Georgia starts slow, but tops Auburn
NO. 5 GEORGIA 27, NO. 24 AUBURN 10
ATHENS, Ga. — No. 5 Georgia struck for a pair of touchdowns late in the first half to take control and D’Andre Swift finished off Auburn with a 77-yard scoring run early in the fourth quarter to lead the Bulldogs to a 27-10 victory over their oldest rival Saturday night.
Swift rushed for 186 yards to power another big game by Georgia’s running attack, which finished with 303 yards.
Having already locked up a spot in the SEC championship game, the Bulldogs (9-1, 7-1 SEC) couldn’t afford to slip up against the Tigers.
They didn’t, though it took Georgia a while to get going.
After settling for two field goals, the Bulldogs trailed 10-6 with the first half winding down. But, facing third and 4 from the Auburn 14 and the prospect of bringing on kicker Rodrigo Blankenship for the third time, Jake Fromm connected on a touchdown pass to Tyler Simmons that pushed the home team ahead with 2:47 remaining.
Auburn (6-4, 3-4) went three-and-out, taking only 47 seconds off the clock, and Georgia got a chance to add to its lead. Swift broke off a 24-yard run before two short completions left the Bulldogs facing fourth-and-3 at the Tigers 38.
Coach Kirby Smart let the clock run down before calling timeout with 29 seconds remaining. He passed on a long field goal attempt, and any thoughts that Georgia might be trying to lure Auburn offsides with a no-back alignment were dashed when Fromm took the snap and found Terry Godwin breaking free over the middle.
Godwin hauled in the pass without breaking stride and didn’t go down until he tumbled into the end zone for a TD that suddenly pushed Georgia to a 20-10 lead at the break.
Both teams slogged through the third quarter before Swift tacked on the clinching score to cap another big game.
NO. 15 FLORIDA 35, SOUTH CAROLINA 31
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Feleipe Franks silenced the home crowd twice after touchdown runs, seemingly sending a message after getting benched last week and booed earlier in the game, and No. 15 Florida rallied to beat South Carolina and end a two-game losing streak.
Franks dived across the goal line on a fourth-down play from inside the 1-yard line with 4:09 to play, putting the Gators (7-3, 5-3 SEC) ahead for the first time and for good. Florida overcame a 17-point deficit in the second half.
C.J. Henderson ended the Gamecocks’ (5-4, 4-4) comeback attempt by picking off Jake Bentley.
TENNESSEE 24, NO. 11 KENTUCKY 7
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Jarrett Guarantano threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to Marquez Callaway on the final play of the first half and Darrell Taylor recorded four sacks as Tennessee trounced No. 11 Kentucky.
Taylor also forced and recovered a fumble to help Tennessee (5-5, 2-4 SEC) beat Kentucky (7-3, 5-3) at Neyland Stadium for a 17th consecutive time. Kentucky hasn’t earned a road victory in this annual series since a 17-12 triumph in 1984.
Tennessee has won 32 of the last 34 overall meetings, though the Wildcats won last year’s game 29-26 at Kentucky.
TEXAS A&M 38, MISSISSIPPI 24
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Kellen Mond threw for three touchdowns and ran for another to help Texas A&M end a two-game skid with a victory over Mississippi.
Mond threw TDs of 21, 10 and 5 yards and his touchdown run was a 1-yard
scamper in the first quarter.
After being outscored 28-0 in the fourth quarter of consecutive losses to Auburn and Mississippi State, Texas A&M (6-4, 4-3 SEC) scored its first fourth-quarter points since Oct. 13 when Seth Smalls made it 24-21 with a 46-yard field goal early in the period.
MISSOURI 33, VANDERBILT 28
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri’s defense bent but didn’t break during Vanderbilt’s final drive, and the Tigers defeated the Commodores to clinch bowl eligibility.
Missouri kicker Tucker McCann had a chance to ice the game with 1:48 remaining, but the junior missed a 31yard field goal to give Vanderbilt a last chance. The Commodores drove down to Missouri’s 25-yard line, but couldn’t convert a last-second heave to win the game.
In the end, the Tigers (6-4, 2-4 SEC) are going bowling, and the Commodores (4-6, 1-5) will need to win both its remaining games to guarantee bowl eligibility.