Georgia Football: 3 powerful stats from fantastic victory over Arkansas
Dawgs control time of possession allowed them to execute the game plan
While some Georgia football fans may get me for not solely making this slide about the rush attack, I wanted to find something unique to discuss.
Georgia’s ability to hold onto the football against the Hogs kept their offense off the field. Keeping them off the field kept the Dawgs defense fresh and their offense cold as ice.
The Dawgs held on the ball 9:00 in the first quarter, 8:12 in the second, 9:21 in the third, and 9:28 in the fourth.
To have the ball for eight-plus minutes each quarter tells me Georgia sustained drives, or they kept getting Arkansas off the field. The Hogs had the ball 6:00, 6:28, 5:28 and 5:32 in each quarter.
They converted one third down in the first quarter and their other two came in the fourth. So the Dawgs did their job by getting them off the field.
The Dawgs had a plan to tote the rock, and they did just that. By running the ball, it helped Georgia in terms of time of possession. Georgia wasn’t great on third down offensively, but they were 2-of-2 on fourth down, which kept drives going in the first and fourth quarters.
The Dawgs ran for 273 yards averaging 4.9 yards a carry. While Stetson Bennett only threw for 72 yards, it didn’t matter. Georgia didn’t need to throw. This game was about controlling the ball, and they did just that.
Time of possession in big games is crucial because the longer you have the ball, the more time you have to score points.
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Georgia handled its business last week against the Hogs and now will take on a stout Auburn team who, like the Hogs, have confidence coming into this game. Auburn defeated LSU in Baton Rouge so that they will be ready for the Dawgs on Saturday. However, the Dawgs know they have a target on their back, so I don’t think we will see a 2017 incident this time around.