The game that was
Georgia jumped to a 17-0 lead and, despite being held to three points in the second half, held on for a 27-13 victory at Ole Miss. The Bulldogs (2-2, 1-1 SEC) withstood three missed field-goal attempts by Blair Walsh and two trick plays for touchdowns by Ole Miss (1-3, 0-2).
What we learned
1. Isaiah Crowell's role and impact continue to grow. After getting 16 carries in each of the two previous games, Georgia's freshman tailback carried 30 times (for 147 yards) against Ole Miss and clearly has become the focal point of the UGA offense. The recruiting analysts appear to have been correct about this one.
2. Georgia's top wide receiver is a freshman, too. While Crowell was the game's leading rusher, another member of the Bulldogs' ballyhooed 2011 signing class, Malcolm Mitchell, had the most receiving yards with 92 on three catches, including a 69-yarder. Aside from Mitchell, most of Georgia's receiving yards came from tight ends Orson Charles (59 yards and a touchdown on five catches) and Aron White (52 yards and a touchdown on three catches).
3. There's still a lot of work to do. The Bulldogs need to get Walsh back on track, need to get more than three touchdowns out of 475 yards of offense and need to shore up their special-teams play.
The numbers game
0-6 Coach Houston Nutt’s record against Georgia (0-1 with Ole Miss and 0-5 with Arkansas)
Loose ends
The win was Georgia’s ninth in a row against Ole Miss. ... Georgia’s 56 rushing attempts were its second most under Mark Richt, topped only by 57 in a 51-7 victory over Georgia Tech in 2002. ... Georgia’s defense held Ole Miss to 183 yards offense, including just 34 on 26 rushing attempts (1.3 yards per rush). ... Drew Butler averaged 55.2 yards on four punts. That matched his performance against Arkansas in 2009 as the third best single-game punting average in UGA history, behind his 57.0 vs. Oklahoma State in 2009 and Bobby Walden’s 63.0 vs. Texas in 1958.
Sound bite
“We’d been working it for a month and a half, and it was a good time to call it.” — Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt on the Rebels’ 81-yard touchdown off a punt-return reverse.
What’s next
Georgia will face Mississippi State at noon Saturday in Athens. Mississippi State (2-2, 0-2 SEC) is coming off a tougher-than-expected victory, a 26-20 overtime win over Louisiana Tech in Starkville.
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