On second thought, no rush on that Todd Gurley reinstatement.
For the second straight week, the Georgia Bulldogs played without their star tailback and for the second straight week they won an SEC road game with Nick Chubb carrying the load. This time, Arkansas was the victim as the Bulldogs rolled 45-32 in their first-ever trip to War Memorial Stadium.
A week after carrying the ball 38 times for 143 yards in a win at Missouri, Chubb carried it 30 times for 202 and two touchdowns against the Razorbacks. The freshman recorded several of those yards in the fourth quarter as the Bulldogs’ ran out the final 5:05 game. Georgia took a knee at Arkansas’ 12-yard line to complete the victory.
With the win, the No. 10-ranked Bulldogs improve to 6-1 on the season and remain atop the SEC’s Eastern Division at 4-1. Georgia now has a week off before it plays Florida in Jacksonville.
Meanwhile, the SEC loss was the 16th in a row for Arkansas. The Razorbacks fall to 3-4 overall and, with their third loss to a Top 10 team in as many weeks, remain winless under second-year coach Bret Bielema.
Georgia hopes to get back Gurley during the off week. The junior tailback missed his second consecutive game while on indefinite suspension. The Bulldogs are investigating allegations that he accepted improper benefits by signing autographed merchandise for money.
While Chubb and the Bulldogs remained in control most of the game, Arkansas came back fighting in the second half. The Razorbacks scored on their first two possessions of the second half to cut Georgia’s lead to 38-19 with 2:05 still remaining in the third quarter.
That’s when Georgia made two game-defining plays.
Arkansas’ offense was on the move again when it faced third-and-10 at its own 34. Quarterback Brandon Allen’s pass was tipped by cornerback Brendan Langley and intercepted by his former Kell High teammate Quincy Mauger over the middle. Mauger’s short return set up the Bulldogs at the Arkansas 42.
After two Chubb runs, Georgia faced third-and-four at the Arkansas 36. Hutson Mason then beautifully-executed a play-action fake to Chubb, put a pump-fake on a Razorbacks defensive back, then threw a strike to Chris Conley deep down the left sideline for what would prove to be a victory-clinching touchdown and a 45-19 lead with 13:08 to play.
The seven additional points proved helpful as Arkansas continued to move the football in the fourth quarter. The Razorbacks needed just three more minutes to get the margin back down to 19 points when Allen hit Kendrick Edwards with a four-yard touchdown pass.
Quayvon Hicks recovered Arkansas’ ensuing onside kick attempt at the Arkansas 47. But the Bulldogs couldn’t knock out a first down and ended up having to punt the ball back. The Razorbacks took over at their own 10 down three scores with 7:36 to play.
That proved to be just enough time for Georgia to preserve victory. With the help of some generous interference calls from the officials, the Razorbacks managed to negotiate the 90 yards in just 2:31. Alex Collins scored on a six-yard run with 5:05 remaining. Brandon Allen came less than a half-yard short on a keeper on the two-conversion try. That kept the margin to two scores for Georgia.
The Bulldogs went back to Chubb on their last possession and managed to burn all three of Arkansas’s timeouts.
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