Georgia football: Bulldogs haven’t beaten a Massachusetts school since 1951

Georgia football hosts the University of Massachusetts Minutemen this Saturday. It will be the Dawgs’ ninth game against a school from Massachusetts.

When Georgia football suits up to play the UMass Minutemen this Saturday, they’ll be doing so with hopes of victory. Which is something no Georgia team has done against a Massachusetts-based school since 1951.

Granted, Georgia has only played schools from the state twice since then, both losses to Boston College. A victory will also be Georgia’s third against the state in nine tries. Georgia’s first ever game against a school from Massachusetts came in 1921 against Harvard. The Bulldogs lost to the Crimson 10-7 inside the legendary Harvard Stadium in Cambridge.

In 2018, a loss to Harvard would be a cause of panic, but in 1921, just playing a close game with the Ivy League school was an accomplishment. Harvard had earned at least a share of the last two National Championships, and their 1919 title was a consensus championship. Between 1874 and 1920, Harvard claims seven National Championships.

The 1921 Bulldogs weren’t too shabby either though. They ended the season 7-2-1 and the other loss was to Dartmouth, another Ivy League powerhouse . A tie with Vanderbilt helped secure a SIAA Co-Championship.

Between 1937 and 1939, Georgia played a three game series with Holy Cross, a powerhouse at the time. In fact, in those three years, Holy Cross’s record was 23-3-2. They were so good, that they allowed a total of 117 points in that three-year span. That’s an average of 6.5 points per game. Unsurprisingly, they had 16 shutouts. The Georgia teams of the late 1930’s were just no match. They nearly pulled off the upset in 1937 though, losing 7-6 in Boston. A year later, they lost 29-6 in Holy Cross’s home of Worcester. And in 1939, Georgia lost 13-0 in Athens.

Georgia finally got the better of Massachusetts in 1950 with a 19-7 victory over Boston College. Though they were a far cry from the juggernauts Georgia faced in Harvard and Holy Cross. BC’s record that year was 0-9-1. Coincidentally, that 1950 game was played at Braves Field, home of the Boston Braves three years before they moved to Milwaukee and 16 years before moving to Atlanta.

In 1951, Boston College came to Athens and the Bulldogs defeated a slightly improved Golden Eagles team 35-28. That proved to be Georgia’s final game against a Massachusetts school until 1986 and the final victory as of today. Two years removed from the Doug Flutie era, an improved Boston College squad defeated the Dawgs 27-24 in the Hall of Fame Bowl on a last second touchdown pass. The Golden Eagles defeated Georgia in similar fashion in the 2001 Music City Bowl, scoring a touchdown with under five minutes left to win 20-16.

That’s the history Georgia hopes to overcome this Saturday. But realistically, they shouldn’t have any issues. The UMass Minutemen are just 4-7 and they only have two wins over FBS opponents, neither are over power-five foes.