Georgia football earned its ninth straight win on Saturday against Missouri as the Dawgs took the Tigers to the woodshed 43-6.
The Dawgs make it eight games in a row beating opponents by at least 17 points. While Georgia fans like to be nitpicky about the team’s performance, that statistic is pretty incredible.
It’s never wrong to expect perfection from a team, but they’re human, so know that mistakes will happen. Even if the Missouri game didn’t go nearly as we all expected it to, the Dawgs still kept the pace on the season and blew out another opponent.
They came out a bit flat, and the game was far from perfect, but every No.1 team seems to have one of those, and well, I’m not saying this was one of those, but the Dawgs had to play harder than they intended on doing against Missouri.
The Tigers wanted to make the Dawgs work for it, and they sure did, but still lost by 37 points.
Georgia football improved to 9-0 on the season and is on the warpath — here are our takeaways from that impressive blowout victory.
Georgia used their abundance of playmakers to their advantage, and even when they couldn’t run the ball like they wanted to, they could still score almost at will.
Losing Jamaree Salyer stung a bit more than they needed it to, but the Dawgs worked it out in the end. They met their point goal. They scored 43 points — for most teams, that is a heck of a game, and they would take it. However, it’s clear this team holds itself to a higher standard, and until they meet those, they will never be happy.
After watching the game, here are nine takeaways from the Dawgs win over Missouri that made them 9-0 on the season.
9. Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart refuses to accept mediocrity
Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart never let off the gas pedal on Saturday. He is an emotional coach, and even when his team was up by multiple scores, he continued to coach them like they were down two touchdowns.
He told the sideline reporter they needed to be more disciplined and have fewer penalities at the half. Georgia finished the game with four penalties for 35 yards. Some penalties were ridiculous because of how one-sided the referees were, but of course, the Dawgs had to beat the refs too.
Missouri held the Dawgs all day long but barely got penalized for it. The Tigers finished with one more penalty at five for 25 yards. Georiga had a questionable pass interference call, but besides all that, Smart wanted more out of his team.
The way he yelled and coached them throughout the game tells us he honestly treats each game like it’s their last.
Humility is a week away — that is one of Smart’s favorite things to say right now, and it’s true. Missouri took away the run, and the Dawgs improvised.
Smart knows his team has to remain focused, and anything less than elite isn’t acceptable.
There will be no mediocre football in Athens anymore, and Smart will ensure that first hand. The hilarious hot-mic moment told the entire college football audience this head coach wants to win at all costs and doesn’t care what it takes.
He knows they weren’t getting the calls, but as the Georgia Bulldogs, SEC officials seem to never be on the right side — thanks to that celebration 14 years ago against Florida.
Smart’s aggressiveness is why these players love him so much. They see he wants it as bad as they do and Saturday was a prime example of that. He didn’t care if they were up by one point or 37 points — Smart wanted his guys to go out there and play with everything they had.
If his guys are on the field, Smart wants them to headhunt and bully the opponent. Missouri got some shots in there on Saturday, which Georgia didn’t like at all.
Smart and the defensive leaders will watch the film and evaluate because there is no way he lets those small mistakes continue to happen.
8. Nolan Smith and Travon Walker are freaks of nature
Two of the biggest stars on the Georgia football defense are Travon Walker and Nolan Smith. These two are freaks of nature that make opponents look straight-up ridiculous when they put their minds to something.
Walker recorded four tackles with one sack and two tackles for loss. Smith was a bit quieter with three total tackles and one tackle for loss. However, he did block the punt early on in the game that landed Georgia a safety.
Missouri had a hard time covering either one of those guys, and while the stats don’t necessarily say that, the duo flies around constantly if you watch the film.
Smith is such a force for the Dawgs. When he wants to prove a point, he does, and not many people can stop him. Walker is also someone who is getting hot at the right moment of the season.
While Georgia’s defense is full of playmakers, these two are so physically gifted, and when they do something big, it cannot go unnoticed.
Georgia needs Smith to keep it up after losing Adam Anderson this week, and Walker showed that he would make the play when he gets a look.
They shined against Missouri, and it’s hard not to brag about these two because they are so strong when they are playing well.
7. Georgia football saw their wideouts go above expectations
Georgia football saw nine different players get at least one catch against Missouri on Saturday.
After waiting weeks to get receivers healthy, the unit finally showed the world a piece of what they can do.
Jermaine Burton led the way with three catches on four targets for 76 yards and one touchdown. He averaged 19 yards after the catch, and if it weren’t for Missouri’s tricky secondary, he would have had three scores under his belt.
This guy was hungry to make some plays, and he did just that.
Another guy that shined against Missouri is Adonai Mitchell. He finished with three catches for 38 yards to have the second-most on the team.
Ladd McConkey had three catches for 36 yards and a score. His fellow freshman, Brock Bowers, made an incredible catch that was a bit high from Stetson Bennett that resulted in a first down, and that play told us what kind of weapon he is for the Dawgs.
Arian Smith caught the fourth-down touchdown pass from Bennett to give Georgia their first points of the day. Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint joined in on the fun with two catches for 18 yards, and Kenny McIntosh had two catches for 37 yards.
Between Bennett and JT Daniels, they fed their receivers and tight ends well in this game. The Dawgs showed the world they have a passing unit that can win ballgames when a defense stacks the box and slows down the rush attack.
This performance is one to remember moving forward because it will be one that signified the start of what this passing attack does the rest of the season.
6. Stetson Bennett outperformed JT Daniels — as he should have
Head coach Kirby Smart finally did what Georgia football fans asked, and that is play, JT Daniels. However, it was only for the second half after Stetson Bennett handled the Tigers in the first half.
Bennett outperformed Daniels as he should have because he has done this since the Vanderbilt game. Daniels had to shake some rust off, and he threw an interception late in the game, but it didn’t matter. The Dawgs had this one in the bag.
Both quarterbacks completed over 60% of their passes and combined for 337 yards and three touchdowns.
Bennett went 13-of-19 for 255 yards and two scores, while Daniels went 7-of-11 for 82 yards and one touchdown.
Fans have plenty to say about Bennett and how he can’t do this or can’t do that, but every time someone says something, the Mailman delivers and does whatever he needs to do.
He had some questionable passes, but thankfully the wideouts caught most of those wild ones. Bennett threw some beautiful passes, including the one on fourth down for a score and the 42 yarder to Jermaine Burton.
Is Daniels physically more talented than Bennett? Of course, he is. However, there is something deep down in Bennett that makes him a great quarterback. It’s not just the ability to use his legs or anything like that, but the love he has for Georgia and the moxy he brings to the table.
Daniels should start seeing more and more snaps now that he is healthy, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Georgia didn’t use both. He got some game-time reps on Saturday and knows what he has to work on this week, but both quarterbacks can lead this team to a national title — Georgia fans are the only ones who haven’t quite accepted that yet.
5. Aggressive fourth-down calls boosted Georgia football to success
One of the best play calls all game was the fourth-down pass from Stetson Bennett to Arian Smith for a touchdown that got the Dawgs’ offense going.
Offensive coordinator Todd Monken gave various looks against the Tigers, and for the most part, they were exciting to watch. He wasn’t afraid to go for things, ask Bennett to make plays or anything in between — he knew this offense could do whatever they needed to win.
He had to get creative when the run game wasn’t working up the middle, and when head coach Kirby Smart figuratively said open up the playbook, Monken did just that.
When James Cook took the snap out of the “Wild-Dawg” formation, it sent chills down my spine and Monken’s trust that the offense could convert made it even better. Georgia wasn’t settling for points on Saturday unless they decided to kick a field goal.
The Dawgs converted 4-of-9 third downs and 2-of-2 fourth-down conversions. Georgia didn’t have to convert much because they were able to gain 25 first downs against Missouri — 10 more than the Tigers.
It was good to see Monken get creative with this offense, but if you think about it, having guys like Jermaine Burton, Smith, Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint and Kearis Jackson healthy allowed him to open it up and have some fun.
Jackson’s 37-yard run was a beautiful decision on his part because it confused the defense, and the Dawgs finally got an explosive run play.
Georgia punted just once, and that was their opening drive of the game. After that punt, it was Monken, and the offense figured out how to gain yardage and do work. The Dawgs need to keep up this aggressive play calling because it’s working, and no one will expect it because usually Georgia plays it safe or takes the field goal.
4. Georgia football doesn’t have a concern with its rush attack
Georgia football is RBU, but the Dawgs showed it could win ballgames through the air as well. The Dawgs rushing game is fine, and while they should have recorded more yards on the ground than they did, it was enough to get the job done.
Missouri sold out to stop the run because so many people talked about how they had the dead last rushing defense in the country — including us, we all thought they would put 300-yards on the Tigers. However, Georgia didn’t, and that doesn’t mean they are struggling to run the ball.
Give Missouri some credit, they had one goal, and they did the best they could against a tough Georgia offense. The Tigers stacked the box, and Georgia tried to take it up the middle far too much.
Plus, losing Jamaree Salyer was tough on the offensive line, as they struggled to get the push they wanted up front they usually do.
The Dawgs weren’t very creative with the run game to start, they tried to punch it up the gut, and there were just too many bodies. Once they started getting it out on the corners a bit, Georgia found some more success.
Georgia rushed for 168 yards on 33 carries, averaging 5.1 yards a touch. While that would look impressive to everyone else against Missouri, it wasn’t good enough for some fans.
It’s perfectly normal to have expectations, but fans need to remember that Salyer’s out and the Tigers were stacking the box nonstop. When personnel changes, it takes some time to adjust.
Georgia did enough to get the yardage it needed and used the passing game for the rest.
Folks talk about what Georgia will do if someone does stop the run. Well, the offense showed everyone they could still win by five touchdowns without relying heavily on the ground game on Saturday.
Regardless of expectations, 168 yards on the ground is more than plenty to get a win.
3. Dawgs defense hung tough when it mattered most
Georgia’s defense will put their names in the history books after this season, and it’ll be because they fought so hard to keep offenses out of the endzone. There are other reasons, but their ability to put a wall up on that goal line is impressive. You have to marvel at it.
Four of their nine games saw opponents settle for either no points or field goals instead of touchdowns.
Georgia refuses to give up more than 13 points in a game, and if they even allow a team to get in the endzone, those are too many points.
That aggressive nature is perfect for defining what makes up national championship-caliber defenses.
The goal line stand at the end of the ball game tells the story of this defense and how no matter if a player is first, second or third-string, the goal is to keep opponents out of the endzone. Georgia did that and made sure Missouri didn’t score any more points.
Georgia’s defensive performance likely lit a fire under their tails because they missed a few too many tackles and gave up over 100-yards on the ground. They might not have wreaked as much havoc as they wanted to, but it was enough to get the win.
Good luck, Tennessee, because those mistakes will get fixed before they head to Knoxville.
However, Georgia’s aggressiveness down the stretch showed their heart and how important their point goals are to them. This unit has the makings of a national title winner, and they will do everything in their power to make it happen.
2. Georgia football has perks being No.1 in the country
Georgia has been No.1 in the country for a hot minute now, and even though the team doesn’t want to care because they would rather stay humble, that ranking has some added perks that come with it.
The Atlanta Braves won the World Series for the first time in 26 years, and one of their biggest fans along the way was the Georgia Bulldogs. Their social channels sent out good luck messages and congrats messages — that whole interaction was just neat to watch.
After winning, head coach Kirby Smart extended an invite to the Braves and their mascot Blooper to come to Saturday’s game against Missouri.
Well, Blooper and Joc Pederson showed up on Saturday and took it all in like they were part of the team.
Hairy Dawg even got Blooper a Georgia jersey to wear with his Braves one. Who invites an Atlanta team to Athens and have them show up — Georgia does. These perks are one of the reasons being No.1 in the country is incredible.
Blooper and Pederson both soaked it in and seemed like they had a blast. They’ve both posted multiple things to social media talking about how lovely the atmosphere, game, and whole ordeal was.
If you haven’t read between the lines yet, this kind of thing is all about recruiting, and it’s a pretty unique way to do it. Some kids like baseball and football — heck, they may be huge Braves fans, and to see this had to be impactful for someone.
Smart and the university are so creative in recruiting and choosing ways to do different things. At the same time, the Braves broke their streak, and Georgia is trying to break theirs, so the two are practically brothers. Teams with long streaks must stick together, and if the Braves love the Dawgs, everyone should.
1. Finally, Georgia football isn’t afraid to pile on the points
After so many years of wanting head coach Kirby Smart to put points up on teams, he is finally doing it with this 2021 Georgia football squad.
The Dawgs could have stopped scoring at three touchdowns and would have been able to win this game handily, but instead, they kept putting points on the board.
On Saturday, five different players scored touchdowns, sharing the wealth with whoever wanted to get in the endzone.
Georgia needs to keep that mindset moving forward because the more people who can get in the endzone, the more their confidence improves. Boosting their confidence will allow the quarterbacks to trust them in big situations to catch the ball and score if they need to go to that player.
The Dawgs have so many guys that can make plays. Why not use all of them instead of a small handful. Teams will have to prepare for more, and it’ll make Georgia tougher to cover.
Plus, it’s great to see Smart stop sitting on big leads because even though Missouri wasn’t capable of a comeback, a team like Alabama or Ohio State is if they get their offense going. So the more points Georgia can score, the better.
The times of sitting on leads because he respects a particular coach needs to get put to rest. Score until the clock hits 00:00 because in this day and age of college football, the more points you score, the better.
Georgia football got its ninth win pretty easily, but they had to work for it some too.
The Dawgs need to tighten the focus a bit moving forward just to avoid any distractions. Tennessee is next, and the Vols are confident, so Georgia must fix these minor mistakes and get ready to go up and embarrass the Vols in Neyland Stadium.