Fortunately for Georgia and coach Mark Richt, they were able to laugh about Arthur Lynch’s gaffe when the game was over. But it was not at all funny at the time.
Leading 23-3 midway through the third quarter, the Bulldogs called a tight end screen for Arthur Lynch and executed it perfectly. With one exception.
With nothing but green grass and blockers in front of him, Lynch dropped the ball. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, he did what players frequently do when they drop a ball they should have caught. He hit himself with both hands in the helmet and fell to one knee.
Trouble was, quarterback Aaron Murray’s pass was ruled a lateral because it arrived to Lynch on the same yard line as Murray let go of it (21). Florida defensive lineman Leon Orr had the presence of mind to scoop up the loose ball.
Only a heads-up tackle by Georgia’s John Theus prevented Orr from scoring a touchdown. But the Gators needed only two plays to get score from the 14-yard line.
“That changed the momentum of the game as much as a play could,” Richt said.
But he did not condemn Lynch for the miscue. In fact, Richt said Lynch did what every player in football does in such a situation.
“All he thought was he dropped the ball, and when guys drop the ball they hit themselves in the head or clap one time,” he said. “We’ve done a study on that.”
Informed Lynch grabbed his helmet, he laughed.
“When you watch film every day after practice and you see a guy drop the ball, usually it’s a clap,” he said.
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