for the stretch run. Meanwhile, Missouri arrives in Athens off back-to-back losses to Vanderbilt and Kentucky followed by a bye week. The Missouri offense has been sputtering, but with the extra week of preparation, Derek Dooley will have some new wrinkles for the Georgia defense. Regardless, Missouri has struggled to sustain long drives and create explosive plays. Therefore, Georgia takes home the Dawg Bone on offense.
DAWG BONE DEFENSE – GEORGIA
The Georgia defense continues to improve each week. The Florida game was the Dawgs’ best performance of the season in terms of complete dominance at the line of scrimmage. The Gators did not have a prayer to run the football and could not match Georgia’s physicality. Also, the secondary kept the Gator receivers in front of them and forced Florida to sustain drives. Missouri’s defense has been very good this season through eight weeks, however, their schedule has been abysmal. The best offense they have played all season is either Ole Miss or South Carolina, therefore, playing the Dawgs on the road will be a different animal. The big test for the Georgia defense this weekend comes in the form of Kelly Bryant because he is a quarterback who can break contain and hurt you with his legs. UGA takes home the Dawg Bone on defense because their discipline and team speed at all levels is too much for Missouri.
DAWG BONE SPECIAL TEAMS – GEORGIA
Saturday in Jacksonville was the Dawgs’ best special teams performance of the season for the Dawgs. Rodrigo Blankenship was perfect on field goals, Jake Camarda hit solid punts and the UGA return game was excellent on kickoffs and punts. It is the type of performance the coaches have been waiting for all season. Meanwhile, Missouri has struggled all season on special teams. Their punting has been solid but their field goal kicking has been abysmal with seven missed field goals already. For that reason, Georgia takes home the Dawg Bone on special teams.
DAWG BONE COACHING – GEORGIA
The Dawgs continue their winning trend by winning the coaching Dawg Bone. Saturday’s game against the Gators was the biggest regular-season game for Kirby Smart and his staff since they have been in Athens and it was also their best coaching performance. Coach Smart and Coach Lanning had an excellent plan on defense to make the Gators one dimensional and executed it to perfection. Coach Coley had his best game as a play-caller on Saturday and kept a talented Gator defense off balance. It appears that the Dawgs have finally established their identity on offense. For Missouri, their coaching has been poor this season. The Tigers came out flat for the season opener against Wyoming and have lost two additional games to teams they are clearly more talented than.
DAWG BONE OVERALL – GEORGIA
Georgia is clearly the better football team this weekend against Missouri and take home the overall Dawg Bone. After two lackluster performances against South Carolina and Kentucky, the Dawgs coached and played their best game of the season against Florida. Georgia has established their identity and on Saturday we saw the swagger return that had seemingly been lost. Missouri could be running into an avalanche on Saturday night Between the Hedges.