If there was one major takeaway from Georgia's decisive win over Arkansas, it's this: Georgia’s run defense is starting to look like the one thing that can make this team brutally difficult to beat, because it forces opponents into exactly the kind of game Kirby Smart wants.
Smart wants his opponents to be one-dimensional and to force them into being predictable. That's exactly what the Bulldogs did.
Arkansas finished the afternoon with 17 rushing yards on 20 attempts, for a minuscule 0.8 yards per carry. That’s not just a good day for the defensive line; that's total removal of one dimension of an SEC offense. The Dawgs also had three sacks -- a total loss of 28 yards -- and the Razorbacks were held to just three rushing first downs.
If you can't run the ball in the SEC, you're going to have trouble. If you can't run the ball against a team like Georgia, that trouble just multiplied by 100.
Georgia’s run defense may be the championship-level trait that has carried over most from 2025
This stifling run defense isn’t that new for Georgia; it’s simply a continuation of one of the strongest parts of last year’s defense. In 2025, Georgia allowed just 81.5 rushing yards per game and 2.94 yards per carry over the season. In SEC play, the Bulldogs allowed 91 rushing yards per game.
The Bulldogs had some absurd single-game performances in 2025 as well. Texas managed only 23 rushing yards in the regular-season matchup, while Alabama finished with minus-3 rushing yards in the SEC Championship Game.
Having consistency from that unit is important because many things on the team have changed somewhat -- receivers, offensive identity, younger pieces throughout the roster -- but the ability to make teams one-dimensional still looks very much intact.
Through three games this year, Georgia has allowed 137 rushing yards total, about 45.7 per game. The schedule matters, obviously, but Arkansas is the first piece of evidence that these numbers aren't purely an FCS/Group of Five mirage.
Oklahoma may end up padding Georgia's run defense stats even more
The Sooners just had a miserable rushing performance against New Mexico, picking up only 61 rushing yards on 32 attempts, 1.9 per carry, and no rushing touchdowns. Quarterback John Mateer was held to 17 net rushing yards, and Oklahoma’s leading running back, Lloyd Avant, only had 27.
If Oklahoma couldn’t run the ball against New Mexico, what exactly will they be able to do against this Georgia front?
While New Mexico currently has one of the better run defenses in the nation, a team like Oklahoma would have been expected to produce more. Even going back a week against Michigan, the Sooners only totaled 100 rushing yards and no rushing touchdowns.
Those kinds of numbers will have Glenn Schumann and the Georgia defense licking their chops. Making a mobile quarterback like John Mateer one-dimensional could further Georgia's record pace and provide yet another double-digit blowout win.
Unfortunately, with Oklahoma out of the Top 25 now, the potential win will have a little less luster to it.
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