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AJC > Sports > UGA > Blog > Archives > 2008 > September > 13
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Winning the hard way … in the SEC
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Did the Georgia team that limped out of Columbia with an SEC win Saturday look like a potential national champion?
Well, yes and no.
It was a typically ugly, low-scoring Bulldogs-Gamecocks game that certainly didn’t see UGA firing on all cylinders, either offensively or defensively. Georgia’s offense, in particular, never could seem to get into rhythm. But if an SEC team is going to win the national title while playing in a conference that is much tougher top to bottom than the Pac 10, Big 10 or Big 12, it’s going to have ugly wins and even have to have a bit of luck here and there. Georgia reached that benchmark Saturday.
It was an SEC victory (no small accomplishment on any day) against a team that may have underperformed offensively to date despite having Steve Spurrier as its coach but which boasts one of the best defensive fronts in the nation. The South Carolina defense is probably as tough as any we’ll face this season.
That said, the Dawgs certainly aren’t yet playing at the level they’re going to have to reach and sustain in order to take home that crystal football at the end of the season.
The main problem areas: too many penalties, including those that stymied Georgia drives (like an illegal snap on third-and-goal at the 1-yard line) and those penalties that gave the Cocks first downs (six Carolina drives Saturday were extended by flags thrown on the Dawgs). As Coach Richt said after the game, that shows a lack of discipline as a team and “sooner or later it’s gonna bite us.” … Last year’s S.C. game bugaboo, dropped passes, returned, with Tripp Chandler muffing two on third-down plays and Kris Durham bobbling a TD throw. … The past two games have shown the Georgia defense pretty much incapable of putting pressure on a quarterback without blitzing. The down linemen just aren’t getting any traction. That was the case against Central Michigan and, as Richt said, in this game “nothing changed.” … The Dawgs’ run-blocking and pass protection continue to be spotty. Knowshon Moreno was stuffed too many times. After gaining eight yards on first down on a fourth-quarter drive (when all they had to do was get another first down to ice the game), the Dawgs couldn’t get those last two yards. And Matthew Stafford was sacked four times. It was particularly disturbing to see two of those sacks come on almost identical corner blitzes. … Offensive coordinator Mike Bobo couldn’t resist trying (unsuccessfully) for a big strike downfield when what he needed to do was eat clock. I thought he’d outgrown that.
So, it was a win, and an SEC win at that. But as Moreno said after the game, the Dawgs have “got a lot of stuff to work on.”
BULLDOG BITES: Among the good things about the game, Georgia allowed just 18 rushing yards and came up with a couple of key turnovers that sealed the win. … Moreno had a 32-yard punt return, though the resulting drive faltered. I wouldn’t want to see him back there on a regular basis because of the injury potential, but it’s a nice weapon to have in the arsenal. … You gotta love seeing Stafford scamper for big runs on those QB keepers. Unfortunately, we went to that well one time too often. It’s also great seeing Stafford throwing blocks for Moreno. It’s a team thing that will pay off down the road. … Drew Butler’s attempt at a pooch punt likely would have been more successful if it wasn’t his first time ever on the field as a Bulldog. Why didn’t they use him in one of the earlier games? … You got the feeling CBS’ Verne Lundquist and Gary Danielson have never seen a football player cramp up before, the way they were carrying on when that happened to Stafford in the fourth quarter. … That 50-yard pass to MoMass thrown off the back foot by a scrambling Stafford may have been caught out of bounds, but it was graphic evidence of what a phenomenal arm he has. And the 39-yard pass to A.J. Green was a big-time catch of a big-time throw. … A 77-yard punt? Wow, that could have been a game-clincher had it not been followed by Georgia lapsing into loose zone coverage that allowed S.C. to come zipping back down the field. Thank goodness they choked. … I’d love to hear Coach Fab’s rationale for those ridiculously short kickoffs he favors. Kick coverage obviously isn’t one of our strengths, so why not just stick it in the end zone?
