The No. 3-ranked Georgia Bulldogs rolled over No. 11 Oregon 49-3 on Saturday in a Chick-fil-a Kickoff game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It was the first game of the season for the respective teams. The Ducks were under the direction of former Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning.
Key play
While Georgia put on an incredible display of offensive fireworks, it was a remarkable defensive play that insured that Saturday’s contest was not going to be a competitive one. With the Bulldogs leading 7-0 late in the first quarter, freshman safety Malaki Starks, in for junior Dan Jackson early in the game, was in one-on-one coverage deep against Oregon’s speedy wideout Donté Thornton. Quarterback Bo Nix delivered a high-arching throw that looked to be on target, if not a bit long. But Starks, a 5-star recruiting prospect from Jefferson, leaped high, twisted in midair and hauled in an interception while falling on his back at the Bulldogs’ 8-yard line. The highlight play thwarted a big-play opportunity for the Ducks and gave the ball back to Georgia’s offense, which would take the ball 92 yards to score its second touchdown and take full command of the game.
Key stat
They say football always comes down to third down, and the Bulldogs were basically impeccable in that regard. They converted their first nine in a row. They did not fail until the 10:09 mark of the fourth quarter when Carson Beck completed a 4-yard pass to running back Savaughn Clark on third-and-7 from the Georgia 32. That gave punter Brett Thorson his first attempt of the season, which he sent 53 yards.
Game ball
It has to go to Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett. If you’re keeping count, that should be three in a row for the former walk-on from Blackshear. Bennett earned MVP honors in the Bulldogs’ College Football Playoff wins over Michigan in the Orange Bowl semifinal and Alabama in the national championship game to end last season. Acknowledging that it was “probably the best game I’ve ever played,” Bennett was 6-for-6 on touchdown-scoring possessions and 8-for-8 on third down. He finished with a career-high 368 yards on 25-of-31 passing with two touchdowns and one rushing score. He left the game for good with 5:23 remaining in the third quarter and Georgia leading 42-3.
What we learned
Georgia is going to be very difficult to beat again this season. The Bulldogs are an extremely young team with a roster that is heavy-laden with freshmen and sophomores. But many of those young players came had standout performances Friday night. They included Starks, a freshman who led the defense with eight tackles and had a highlight-reel interception in the first quarter. Sophomore safety David Daniel-Sisavanh had four tackles, including one for a big loss. Georgia had six first-time starters on defense, including freshman Mykel Williams and sophomores Javon Bullard, Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Smael Mondon and Kamari Lassiter. Considering the explosiveness of Georgia’s veteran offense, this unit should get the time and space it will need to grow from here.
They said it
“I was really proud of the way our kids played. We talked about coming out and playing as if we were hunting, and we wanted to play connected football. That was what we talked about all week: ‘We’re going to play connected, we’re going to play aggressive; we’re going to be the hunter.’” − Georgia coach Kirby Smart
“Everybody knows I have a ton of respect for Kirby. I told our staff before we ever played the game, every single one of our goals is still going to be ahead of us regardless how this game comes out. Win, loss, draw, every one is still right in front of us. Our players feel the exact same way. But that was a tough locker room because we have competitors.” − Oregon coach Dan Lanning
“When you have guys like Kenny McIntosh and you’ve got an O-line and have four seconds to throw the ball, you would hope you have a quarterback that can throw the ball to guys. So, yeah, I think we did that. We had confidence in ourselves with the preparation we put into it that we could go out there and execute like that.” − Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett
What’s next
Georgia: The Bulldogs (1-0) play host to Samford at 4 p.m. Saturday at Sanford Stadium (SEC Network). The Bulldogs of Birmingham are 1-0 after defeating Kennesaw State 27-17 on Thursday.
Oregon: The Ducks return to Eugene to play host to Eastern Washington.
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