The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Smart exhorts fans to 'be elite' for Arkansas
NASHVILLE, TENN. — Things are about to crank up for the Georgia Bulldogs.
No. 2 Georgia improved to 4-0 (2-0 in SEC) with a 62-0 win over Vanderbilt on Saturday afternoon. It’s the third time in the last four seasons the Bulldogs have won their first four games (they lost to Alabama in the fourth game last season).
But while the month of September might have felt like a late-summer stroll, October is shaping up to be much more of a gauntlet. That starts Saturday as the Bulldogs host No. 8 Arkansas. The Razorbacks (4-0, 1-0 SEC), under the direction of second-year coach and former UGA offensive line coach Sam Pittman, upset then-no. 7 Texas A&M 20-17 Saturday in Arlington, Texas. TV executives clearly expected the Aggies to win that game. They went ahead and slotted Georgia-arkansas for a noon start, while marking the Florida-kentucky and A&m-mississippi State matchups for six-day options for 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. slots. Ole Miss-alabama and Auburn-lsu already were set for 3:30 p.m. (CBS) and 9 p.m. (ESPN) kickoffs.
So Georgia-arkansas is a Top 10 matchup kicking off at noon. That’s not typically a good time slot for home-team favorites hosting ambitious guests. Since 2017, the only SEC home game Georgia has lost was against South Carolina in 2019, in a game that started at noon.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart knows this. So, he issued a challenge to Georgia fans Saturday in Nashville.
“We’ve got a huge game next week at 12 o’clock in Athens, Ga.,” Smart said. “Everybody wants our team to be elite, and I want us to be elite and we’ve thrown that word around. So, when we talk about our fan base being elite, we want them to be there early and show up better than we ever have. We want them to be loud, we want them to yell louder than we ever have. We want them to be super-intense because the players are going to be intense. … If our fans will be elite, we’ll have an opportunity to put a heck of a show at 12 o’clock at Sanford Stadium next week.”
Here are some takeaways from Georgia’s win over Vanderbilt:
1. Another goose egg
Saturday’s 62-0 victory was Georgia’s sixth shutout of the Smart era, the fourth in an SEC game and the first since blanking Missouri 27-0 in 2019. It marked Georgia’s second-biggest margin of victory ever in an SEC game, trailing only a 75-0 win over Florida in 1942.
Vanderbilt was in scoring range three times. Twice it turned the ball over on downs. In the second quarter, Vandy’s Joseph Bulovas missed a 49-yard FG try. The Bulldogs limited Vanderbilt to 77 yards on 46 plays, including 27 on 21 plays in the second half.
Georgia now leads the nation in total defense at 185.3 ypg and is third in points allowed (7.7 pg).
“We say nobody in our end zone, that means nobody,” junior outside linebacker Nolan Smith said.
2. Passing grade
Through four games, Georgia has passed for 1,109 yards and 12 touchdowns and five interceptions. The Bulldogs’ quarterbacks are completing 70.4% of their passes.
Junior JT Daniels, who is now second in the nation with a 76.1% completion percentage, got his sixth start as Georgia’s quarterback Saturday and played only one quarter. He was 9-of-10 for 121 yards and two touchdowns. His only incompletion was redshirt freshman Justin Robinson’s drop of a perfectly thrown pass.
Daniels played only the first quarter. Senior Stetson Bennett played the second and most of the third quarters before giving way to redshirt freshman Carson Beck the rest of the game. Bennett ended up 11-for-15 for 151 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT. The offense tallied 326 yards on 43 plays in the first half and finished the game with 524 yards on 76 plays.
Smart said it wasn’t necessarily in the plans to rotate quarterbacks. “It was a situation where we felt like we could get Stetson some reps, and things kept rolling,” Smart said.
3. Catching on
Georgia has gotten a huge pick-me-up in its receiving corps in the form of a pair of freshmen.
For the fourth consecutive game, freshman tight end Brock Bowers led the Bulldogs in receiving with four receptions for 69 yards and two touchdowns. Ladd Mcconkey, a redshirt freshman, doubled his catch total for the season with four for 62 and a score.
Each also scored TDS on end-around runs, Bowers for 12 yards and Mcconkey for 24.
“They’re just real tough, hard workers,” Smart said Saturday.
Both players were thrust into prominent roles by injuries to other players. Mcconkey got his second start Saturday after starting the opener because Kearis Jackson (knee) couldn’t go. With tight ends Darnell Washington (foot) and John Fitzpatrick (knee) sidelined during preseason camp, Bowers was able to get more reps with the No. 1 offense. Now he has started all four games and leads the Bulldogs with 18 receptions for 272 yards and four scores.
Once again, the Bulldogs played without all their available targets. Washington and wide receiver Dominick Blaylock (knee/hamstring) did not make the trip as the Bulldogs were limited to the SEC travel roster maximum of 70 players. Top receiver George Pickens (knee) will be sidelined for at least another month.
4. Ringo starts
Cornerback Kelee Ringo, a redshirt freshman from Tacoma, Washington, got the first start of his career. He had two pass break-ups to go with one tackle.
A former 5-star recruit, Ringo had to sit out last season while recovering from shoulder surgery.
“Kelee has improved each week,” Smart said. “He’s gained more confidence in our system. He’s cut down on his mental errors, and we think he’s going to be a good player. We’ve always thought that, and we’ve been trying to develop him and gain the confidence he needs. We need him to grow up and play well.”
Since preseason camp, Ringo has been locked in a battle for playing time with fifth-year senior Ameer Speed. The 6-foot-3, 211-pound Speed started the first three games.
“We need Speed. We need DK (Derion Kendrick), Kamari (Lassiter), all those corners. They’ve got to grow up and play (because) it’s one of the thinnest positions on our team,” Smart said.
5. Mediocre run game
Once again, the Bulldogs were unable to create explosive plays out of their backfield. Georgia rushed for 241 yards, a season-high total. But two of the longest runs came on end-arounds by receivers. As for the backs, the longest run was for 15 yards by sophomore Daijun Edwards.
Less the yardage accrued by quarterbacks and receivers, it was only 180 yards at an average of 4.4 yards a carry. Smart indicated it’s more of an offensive line issue than a back issue.
“We’re not as big and massive,” he said. “We don’t have a Ben Cleveland and Solomon Kindley, some of those guys who are massive . ... But we have not been as explosive in the run game as I would like to be, or as consistent as I would like to be.”