It could be worse, but should it not be better? Why is it that seemingly every week Georgia's defense gets cooked like a chicken, while Glenn Schumann just stands there on the sidelines to watch his side of the ball get run roughshod on? Yes, the Ole Miss Rebels have a strong offense, but this is Trinidad Chambliss' first road start of his SEC career. Schumann's defense allowed Ole Miss to score at will...
The good news is Mike Bobo's side of the ball came to play. Georgia scored on all four of its offensive possessions in the first half. The problem was two of those possessions ended in field goals. Georgia trailed Ole Miss 21-20 at halftime. While it was not a great first half for Ole Miss defensive coordinator Pete Golding either, this is a home game for the Dawgs. Kirby Smart has to bail out Schumann again...
Look. Schumann cannot be held solely responsible for his side of the ball not committing to tackle with conviction. However, he is the one designing these plays to attempt to stop Chambliss, Lane Kiffin and the rest of Charlie Weis Jr.'s offense. Georgia continues to have virtually no pass rush. Tray Scott deserves some of the blame there. In the end, Georgia needs to move on from Schumann soon.
Ole Miss is an excellent team, but this Georgia defense might cost the Dawgs their shot at the playoff.
Glenn Schumann keeps on proving he is not an SEC defensive coordinator
The good news for Georgia, besides this being a home game for the Dawgs, is that Smart is the best halftime adjuster in the sport of college football. Quarterback Gunner Stockton appears to have that clutch gene in him. Georgia did play better in the first half in all three phases, when compared to the laughable first 28 minutes the Bulldogs put forth at Auburn last week. Ole Miss is better than Auburn...
So what is it going to take? How about actually tackling a guy and bringing him to the ground on third down? Instead of grabbing a guy on a pass outside the numbers, maybe let's think about playing the ball and coming up with it? Georgia can still win this game, but Ole Miss is a far more talented football team than Auburn was a week ago. Georgia cannot afford another loss after this one if it does come.
In the end, Georgia should be a playoff team, one that probably ends up going 10-2, and not making it to Atlanta for tie-breaker reasons. There may not be a great team in college football this season, but Georgia is showing everyone every week that you can score points on them in the first half. The worst part is the Georgia offense did its part to make sure Ole Miss was not going to run away with this one.
If Georgia wants to be a real national title contender, it has to become more than a second-half team.