WATCH: Georgia Bulldog Fans "Light Up Jacksonville" Against the Gators
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JACKSONVILLE - It’s not Sanford Stadium, but Georgia fans attempted to turned TIAA Bank Field into a light show as today’s game against Florida went into the 4th quarter.
It’s one of the best traditions in all of college football and it was quite the scene once again as Bulldog fans tried to light up the stadium.
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Other halftime notes...
*Dominating Start For The Defense: Top-ranked Georgia held UF scoreless in the first half as the Bulldogs built a 24-0 lead. The Gators tallied 147 yards on 37 plays. It’s the fifth time this season that the Bulldog defense has blanked a team in the first half. UF came in averaging 34.4 points a game. Georgia has outscored its opponents 185 to 16 in the first half this year.
Also, the Bulldogs forced three turnovers that led to 21 points including a pick-six by junior Nakobe Dean that covered 50 yards. It was his first TD and second career INT. The Bulldog defense has four TDs this year. Under Kirby Smart, the Bulldogs have 23 defense or special teams scores since 2016.
Junior LB Nolan Smith caused and recovered a UF fumble at the UF 11. It was Smith’s second caused fumble this year and of his career. It led to an 11-yard TD run by senior James Cook and a 10-0 lead with 2:16 left. On UF’s next possession, Smith came up with his first career interception, getting it at the UF 36 after it was tipped by Travon Walker. It led to an immediate TD as Bennett snagged a 36-yard pass from Bennett for a 17-0 lead with 1:35 left in the first half. The Bulldogs are +6 in turnover margin and have scored 73 points off 13 turnovers. The leading tackler at the half was senior Dean with six stops.
*Bennett Starts Again: Georgia senior QB Stetson Bennett (8-for-14, 121 yards, 1 TD) got the start for the fourth straight week and fifth time overall this season. Georgia had three scoring drives, a 63-yarder in 6:22 that ended with a field goal. The second one went for a TD that covered 11 yards on one play in six seconds. The six-second drive was the quickest this year. The third scoring drive was another in just one play, this time covering 36 yards. The defense took care of the fourth score, capping a 24-point outburst by the Bulldogs.
*Rushing Highlights: Georgia tallied 82 rushing yards on 17 attempts for a 4.8 average. Senior Zamir White led the team with 7 rushes for 46 yards. Senior James Cook had an 11-yard TD and finished with 17 yards on five carries.
*Array Of Targets: Stetson Bennett completed passes to five different receivers. Sophomore TE Darnell Washington had a team-leading 41 yards on two catches. Junior Kearis Jackson had two catches for 23 yards.
*Special Teams Summary: Senior punter Jake Camarda finished with two punts for a 48.5 average including a 51-yarder. Junior Jack Podlesny went 1-for-2 on field goals, making a 21-yarder and missing a 46-yarder. He is 11-for-15 on field goals this year. He made three PATs and is now 36-for-37 in PATs this year. Junior Kearis Jackson had one punt return for seven yards plus one kickoff return for 31 yards.
*Game Captains/Coin Toss: The captains were seniors Adam Anderson (SLB), James Cook (RB), Jamaree Salyer (LT) and Quay Walker (MLB). Florida won the toss and elected to defer the football until the second half.
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