Georgia football: What went right and wrong against South Carolina
Georgia football reminded the college football world why they are ranked no. 3 in the nation with a blowout win over South Carolina.
This truly is a new day in Athens. No longer do fans have to worry about how the Dawgs will perform in big games, especially on the road. The other team’s confidence and home field advantages are no longer an issue for Georgia football. Thanks to Kirby Smart, his staff and the players who have bought in, Georgia fans can now expect to win every single game the Dawgs play.
That appeared to be the case in 2017, but that’s just one year. Some fans needed some more convincing. I hope they were convinced yesterday. Georgia entered South Carolina with the nation and fans on both sides expecting a close game. Many even believed the Gamecocks would defeat the Dawgs. Instead, Georgia smacked its SEC East rivals around for a 41-17 victory.
What went right
A lot went right for the Dawgs, but there were several key areas in which Georgia really dominated. It’s those facets of the game where Georgia turned a simple rivalry win into a statement-making blowout.
Spreading the wealth, again
If this sounds familiar, it’s because I listed this as one of the things that went right last week. But it’s worth mentioning again this week because it highlights one of this teams best traits. There are just so many capable ball carriers. Eight different players rushed for positive yardage and eight different players caught a pass. A total of 13 Bulldogs recorded positive yardage.
The best of that bunch was Mecole Hardman, who caught six passes for 103 yards. His highlights were a 34-yard touchdown pass on a quick screen and a 42-yard pass where he was wide open behind the defense. Hardman also had 30 yards on a backwards pass. Deebo Samuel was the wide receiver with all of the attention heading into the game, Hardman had all the attention when it ended.
Georgia’s trio of running backs had awesome games again. D’Andre Swift, Elijah Holyfield and Brian Herrien combined for 185 yards on 28 carries. Each scored a touchdown and each had at least one run of at least 15 yards. Even James Cook and Prather Hudson looked great when they finally entered the game.
Other players who spent time with the ball included Riley Ridley who caught four passes for 37 yards, another big game for him. He’s beginning to peak as a junior and that’s great to see.
- Jeremiah Holloman caught one pass for 15 yards. It was actually about a 10-yard catch that he gained five more yards on by refusing to go down when engulfed by Carolina defenders. That was impressive and I’m glad to see the sophomore begin to emerge.
- Isaac Nauta caught one pass for 10 yards. Breaking up the notion that Georgia doesn’t target tight ends.
Clearly, with all of the talent Georgia has at running back, wide receiver and tight end, it’s hard to feature too many players in the passing game. But that also means that it’s impossible for a defense to cover everyone on every down. This might be a year in which someone different has a huge receiving day each week.