Georgia Bulldogs Stumble and Fumble in Embarrassing Loss to Gators

The Georgia Bulldogs mailed one in, and the Florida Gators returned it for postage due.

There was nothing pretty about Georgia’s performance against the Gators today. Offensively, defensively and on special teams, the Bulldogs simply didn’t show up in Jacksonville, and the Gators rolled to a 38-20 win.

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The coaching seemed clueless, the players looked unprepared, and even Georgia’s top players were making uncharacteristic mistakes (Nick Chubb fumbling twice? Just hasn’t happened).

Worst of all, Georgia was simply out-muscled by the Gators for nearly the entire game.

During the first quarter, it looked as if Georgia was about to dish out more of the same to Florida that they did to both Missouri and Arkansas, highlighted by Nick Chubb’s 39-yard touchdown run to put the Bulldogs up 7-0

But as if there had been some mystical transmutation, Florida suddenly decided they knew how to block and run the ball and Mike Bobo decided that the plays that had worked the better part of the 1st quarter weren’t going to work any longer.

Georgia started sputtering, and Florida started gassing up, and it was all downhill cruising for them.

Hutson Mason looked…well…awful, which is a paradox considering he had his best passing game of the season (26/41 319 yds, 1 TD). He was taking too much time in the pocket, throwing balls low and high, and to be honest, wasn’t getting much help from receivers who were dropping some of the more catchable balls he did throw.

And while we’re knocking the poor performance of the Bulldogs, it’s time to call out the SEC officials once more. It seems every week there are some egregious missed calls by at least one group of referees in the SEC, and today there were several to point out.

Obvious missed Florida holding (two of them) on this fake field goal touchdown run by the Gators.

Then this block assist by a ref (yes, they’re part of the playing field, but this is ridiculous).

And then we have the absolutely unbelievable missed contact with punter Collin Barber by the Gators. While Barber may have embellished a little, his leg was clearly hit while the ball was not.

A few plays like that may seem innocuous enough, but in the grand layout of a ball game, they can be huge. As can not managing the clock at the end of a half, and giving up when the team needed to show some fight.

Now fight is exactly what the Bulldogs will have to do to have any shot left at an SEC Championship game berth, sitting a game behind the Missouri Tigers who beat Kentucky. This loss certainly knocks Georgia out of the national championship discussion.