Georgia turns road test into rout at South Carolina
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Jake Fromm threw for 194 yards and a touchdown, all three of Georgia's latest running combo scored touchdowns and the third-ranked Bulldogs turned an expected Southeastern Conference showdown into a blowout with a 41-17 victory over No. 24 South Carolina on Saturday.
The Gamecocks (1-1, 0-1 SEC) came in ranked for the first time in four years, and some thought they had a chance of upsetting the defending SEC champions early in the season. Instead, the Bulldogs (2-0, 1-0) used dominating offense and suffocating defense to win their fourth straight over South Carolina.
Fromm was 15-of-18 passing, including a 34-yard TD pass to Mecole Hardman. D'Andre Swift, Elijah Holyfield and Brian Herrien looked every bit as effective as NFL runners Nick Chubb and Sony Michel did a year ago in leading Georgia to the College Football Playoff.
Holyfield led the way with 76 yards and a 5-yard score. Swift had a 17-yard TD run, and Herrien piled on with a 15-yard scoring burst in the third quarter as Georgia went up by 31 points. That's when many in the crowd of 83,140 began to file out in disappointment — a familiar ritual against the Bulldogs.
Cornerback Deandre Baker set the tone on defense early with an interception off a tipped ball in the opening minute that led to a quick, if unconventional touchdown. Baker let the ball loose before crossing the goal line, but teammate Juwan Taylor picked it up and took it the final yard for a 56-yard score.
From there, Georgia's defense and run game took over — as they have so often against South Carolina. The Bulldogs outrushed South Carolina 271 yards to 54.
When South Carolina had a chance to tie it after Rashad Fenton's interception deep in Georgia territory, the Bulldogs allowed just a yard on the next four plays. They took over on downs after Bentley's fourthdown incompletion.
Georgia rarely let up. South Carolina drove 70 yards to the Bulldogs' 5 in the fourth quarter before safety J.R. Reed's endzone interception.
South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley threw for 269 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
THE TAKEAWAY
Georgia: With its first significant test complete, Georgia again looks like the class of the SEC East and a likely participant in the league's title game. The Bulldogs' most challenging league games are against West opponents — at LSU on Oct. 13 and against Auburn on Nov. 11.
South Carolina: The Gamecocks hoped a strong showing against Georgia would prove they belonged near the top of the SEC. South Carolina will try to regroup against Marshall at home before resuming SEC play.
Vanderbilt 41, Nevada 10.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — It's inevitable a football coach will claim his team's best football is ahead of them and that no matter the margin, things could be better.
Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason insisted his team was "sloppy" Saturday despite an emphatic 41-10 victory over Nevada. In this case, though, it's hard to argue.
The Commodores (2-0) started the game with two promising drives but left with no points. An eight-play, 64-yard drive ended with a fumble and a calculated risk on fourth down stopped a 71-yard drive on its eighth play.
Mason, confident in his defense's ability to keep things under control, even against a Nevada (1-1) team that posted 72 points against Portland State last week, never changed the game plan: a balanced attack keying around a rotating cast of running backs and senior quarterback Kyle Shurmur making plays down the field when the time is right, but just as often playing it safe, tossing to tight ends out of play-action, a point of emphasis in practice this week.
"Kyle knows you can't go broke taking a profit," Mason said.
After building a 17-3 lead behind Kalija Lipscomb's 2-yard touchdown catch and Ke'Shawn Vaughn's 7-yard rushing score, the Commodores looked in control, but a 9-yard Ty Gangi pass to Brendan O'Leary-Orange in the final minute of the first half brought the visiting Wolf Pack within a touchdown.
"We did a solid job (in the first half)," Mason said. "But we have to take the care of the football . ... We did a better job (in the second half), we had more energy and the engine started to run."
Vanderbilt scored on three straight drives to open the second half including a 46-yard dash from the speedy Vaughn for his second score and Lipscomb's second touchdown catch of the day from Shurmur, stretching a one-touchdown lead to a 24-point margin.