Georgia topples unbeaten Cincinnati with late field goal
ATLANTA — Jack Podlesny kicked a 53-yard field goal with three seconds left as No. 11 Georgia dealt No. 6 Cincinnati its lone loss of the season with a dramatic 24-21 victory in the Peach Bowl on Friday.
The Bulldogs (8-2) trailed 21-10 in the fourth quarter, but their defense clamped down on Desmond Ridder and the Bearcats (9-1), and J.T. Daniels rallied Georgia with his arm. Daniels threw for 392 yards.
Podlesny’s third field goal of the day was his longest of the season and put Georgia up 22-21. Linebacker Azeez Ojulari sacked Ridder for a safety on the final play. The sack was Ojulari’s third of the game and the program record-tying eighth for the Bulldogs.
Ridder was 24 of 37 passing for
206 yards and two TDS. Jerome Ford added a 79-yard TD run early in the second half for Cincinnati.
Georgia ran for just 45 yards. Daniels overcame an interception and a lost fumble.
Defense helped fuel the Bulldogs’ rally. Ridder fumbled on a sack by Ojulari, and linebacker Adam Anderson recovered at the Bearcats’ 25. Zamir White’s 9-yard TD run trimmed Cincinnati’s lead to 21-16, but Daniels’ pass on the 2-point attempt was incomplete.
Podlesny kicked a 32-yard field goal with 6:43 left. On its next possession, Georgia coach Kirby Smart elected to punt on fourth-and-3 from the Bulldogs’ 43 with 3:07 to go.
Ridder ran for one first down before the Bearcats punted with 1:28 left, giving Georgia possession at its 20.
“I would feel much better if we just