ATLANTA — Stetson Bennett and the rest of the Georgia Bulldogs looked as if they were still in peak Indianapolis-mode from January. As time ticked away in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff, the Dawgs looked to be in a different stratosphere than the visiting Oregon Ducks.
The first seven drives of the game for Georgia all went the distance for six. Bennett was locked in all day, completing 25 of 31 passes for personal record 368 yards and two touchdowns. He added another touchdown on the ground with eight yards on two carries. All the while, going 8-8 on 3rd down conversions.
“You know, that’s what I’m most proud of is the 3rd downs. I mean, that’s what we were harping on, 3rd down and red zone, this whole off-season, and we executed.”, said Bennett.
On the ground, the Dawgs averaged 5.3 yards per carry and saw four of the team’s seven touchdowns. They were led by junior running back Kendall Milton, who had eight of UGA’s 25 carries, tallying 50-yards and one TD. As a collective, they finished with 132 yards on the ground.
Defensively they stifled the Ducks’ play-in and play-out Saturday, holding them to just 313 total yards and refusing to allow a touchdown. Freshman Maliaki Starks and senior Christopher Smith both snagged interceptions, a massive reflection of the efficiency of the defensive line disrupting the backfield all day. Despite that pressure, there were no sacks for either team, something UGA head coach Kirby Smart addressed post-game.
“We had some pressures called, and it doesn’t matter if you throw the ball in 2.1 seconds, and they screened us a lot, so you’re not going to get many sacks in that. We’ve got good rushers. We’ve got guys that will be productive, but we knew going into the game he’s hard to get on the ground.”
The pressure was felt in the stat column for sure, with the two picks and Nix’s 57% completion percentage. 3rd downs for the Ducks were a completely different story, only converting on 7 of 15 3rd downs. Additionally, the only points Oregon was able to muster up was a lone 35-yard field goal from Camden Lewis.
On the scoreboard, the game was in the books by halftime, with the Dawgs leading 28-3. Georgia only allowed two drives to have 50+ yards of offensive progression, and one of those being their final drive of the game, which accounted for 87 of their 313 total yards. That drive would end in a goal-line stand for the Dawgs, while leading 49-3.
Though two teams were on the field, the domination by Georgia overwhelmed Oregon from start to finish. It’s a level of play that the Dawgs will have to maintain if they want to meet their own expectations, expectations that Smart says himself are already well established in a manner that aren’t externally influenced.
“I don’t look at it from the expectations standpoint. I look at it like what can we do better; how do we improve; how do we get more players playing winning football because everybody in this room knows we’re going to lose somebody. Somebody is going to be injured throughout the year, and how do we get them better.”, said Smart.
“But the expectations I have is for our guys to play at their best and our coaches to prepare at their best, and I think that our guys really did that this game.”
The only question now is, can they maintain it throughout the season. Only time can answer that question. For now, the Dawgs will run the film and get prepped for a home game against Samford at Sanford Stadium in Athens on Set 10th. Following this, they will open up SEC play on the road against the Gamecocks of South Carolina.
Written by Adrian Beecher
