If loose lips sink ships, e’erybody and their momma in the Vanderbilt football program must’ve been talking this week. Georgia football came to Sanford Stadium North on Saturday afternoon and absolutely torpedoed the Commodores to move to 4-0 this season.
According to WynnBet, Georgia entered the game as a 35-point favorite. With Saturday’s matchup being an 11 am start local time, the Dawgs had covered that spread before most folks in Nashville sat down to eat lunch.
Like it was in Georgia football’s 2019 season opener, Vanderbilt Stadium was awash in red-and-black-clad fans. It felt more like Sanford Stadium North than a true road game for the Dawgs and they looked at home early.
Georgia’s scored touchdowns on its first five offensive possessions, including back-to-back scoring drives on short fields created by Commodore turnovers.
The kickoff coverage team caused a fumble that led to a Zamir White touchdown, and then on Vanderbilt’s ensuing offensive drive, Christopher Smith snagged his second interception of the season on Vandy’s first play.
It only took two plays for the Dawgs to find paydirt, with Ladd McConkey high-pointing a ball in the right corner of the endzone for his first career TD catch.
There’s plenty for Georgia football fans to celebrate after thumping the Commodores. These are our four main takeaways from the Dawgs fourth win of the 2021 season.
Vanderbilt’s offense was true to their war cry today, as their offense didn’t move all day. Georgia football’s vaunted defense held the Commodores to 77 yards of total offense. Seventy-seven!
Vanderbilt averaged 1.9 yards per rush and a seemingly impossible 1.3 yards per pass. Georgia stifled the Commodores passing game all day, limiting them to 24 passing yards . . . for the game.
Quarterback Ken Seals started the game for the Dores and then Mike Wright took over in relief. Combined, they finished 5-of-18 for 24 yards and threw an interception apiece.
Duke’s Mayo Classic hero Christopher Smith collected his second interception of the season, while freshman Kamari Lassiter showed his closing speed and ball skills to snag his first career interception in the fourth quarter.
Robert Beal, Jr. played well for the second consecutive week and logged Georgia’s lone sack of the game.
Saturday’s 62-0 win marked Georgia football’s second-largest margin of victory ever during Southeastern Conference play.
The only SEC opponent the Dawgs beat by more was that wretched school down in Gainesville. In the 1942 edition of the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party, Charley Trippi and 1942 Heisman Trophy Winner Frank Sinkwich led Georgia to a 75-0 demolition of the hated Gators in Jacksonville.
Will Dawn of the Dawg ever miss an opportunity to bring up a walloping of the Gators? No. No, we will not.
If you really pay attention to his interviews and press conferences, Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart leaves clues about the direction of his football team.
It seems offensive coordinator Todd Monken does the same. During fall camp, Monken was asked about freshman tight end Brock Bowers and how he might be used.
One of the interesting things Georgia’s offensive coordinator offered involved what position Bowers would be classified as. He explained Bowers was a “consummate F”, a bit of a hybrid H-back, able to line up tight, split wide, or even line up in Georgia’s backfield.
This is where it gets interesting. Monken then said this:
"You can hand the ball to him if you wanted to, he played fullback in high school."
Georgia did just that on their first offensive drive of the game. On 1st-and-10 from Vanderbilt’s 12, Bowers came in motion left-to-right. After taking the snap, JT Daniel pivoted swiftly and handed the ball off to Bowers, who stretched towards the pylon for the first rushing touchdown of his career.
The play looked strikingly similar to the traditional jet sweeps Georgia has run during Kirby Smart’s tenure to Mecole Hardman and James Cook, except this time they handed it off to their tight end.
It was a play that not only showcased what a diverse offensive weapon Georgia possesses in Bowers, it also exhibited the creativity present in Todd Monken’s offense.
Georgia football’s unity as a team has been one of the striking narratives of the young Dawgs season.
From top-to-bottom, the guys on the roster support each other at every turn, and it’s just so obvious that there’s a team over me attitude about this group.
Nobody embodies that more than sophomore running back Daijun Edwards. Even though he’s not part of the regular running back rotation, he’s doing what he can to help the football team by contributing on special teams.
After Brock Bowers second touchdown of the day to put the Dawgs in front 14-0, Georgia’s kickoff coverage team took the field.
Jake Camarda lifted the kickoff high and deep and Vanderbilt’s James Ziglar III decided to bring it out.
As Ziglar was being tackled, Jaylen Johnson poked the football free. Daijun Edwards grabbed the loose ball out of midair and returned it 13 yards down to Vandy’s four. Two plays later, Zamir White cashed in on the turnover with a one-yard touchdown run to put Georgia up 21-0.
In the second half, Edwards reaped the rewards of contributing to the explosive first half. He logged 10 carries for 46 yards, including a 15-yard fourth quarter touchdown run, his first of the season and second of his Georgia career.