Georgia inside linebacker Ramik Wilson may have put last season’s loss to Vanderbilt behind him, but he hasn’t forgotten it entirely.
After all, that’s when Georgia’s defense first found itself penalized by the “Ramik Rule,” as outside linebacker Jordan Jenkins likes to call it.
“No, that’s the Ray Drew Rule,” Wilson said in response. “That’s Ray Drew. Ray Drew was the first one.”
His memory serves him well. Both Drew and Wilson were called for targeting in the Bulldogs’ 31-27 loss in Nashville last year. The defensive lineman was ejected first for a hit on then-Vanderbilt quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels with 11:19 left in the first half.
Wilson followed with a targeting penalty of his own, but it came on fourth-and-4 for the Commodores early in the fourth quarter and gave Vanderbilt the automatic first down. The call was overturned after the officials reviewed it so Wilson was not ejected, but at the time the rule had not yet been amended so the 15-yard penalty was still assessed, regardless of the decision upon review.
Initially, Wilson did not realize he’d been called for the same penalty that kicked Drew out of the game in the first half. He thought he’d celebrated a tad too enthusiastically.
“Yeah that’s true,” Wilson said. “I did, until I realized what was happening and I was shocked but that play should never determine the whole game. “
Although the first down Vanderbilt received from the penalty did keep the drive alive and allow Patton Robinnette to bring in a touchdown run, a year later Wilson does not see the call as the decisive factor for that loss.
“A lot of things happened in that game,” Wilson said. “Special teams, muffing the punt, snapping the ball over the punter’s head, those two calls and a lot of injuries too. A lot of factors in the game.”
Georgia’s defense is different this year, at least in terms of personnel and coaching. Sure, safety J.J. Green got called for targeting early on against Troy two Saturdays ago, but Wilson doesn’t think back on his own penalty much. He said the defense continues to grow with each game it plays, including the 35-32 win over Tennessee.
“I think we’re coming a long,” Wilson said. “I think we’ve got some consistencies to work on because the first drive [against Tennessee] we gave up three points and the next one we gave up seven and then we shut them out for [four drives]. We’ve got to stay on them, stay with that fire and I think we’ll be alright.”
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