Georgia's defense could not get a stop against Ole Miss on Saturday. The Rebels just marched down the field for the fifth time in a row to take a 35-26 lead and it looked like all hope for Georgia was lost.
The Bulldogs offense then went out and scored a touchdown of their own to cut the Rebels lead to 35-33, but Georgia needed their defense to get their first stop of the game if they were going to have a chance to win this game. That is when a moment occurred on the sideline that no one noticed that led to Georgia's defense getting a stop and this game flipping in UGA's favor.
Kirby Smart explained after the game what went down.
"The turning point was when the offense scored and all the offensive players ran over to the defense," Smart shared via 247sports.com. "I thought they inspired the defense. Before we got the first stop, it was right after we scored, about seven of them ran over there, Luckie (Lawson), Nate (Frazier), all the guys, Earnest (Greene). I think the defense felt the juice. They felt the juice, got a little cooler, got a little louder. We got some big stops there."
Georgia's offense provided a spark that led to UGA's first stop
Everyone was very frustrated with Georgia's defense at this point in the game. Ole Miss was perfect so far in the game, scoring five touchdowns on their five possessions, and the game looked like it was the Rebels to win.
But after Georgia's offense scored and cut the Rebels lead to 35-33, several members of the offense ran over to the defense to motivate them. According to Smart, it was those players who inspired the defense to go out and finally get their first stop of the game. And that is exactly what they did as Ole Miss went three and out and punted the ball back to Georgia.
The rest of the game was all Georgia as the Bulldogs scored a touchdown on the next possession before their defense forced another three and out.
Georgia ultimately went on to win 43-35, but it was this moment on the sideline that Smart believes flipped the game in UGA's favor.