LEXINGTON, Ky.—Sometimes players pretend to ignore the critics. Sometimes they drop the façade. Georgia linebacker Monty Rice did the latter Saturday night in the aftermath of his team’s SEC East-clinching win at Kentucky.
“Our D-linemen played huge,” Rice said before looking at reporters. “I know you guys like to call our D-line out a lot when they do bad. Just to let you know, those guys are my brothers, so when you all call them out you’re calling me out, and the rest of the linebackers.”
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Actually, I told Rice, we didn’t just criticize the D-line. We called out the linebackers, too. Full disclosure and all.
“OK, that’s— all right, then that’s us, too,” Rice said, turning his head aside and trying not to smile.
OK, then, so did the entire front seven answer a lot of questions?
Rice shook his head.
“I don’t think we did. I think you guys still doubt us, but that’s OK,” he said. “That’s what the practice field is for.”
Jonathan Ledbetter, one of those defensive ends, was sounding a similar note in the postgame room.
“It really is disrespectful, and a lot of it comes from the people who don’t do what we do,” Ledbetter said. “But it’s OK, people are going to talk whether you’re playing football or living your life. You’ve just got to ignore the naysayers.”
The reality, and Rice and Ledbetter probably know this, is that Georgia’s front seven, and the team in general, will have naysayers up until the SEC Championship Game, when the real challenge of this season, trying to erase the last shadow of last season, finally arrives.
But in soundly beating No. 9 Kentucky 34-17, the Georgia defense — especially that front seven— at minimum did answer the doubts. Entering the game, as I pointed out during the week, Georgia’s first- and third-leading tacklers were safeties, which isn’t a good thing. In this game, Rice led the way, Ledbetter was second, and members of the front seven combined for 42 of the team’s 66 tackles. There were four sacks and five tackles for loss, all by outside linebackers or defensive linemen.
Here is our weekly look at how it happened, after watching the TV copy of the game:
Containing— and stopping— Kentucky RB Benny Snell Jr.
Georgia might not have a great defense, but it has what has been, with one exception this year, an effective defense, for one big reason: limiting big plays.
Georgia has allowed the fewest 20-plus-yard plays in the FBS this season: 17, four fewer than any other team. Five of those 17 plays occurred in the LSU game. The other eight Georgia opponents have averaged only 1.5 such plays. So there you go.
Kentucky only had one of those plays, and it was after Georgia took a 28-3 lead. Benny Snell Jr. matched his season lowwith just one rush of at least 10 yards, after averaging 3.3 such rushes in Kentucky’s first eight games.
It was bend but don’t break, and Kentucky was actually doing well in the first portion of this game: Through 21 minutes it dominated time of possession and outgained the Bulldogs. Kentucky’s first four drives: 33 plays for 133 yards over 16 minutes and 47 seconds. Kentucky’s next three drives: three-and-out, kneel-down, three-and-out. At which point Georgia took a 28-3 lead.
The key for Georgia was containing the damage on those first four drives. That’s where not giving up big plays comes in, buying time for big defensive plays: Brenton Cox and Channing Tindall with third-down sacks, Juwan Taylor forcing a fumble and so on.
Georgia stretched out its defense, going with four or five down linemen most of the time, then another five or six stretched out 5 to 10 yards behind the line, with one high safety. Georgia was very committed to that, so much so that even when Kentucky drove to the 6-yard line early in the second quarter the Bulldogs went 4-6-1. The result was Terry Wilson couldn’t get outside on a zone read, stopped at a 2-yard gain.
The goal, which was attained, was to be able to swarm the middle and limit the stretch plays to the outside. You can do that when you don’t respect the downfield pass.
In fact, Georgia didn’t react to Wilson having some early success throwing the ball, staying with its focus on the run, loading the middle.
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If you were Kentucky, the field just seemed small. Georgia had size and speed, and every player on the field seemed to be doing the right thing: either swarming to the ball, clogging a running lane, or stuck to a receiver. It seems simplistic to say the players were just locked in, but they were.
Georgia players were getting off blocks well, too. In past games, you saw too many members of the front seven pushed around as the offense moved forward. This time, there were white jerseys always seeming to move.
An example: When Cox recorded the first sack, ending Kentucky’s second drive, he made a great swim move but the play wasn’t going anywhere anyway. Georgia’s coverage was really good. Wilson was forced to go left, where he was pinned near the left sideline as Cox bore down on him.
One of the keys was the sequence when Kentucky drove to Georgia’s 6-yard line early in the second quarter: First, a false start pushed it back to third-and-9, then Tindall’s sack forced a field-goal try. (Tindall, only in for his second snap of the game, lined up over the middle and ran over Snell before hauling down Wilson.) If Kentucky punches it in there, the score is tied, and the game could have felt a lot different. But again, Georgia bent but didn’t break.
Georgia’s potent offense
While Georgia’s defense was limiting big plays, the offense was making the most of its limited opportunities, only stopping itself: Jake Camarda only punted once. Every other possession was a touchdown, field goal or lost fumble.
By scoring touchdowns on four of its 10 offensive drives, Georgia had its best touchdown rate against a ranked opponent this season (40 percent, versus 28.6 percent against South Carolina, LSU and Florida.) That’s according to SportsSource Analytics.
This was another example of Georgia being at its best when it is two-dimensional. Quarterback Jake Fromm was accurate, and running backs Elijah Holyfield and D’Andre Swift were explosive. That keeps a defense off-balance and allows an offensive coordinator to be unpredictable.
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The key drive of the game came in the second quarter after Kentucky had made it 7-3, and when a quick Georgia drive— its previous one had been three-and-out (run, run, run)— would have resulted in a tired Bulldog defense retaking the field. Instead, Georgia unleashed a long touchdown drive, passing five times, handing off to Holyfield or Swift seven times and rushing Justin Fields twice.
Third downs again were the key, with Georgia going 7-for-12, its highest rate in SEC play this season (58.3 percent).
The final count on players Swift made miss on his 20-yard touchdown was only three, it just seemed like more. The safety missed the tackle at the line, then Swift cut past a couple more left flat-footed on the second level. Swift acknowledged after the game that this is the most healthy he’s felt in a while, after the groin injury that slowed him midseason. A few weeks ago he probably doesn’t make that brilliant touchdown run in the first half, cutting back and forth.
Holyfield and Swift have great acceleration, but their vision and patience also have been great. Holyfield showed it on his first carry of the game when he gained 15 yards after going to the right, letting the swarm of defenders go that direction ahead of him, and then cutting upfield. Then there was Holyfield’s 30-yard run in the third quarter, cutting outside and outrunning the lone defensive back on that side.
Swift’s 83-yarder was a great burst by the tailback, but also good first- and second-level blocks: Trey Hill opened a hole to his left, with Solomon Kindley also providing a seal, and Jeremiah Holloman came across the field to block a safety. Head coach Kirby Smart saw it, giving Holloman an excited high-five on the sideline afterward.
Tyler Simmons also had a good block on a run play, coming across the field to clear the way for Holyfield on a 10-yard run in the third quarter.
It also spoke to the confidence Georgia has in its young linemen to come out calling so many runs to begin the second half, despite having two true freshmen in the interior. Of course, that also could be read the other way: Young linemen often run block better than pass block. Either way, when Holyfield bulled his way into the end zone from 4 yards, making it 20-3 (pending the PAT), Cade Mays and Isaiah Wilson could be seen celebrating in the end zone, and deservedly so: Georgia got three big plays on the drive (a 17-yard pass to Riley Ridley, a 30-yard run that was mostly Holyfield, and a targeting penalty), but the other six plays saw Georgia’s young line getting a push.
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Making Kentucky OLB Josh Allen a non-factor
What did Georgia do here? First off, it ran the ball a lot and ran the ball away from Allen. That was the most important thing: If Georgia had to put more of the game on the pass, Allen would have had more of a chance to be a difference maker. Instead, Kentucky’s defense spent most of the day off-balance.
Allen was held to a season-low one tackle— one week after making nine against Missouri— and was held without a tackle for loss for just the third time this season.
Fromm was only pressured on two of his 21 passes. It didn’t seem to be anything exotic: There were some quick passes, rollouts away from Allen, and occasionally Allen was doubled.
Another goal-line snafu
One of the only hiccups in this game for Georgia was the goal-line trouble early in the fourth quarter. The camera caught Smart after the third-down stuff going ballistic into his headset, seemingly at the coaches upstairs, perhaps in disagreement over not going for it. The discussion went on for about 30 seconds.
But before the second-down play, the camera caught some confusion going on: Jim Chaney, in the press box could be seen with his hands up, then looking over at James Coley, then throwing his hands on his head just as the play was being run. Georgia ended up in the shotgun, handing off to Swift, who was stuffed on a run up the middle. Something clearly went amiss there.
The broadcast also showed Chaney incredulously throwing his arms up, looking off-camera, but it wasn’t clear exactly when during the goal-line series that was. Only that it was during the goal-line series.
It’s easy to blame Chaney for everything that goes wrong with the offense, but sometimes there might be breakdowns in communication, or a breakdown somewhere else, or who knows? Either way, it’s a good thing Georgia can be so explosive on offense becausenear the goal line … yeah.
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Other observations
Mecole Hardman continues to be quietly spectacular on punt returns: He has seven punt returns of 20 yards or more this season, most in the nation. In all, seven of Hardman’s 10 punt returns have gained 20 yards or more (70 percent), the highest rate of any FBS player with at least three punt returns this season.
Some of it is sheer ability: On Hardman’s 65-yard return in the first quarter, there were three blue jerseys within about 5 yards of him, but he got past them right away. Some of that is blocking, too, so credit to guys on punt return, including but not limited to Simmons, Holloman, Prather Hudson, Keyon Richardson andHolyfield. (Yes, Holloman and Holyfield.)
More bullet points:
•Rodrigo Blankenship was back to near-perfect on touchbacks, going 6-for-7.
• Yes, Fields had thrown a collegiate pass before this game. Twenty-five, actually.
• When Kentucky scored two second-half touchdowns, it looked like Georgia did let up a bit, respecting the traditional pass a bit more, and Kentucky exploited it with quarterback scrambles and quick throws. It also helped to have a fluky catch and run for 31 yards. Anyway, those two touchdown drives, geared off the pass, probably don’t happen in a close game — or at least they don’t happen that way.
• Credit to Natrez Patrick, raked over the coals for missed tackles last week, for a bounce-back performance. He had a nice pass breakup all the way over on the sideline in the second half.
• Rice has become really proficient at making plays in space, including against the pass. If he can continue his upward trajectory, that will be huge down the stretch for Georgia. Rick Neuheisel relayed on the air that he asked Mel Tucker if Rice was the next Roquan Smith. Tucker’s response, according to Neuheisel: “I don’t want to put that on him, but if you’re asking if he’s real good, he’s real good.”
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•Given Georgia’s short-yardage issues, Hardman’s holding penalty on the second touchdown drive ended up being a positive: Instead of third-and-short, Georgia was pushed back to second-and-17, and on the next play Swift ran for a touchdown.
• Incredibly, Georgia ended up winning the time-of-possession battle after falling behind 16:47 to 5:10 in the first half.
•It did look like Fields had the green light to pass it on his second play as four receivers were sent out. But Fields didn’t like the look and scrambled, losing a yard.
Final thoughts
There’s nothing major to criticize about this game. There are no “yeah, but …” factors about the victory. Georgia played a complete game, its best of the season considering the circ*mstances, and offered up evidence that it can continue to get better.
Does it mean that Georgia can compete with Alabama? Not yet, but that game isn’t for another four weeks. Until then, the Bulldogs can keep working in youngsters and coming together as a group, while being careful not to look too far ahead: Auburn and Georgia Tech aren’t necessarily layups.
The win at Kentucky was Georgia’s best performance to date. It doesn’t need to end up being the best performance of the entire season.
(Top photo by Mark Zerof / USA TODAY Sports)
