ATHENS – It’s the kind of play one never forgets, especially if one is a freshman making the fourth start of his career in an SEC road game.
Tyson Campbell, a heralded 5-star cornerback out of south Florida, hadn’t even begun to sweat yet when he stripped the ball from Missouri’s Albert Okwuegbunam after the big tight end caught a pass at the Georgia 31-yard line on the Tigers’ first possession early in the first quarter. Campbell was able to gather the ball he yanked loose, then rambled 64 yards down the sideline for a touchdown. It was the first score in what would end up as a harder-than-it-looked 43-29 victory for the No. 2-ranked Bulldogs in Columbia, Mo., in 2018.
It also ended up being one of Campbell’s last plays in that game. He injured his shoulder later in that first half and didn’t play the rest of the way.
Campbell and the No. 9-ranked Bulldogs (6-2) will return to Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field on Saturday for the first time since then (noon, SEC Network). Now a 6-foot-2, 185-pound, draft-eligible junior, Campbell continues to start at left cornerback for Georgia. And, once again, he’ll be looking to make some big plays against a very good Missouri offense.
“You know, that will always bring good memories, scoring my first touchdown,” said Campbell, who has had two more fumble recoveries but no more touchdowns since that September afternoon two years ago. “But this is a new year, and I’m trying to make bigger plays, more plays, than I did my freshman year.”
Campbell has had a few, including one play in the Bulldogs’ last time on the field. Campbell’s interception and 40-yard return set up Georgia’s last score in a 45-16 win over South Carolina two weeks ago.
Oddly enough, considering as much as he’s played, that was the first interception of Campbell’s career. But he very well may get a chance to get his hands on the football again Saturday, as the Tigers (5-3) are a team that keeps the ball in the air a lot.
Though its offense is best known for running back Larry Rountree, Missouri enters Saturday’s game ranked 27th in the nation in passing, at 281.1 yards per game. For perspective, that’s 31 places higher (and nearly 60 yards per game) more than where Georgia ranks as a passing team.
The Tigers’ aerial production has been the result of the continued maturation of redshirt freshman quarterback Connor Bazelak and Missouri mastering first-year coach Eliah Drinkwitz’s spread offense.
“Missouri runs a very challenging offense,” Campbell said. “They’ve got a lot of talented players, they’ve got a good tempo to their game and they’re versatile. They can run the ball and pass the ball. So, you know, we’re up to challenge, and we’re going to set the game plan accordingly.”
Georgia is going to need to up its game on defense this week if it’s going to best Missouri for second place in the East. The Bulldogs will go to Columbia ranked 100th nationally in passing yards allowed (262.9). That has been an anomaly for a defense that leads the SEC against the run (75.2 ypg) and ranks second in points allowed (20.6 pg).
Georgia’s struggles against the pass appear to be founded in its renewed emphasis on creating “havoc.” The Bulldogs for the past two years have made a concerted effort to ramp up the pressure on the quarterback in an attempt to create more explosive plays on defense, such as sacks, tackles for loss, fumbles and interceptions.
And that has worked, to a degree. Georgia’s 24 sacks to date rank second only to Florida in the SEC, and the team ranks fourth in the league in interceptions, with eight.
At the same time, though, the Bulldogs’ defensive backs have allowed far too many explosive pass plays. They were better against South Carolina’s anemic offense, but Georgia has allowed touchdowns of 40 or more yards in five games this season, including multiple times against offensive juggernauts Alabama and Florida.
“I am torn between being the aggressor and (not),” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “You’re going to give up explosives in fighting for negatives (defensive plays). … The guys with (high) havoc rates are going to give up explosives. You’re trying to find a balance.”
Senior outside linebacker Jermaine Johnson is one of four Georgia defenders with three or more sacks this season, and the Bulldogs have amassed an incredible 166 quarterback pressures in eight games. So the front seven is getting the job done.
“As a unit, as a defense, our guys want to get after the quarterback,” said Johnson, who’s second on the team with five sacks. “I feel like last year we didn’t get ‘home’ as much as we wanted to or could have. So this year it’s just an emphasis in the whole defensive room to work on what you need to work on to make it happen.”
The reason the Bulldogs are taking that approach is because of players such as Campbell at the back end of the defense. They’ve been hurt with All-American safety Richard LeCounte being sidelined since he was injured in a motor-vehicle accident Oct. 31. But Georgia still believes in Campbell, Eric Stokes, Tyrique Stevenson and D.J. Daniel as cornerbacks who can handle receivers one-on-one.
Campbell believes so, too.
“Everything starts with practice and preparation,” he said. “You have to make sure you’re not making the same mistake over and over again. … The main thing is watching film and studying your opponent.”
The good news for Georgia is it has gotten a good, long look at Missouri. The Bulldogs studied them all week when they were set to play Nov. 14. That game was canceled because of the presence of COVID-19 in the Tigers’ program.
A month later, some of the plan has changed and some hasn’t.
“I remember the game plan, pretty much, that we had a couple of weeks ago,” Campbell said. “But they’re on a roll; they’re on a winning streak right now. But, yeah, we just prepare the same way this week we prepare for any other team.”
That has served Campbell well so far.
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