Georgia pretty much got what it paid for on Saturday. The Bulldogs beat Troy 66-0 in what was effectively a practice game sandwiched between two SEC contests.
Quarterback Hutson Mason basically played one half, Todd Gurley played less than a quarter and nearly every one of the 106 Georgia players who dressed out for the game participated in the contest, which was well over before halftime. The Bulldogs led 45-0 at halftime, just short of the record 49 points it put up in the first half against New Mexico State in 2011.
The win provided some stress-free preparation for the Bulldogs (2-1, 0-1 SEC) in advance of next Saturday’s SEC home opener against Tennessee. The Vols (2-1, 0-0) had a bye on Saturday.
It was the most points Georgia had scored in a game since defeating Northeast Louisiana 70-6 in 1994 and the largest margin of victory since beating The Citadel 76-0 in 1958.
Gurley, a Heisman Trophy candidate, played only the first two offensive series for Georgia, then took the rest of the day off. He went 48 yards with his second carry and finished with 73 yards on six attempts.
His fill-in, freshman Sony Michel, picked up exactly where he left off. He finished off the Bulldogs’ first drive of the day with a six-yard touchdown run, added a 75-yard jaunt in the second quarter and completed his day in the third quarter with 155 yards on 10 carries and three TDs.
Mason played all but the last series of the first half, when he was relieved by redshirt freshman Brice Ramsey. Mason came back to throw a touchdown to Michael Bennett on the first possession of the second half, and finished 8-of-11 passing for 97 yards and two scores.
Ramsey went 4-of-8 passing for 66 yards and thrilled the crowd with a 39-yard completion to Chris Conley. Then Ramsey gave way to sophomore Faton Bauta, who ran for two touchdowns.
It was a big day for first-time players. Georgia also got a 52-yard punt return for a touchdown from freshman Isaiah McKenzie of Fort Lauderdale.
The outcome came at a cost for the Bulldogs. Tailback Keith Marshall went down with an apparent right knee injury with 3:00 remaining in the third quarter. Marshall missed the last eight games of last season after injuring his left knee against Tennessee last season. He actually had both knees surgically repaired last December.
Georgia originally was scheduled to play South Alabama this season via a $900,000 agreement. But a conflict emerged when the SEC reconfigured the conference schedules due to expansion and the Bulldogs effectively exchanged opponents with the Gamecocks.
As it is, Georgia welcomed a severely over-matched opponent. Though Troy has enjoyed extended periods of success under coach Larry Blakeney — including 2007 when it gave lost to the Bulldogs 44-34 — it is struggling this season. Playing without their injured starting quarterback, the Trojans fall to 0-4 for the first time since 1982.
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