Gators didn’t give the game to Georgia — Dawgs took it
Aaron Murray made some clutch runs. (Jason Getz / AJC)
A few more thoughts about Saturday’s Georgia victory over Florida. …
My wife and I dropped by a Halloween party late Saturday, and one of my neighbors asked if I thought Georgia deserved to win, pointing to the points the Dawgs got as a result of Florida turnovers in their own territory — as if the Gators giftwrapped the game.
To the contrary, those Florida turnovers were anything but unforced. The first fumble by Chris Rainey, recovered by Bacarri Rambo, was caused by the returning Alec Ogletree (who bounced back nicely from a rusty start early in the game). And Frankie Hammond’s fumble, recovered by Shawn Williams, was forced by Jarvis Jones, who had a career day against the Gators.
Yes, the Dogs most certainly deserved their hard-fought win. …
(Speaking of Jones, he’s one of the nominees in ESPN’s Capitol One Cup Impact Performance of the Week vote. You can vote for him here.)
One of the more impressive aspects of Georgia’s win in Jacksonville was that it was in spite of several key players having off days. Aaron Murray missed nine consecutive passes at one point, and some of them weren’t even close. At times, he looked like he was on a completely different page of the playbook from the receiver. Blair Walsh continued his meltdown (though, frankly, I think that might have ended up working in the Dogs’ favor by prompting Mark Richt to be a bit bolder in the red zone, telling Mike Bobo to operate under the assumption that he had four downs to work with). Isaiah Crowell was sporadically effective but again ended up spending more time on the sideline than should be the case with any starting tailback. And the normally reliable Drew Butler had his worst day ever punting.
Had those folks played up to par and had Georgia’s special teams not been abysmal, the game wouldn’t have been nearly as close. …
On the other hand, give credit to Murray for making some clutch runs and throwing some nice balls, too, particularly on the two fourth-down touchdowns — though credit is also due to receivers Michael Bennett and Tavarres King for going up and taking the ball a la A.J. Green, despite being closely covered. Murray had a couple of passes dropped, too. …
I praised Bobo in Saturday night’s report for some gutsy calls, and overall I thought he called a good game. There were a few times when great play calls were undone by Murray’s inaccuracy. But there were several times in the third quarter when Bobo again fell into trying to run diminutive Carlton Thomas up the middle, a low-percentage play against just about any SEC defense. And while Richard Samuel came through big-time for the Dogs when he got the call to go up the middle, I wish Bobo would give up on trying to use Samuel on the toss sweep. It nearly always results in a loss of yardage. That’s just not Samuel’s game. …
From the silly is-he-or-isn’t-he-going-to-start pregame warmup business with John Brantley to the trading of timeouts as Florida tried in vain to draw Georgia offsides on a third-down play in the fourth quarter, Will Muschamp’s attempts at mind games were unsuccessful. Speaking of the third-down defense, Georgia’s turnaround from last year in that aspect of the game this season has been spectacular. …
And, lastly, didn’t it feel great to see Georgia finally be able to get a couple of first downs when it needed to kill the clock to preserve a win?
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789 comments Add your comment
td
October 30th, 2011
11:58 pm
Funny
October 30th, 2011
11:54 pm
At least you are not a DAWG fan with your comments. If I was a betting person I would say you are a Techster. I would not be talking to much because I think that running game will not of your will not run for 300 plus yards against UGA’s D.
UGAKev in Columbus GA
October 30th, 2011
11:59 pm
reality check lol…WOW really??
Funny
October 30th, 2011
11:59 pm
UGAKev….UGA should feel fortunate that Florida only scored 7 points after three trips to the red zone…UGA should feel fortunate that Florida gave them the ball inside the 25 twice.
Reality…a defender has as much right to the ball as the reciever…IF he doesn’t run over the reciever in the process. Did you ever play football?
P_The_Ricker
October 30th, 2011
11:59 pm
Glad to see that “Funny” has accepted the role of sore loser!
Funny
October 31st, 2011
12:00 am
td…I’m sure it would be easier for you to swallow my comments if I was a GT fan…or a Florida fan…or had some axe to grind with UGA….but you would be wrong.
Crazy how just a college football fan could say anything against the might Dawgs huh?
UGAKev in Columbus GA
October 31st, 2011
12:02 am
Absolutely funny I know the game inside and out which is why I laugh at some of your posts.
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:02 am
UGAKev, yes, really.
Funny
October 31st, 2011
12:03 am
UGAKev…wow a football master on a newspaper blog. Shouldn’t you be working for ESPN or something?
Funny
October 31st, 2011
12:04 am
Reality Check had it right…for Bill King to write an article explaining why he things UGA took the game instead of having it given to them proves the point….that is, that many people saw the game the way Reality Check and I did…Florida gave it away.
UGAKev in Columbus GA
October 31st, 2011
12:05 am
I am actually a level headed UGA fan. I will admit when we get outplayed and spanked. I will admit when we played like crap and gave a game way.
AFDawg
October 31st, 2011
12:05 am
Funny, That’s called great defense — which UGA has. Quit being such a cry baby and sore loser — it’s very unbecoming.
td
October 31st, 2011
12:06 am
Reality Check
October 30th, 2011
11:58 pm
“Florida is indeed loaded with five stars on defense. True. But alas, our starting secondary is 50% true freshmen”
This may be true but I think 50% of the passes caught by UGA were caught by DAWG freshman recivers? How did the DAWGS three star receivers beat those mighty Gator 5 star DB’s? BTW: The DAWG’s number one freshman receiver did not even play.
Gravy Train
October 31st, 2011
12:06 am
“Funny” is just mad because Tech can’t beat Georgia and neither did Florida. “Funny” knows that his chance to live vicariously through UF is gone and he also knows that Ole Turkey Neck can beat as many ACC teams as he likes but he can’t beat Georgia or win a bowl game.
UGAKev in Columbus GA
October 31st, 2011
12:07 am
Funny you say that trying to joke around but I may have a future with ESPN once I get out of school as I am going to school for Sports Management.
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:07 am
Great defense? AFDawg, I don’t you have an accurate understanding of what the word “great” means.
There was nothing “great” from either team yesterday, save for a couple of Samuel’s runs and Demps’ kickoff return.
UGAKev in Columbus GA
October 31st, 2011
12:08 am
The Reality is Aaron Murray is overrated and is very lucky Christian Lemay is a true freshmen with no experience on the field and is still learning the playbook.
Funny
October 31st, 2011
12:10 am
UGAKev….good luck.
@Gravy Train and AFDawg…I’m neither a GT fan or a Florida fan. I guess it’s just impossible for UGA fans to think that a college football fan, with no dog in the fight, could have anything negative to say about UGA.
Steve
October 31st, 2011
12:10 am
Really concerned about special teams play. Do we not play our best players on kick off and punt coverage teams?? I notice a lot of clean uniforms out there whenever we punt or kick off.
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:11 am
Murray is a talented quarterback. He doesn’t always see the field very well, but he is a very good passer.
Funny
October 31st, 2011
12:11 am
AFDawg…UGA’s defense is the best part of the team….God knows that Murray is average and Crowll needs to grow up and get hungry.
Teams with good defenses still lose…and UGA should have lost on Sat.
Gravy Train
October 31st, 2011
12:19 am
Reality Check: wasn’t Brantley a highly rated high school QB? And wasn’t Mack Brown the #1 high school RB? Brantley is average now and Brown hasn’t played yet? You’ve had nice little runs with Spurrier and the Urban/Tebow man love thing, but it’s over now. Why don’t you go try to convince some Bama fans that UF gave that game away too. Hell, you’ve got LSU fans too. Urban saw the writing on the wall and left. Now you’re stuck with Muschump and Jabba the Gut for atleast two more seasons. You better get used to this.
AFDawg
October 31st, 2011
12:20 am
Reality Check and Funny, Georgia’s defense is currently number 7 overall in the nation. Are you honestly going to try and BS everyone on here and not admit that we shut down Demps and Rainey and sacked the crap out of Brantley? Georgia is a very young team but getting better each week (with the exception of our special teams). Be honest, if not for our poor special teams play — the game would not have even been close. As far as rising stars — I saw a lot on the Georgia side of the ball. Where did Bennett and Conley come from — wow! The only star power I saw on the Florida side was Demps and Rainey — and they should be graduating soon. Anyway, it’s too late for this — gotta catch some shut eye.
LexDawg
October 31st, 2011
12:20 am
Listen, a win is a win, that’s all there is to it. But let’s not pretend this was any great beatdown: It was nothing of the sort.
Shine
October 31st, 2011
12:20 am
45ACP
October 30th, 2011
11:00 pm
22 rushing attempts with MINUS 19 yards. Nuff said.
Yeah. The gimped up Fla QB just went down. The Sheepdawgs are just mediocre and will get exposed if they play a real team.
P_The_Ricker
October 31st, 2011
12:22 am
funny @ 12:11am,
“Teams with good defenses still lose…and UGA should have lost on Sat.”
UF has neither a good offense nor defense……so UF should have won??
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:30 am
AFDawg and Gravy Train, LSU and Alabama are so much better than Georgia there simply is no comparison. If you happen to make it to the SEC Championship, either one will hang 50 on you.
Florida had no chance against either LSU or Bama this year. Their teams are extraordinary this season.
Florida is clearly in a transition season for several reasons. Our offensive line has zero depth. Our running backs are fast little guys recruited to supplement a 240-pound spread option quarterback. Most of our starters are freshmen and sophomores (as many of yours are).
However, we have our next quarterback in place and our defense will be mature for the next three seasons. we have a big running back and big wide receivers coming in to run Weiss’ pro offense. Like it or not, the recent national championships and pro-experience coaching staff will make a difference in our ability to recruit what we need.
We’ll be back on top soon enough. Enjoy the win.
flagboy?
October 31st, 2011
12:31 am
good one Ricker
dogone
October 31st, 2011
12:34 am
yeah we beat Florida and a few other lame teams Rah Rah!! When it comes to beating the teams we need to beat which are elite and UGA not… ie a Florida of Yesteryear an Alabama or an LSU of today still as big a dream as ever… We’ll get to the SEC championship just so everyone in the country can see a blood letting… Say what u want Ricth and BUBU still neeeed to go!!! give them another year or two or three… No SEC or National Championship…. we will probably beat the weak teams but it will end there….
flagboy?
October 31st, 2011
12:36 am
Always good to beat a rival.
A few good things from the weekend as well. Fla is penalized way too much at the moment. Hope that continues. In the first half, one of their Offensive Tackles could have been called for false starts on just about every play. Didn’t seem to do it second half. Also, last year, Driskel (spelling. .not sure) was supposed to be the all-everything QB. . .now they’re looking for the next one. Sounds a lot like we have been in the past. Good to see.
Reality Check-your-pants-for-a-pair
October 31st, 2011
12:38 am
UGA’s “D” dominated the whole game, but especially in the second half. UGA’s “O” and special teams sputtered at times, but made big-time plays against UF’s best players.
“Reality Check” is a whiner — just like his temper-tantrum-throwing head coach. Hey, “Reality Check-your-pants-for-a-pair,” man-up and grow a pair and admit your team got whupped. And Muschamp: show some class and quit acting like a child on the sidelines.
You want a real “if it weren’t for”? If it weren’t for our kicker missing 2 FGs, our QB tossing an INT, our special teams muffing coverage, and our coach showing class and running out the clock, the score would have been a hell of a lot worse — like 37 to 3. Take your “if it weren’t for” games and head back to the sandbox, whiner “Reality Check-your-pants-for-a-pair”!
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:38 am
Driskel will be the all-everything QB.
Give me a break
October 31st, 2011
12:40 am
Reality Check: yeah, the same thing was said about Brantley. WHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:40 am
Yes, UGA’s D did dominate the whole game. In Reality Distortion Field World.
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:42 am
Nobody ever said anything of the sort about Brantley.
flagboy?
October 31st, 2011
12:43 am
Reality Distortion Field World. . . Must be the same place Driskel will be the all-everything QB.
Give me a break
October 31st, 2011
12:43 am
Some moron blogger like you did…just like in a few years, someone will say, “Nobody ever said anything of the sort about Driskel.”
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:45 am
Well, enjoy it now, clowns. I shall hope for your sakes that you don’t make it into the SEC Championship game.
Give me a break
October 31st, 2011
12:45 am
Darn, my best comments aren’t even making it on here. I wonder if Brantley is counting sacks in his sleep instead of sheep…gotta be having nightmares of Jarvis Jones.
Sleepless
October 31st, 2011
12:48 am
You pathetic hillbillies need to get some sleep. Your team stinks and it’s after your bedtime.
Give me a break
October 31st, 2011
12:48 am
Ha! Well, we know the Gators will not be there. Who eliminated them from the division race by the way? Oh yeah, the DAWGS. Murray said it best when he said “we know the recent history of this series hasn’t gone Georgia’s way, but THIS team is 1-0.” Muschamp is 0-1 against the Dawgs Gator fans…I wouldn’t go making any promises about the future already.
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
12:56 am
This team is 1-0? That’s just priceless.
The only thing Georgia is good for this year is propping up Boise’s BCS ranking.
KJ
October 31st, 2011
1:01 am
and the only thing Reality Check is good for is…. well, nothing except being a pathetic troll on the internet. Why don’t you obsess a little more, loser.
Slam
October 31st, 2011
1:02 am
boy, going 0 for october can sure lead to some gator fans feeling sore.
i’ll bet this guy cried at the end of the game!
Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
1:02 am
Says the idiot in the same place at the same time.
NiquePhotog
October 31st, 2011
1:04 am
Great article. Thanks for sugar-coating one of the sloppiest games I’ve watched.
Neither team should have won based on the way they played. But UGA should have won because UF was beat up after playing a REAL SEC schedule.
flagboy?
October 31st, 2011
1:09 am
Serious question. Does the win against Alabama-Birmingham for florida qualify toward bowl eligibility? I was thinking in the past had to be division 1 opponents, but I’m not sure if that’s still the case.
UGAKev in Columbus GA
October 31st, 2011
1:12 am
And Georgia was not beat up?????? Malcolm Mitchell brings a new dynamic to the offense and didn’t play. Crowell has been playing hurt all year. Georgia has managed with injuries all year. What the hell ever Nique….LMAO
Slam
October 31st, 2011
1:12 am
flagboy,
let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. UF still has to win 2 more games to become bowl elgible. w/ only 4 games left……their chances are slim
Dear Reality Check
October 31st, 2011
1:17 am
Dear Reality Check,
You said that your team deserved to win so lets see:
A) Your team had -20 rushing yards (that does not constitute a winning performance)
B) UGA had 120+ more yards of total offense
C) UGA won the turnover battle
D) UGA had the ball for 37+ minutes which is HUGE (almost 2/3rds of the game)
E) UGA sacked Brantley 6 times
F) UGA missed two field goals, gave up 208 return yards, and still won the game
G) UF had 14 penalties for 106 yards revealing a complete lack of discipline
H) Florida had 1 First Down the ENTIRE second half
I) While Florida rushed for -20 yards, UGA rushed for 185 yards (with a freshman and an injured converted ILB)
Sincerely,
The Guy Wondering Why You Don’t Have Anything Better To Do Than Whine On A Rival Team’s Blog
P.S. This is why you suck!
dbc
October 31st, 2011
1:18 am
The Crowell thing is weird. He flunked a pee test last week. Turned out he tuned in someone else’s pee and they figured it out. They then made him re-take said test. Results aren’t immediate, so he played. I think CMR played him sparingly because of it. We’ll see how this one unfolds…