Kimbrough’s hit on kickoff was Richt’s top play vs. Clemson
There were were some thrilling plays made by Georgia in this past Saturday’s game against Clemson. But the favorite one for Mark Richt didn’t involve any long touchdown jaunts by Todd Gurley or Nick Chubb or any quarterback sacks by Leonard Floyd or Amarlo Herrera.
The Bulldogs’ head coach said his favorite play was a special teams tackle made by sophomore linebacker Tim Kimbrough in the fourth quarter of the Bulldogs’ 45-21 victory.
With 10:22 remaining in the game, Kimbrough shoved a blocker out the way and laid a huge, full-speed hit on Clemson kick returner T.J. Green. Georgia had just taken a 10-point lead and collision jarred the ball loose. For a few minutes at least, it looked to be a Georgia takeaway at the Tigers’ 17-yard line. But a video replay review from the officials’ ruled that Green was down before lost control of the football.
“It was my favorite play and I think it probably ignited our sideline more than any other play in the game,” Richt said. “We just went up by 10 for the first time in the game and we knew how crucial it was not to give them any momentum on the kickoff,” Richt said. “Marshall (Morgan) wasn’t knocking it out of the end zone by any stretch, so we knew we were going to have to cover that kick. … (Kimbrough) went in and flew down the field and never slowed down and made a huge hit, which caused what we thought was a fumble and a recovery for Gerogia. Those types of hits get people excited, and the thought of us getting the ball back like that got everybody excited a little while before instant replay showed different.”
While the Bulldogs didn’t get the turnover, the play served its purpose. With both the crowd and the Georgia bench in a frenzy, Clemson went three-and-out yet again on offense and punted the ball back to the Bulldogs. UGA would score again on its next play from scrimmage — Chubb’s 47-yard, tackle-breaking run — and the rout was on.
What made the play even more special was Kimbrough normally wouldn’t have been in the game. Defensive special teams coordinator Mike Ekeler, who is also Georgia’s inside linebackers coach, decided to sub in Kimbrough for senior Amarlo Herrera. Herrera was having a huge night for the Bulldogs on defensive and Ekeler wanted his defensive captain to catch a blow.
Kimbrough, a 6-foot, 230-pound sophomore from Indianapolis, was happy to oblige.
“When I was running down the field I saw a blocker and I just put a move on him,” said Kimbrough, who also played on defense for the Bulldogs. “I crossed him and the returner didn’t see me. I just threw my shoulder down and the big hit happened.”
The ball bounded another five yards up the field where Georgia’s Keith Marshall recovered. But replays showed the ball popped out when Green’s elbow hit the ground and Richt agreed that officials got the call right.
“Yeah, they got it right,” Richt said. “We already had our defense on the field.”
In the meantime, Kimbrough remains on the No. 2 kickoff coverage unit. His hit did not unseat Herrera.
“No, they still have him on there,” Kimbrough said with a laugh.
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