Upon Further Review: UGA Football is Like Death & Taxes
Real Georgia Fans Don’t Miss the Dawg Post Newsletter - Sign up now!
ATHENS - The second half of the UGA Football season continues to prove one point: Georgia football, like death and taxes, is inevitable.
It doesn’t matter who the opponent is or where the game is played. The Dawgs just keep coming at you until there is nothing to come after. They aren’t always sexy or pretty, but they are effective. The inevitability of what this program has become doesn’t mean they’ll never lose. What it means is that this program will always field a disciplined and developed group of players that plays a physical brand of football that 99% of programs will never match. And it’s awe inspiring to watch.
Saturday’s blowout of Tennessee was expected – sort of. There are still many Dawg fans that inherited the Larry Munson gene. If you looked at numbers and how each team had played against its best competition, the outcome was as close to a no-brainer as they come. Now, the enemy (in this case, Tennessee) always gets a vote. They cast that vote on the first play of scrimmage with a 75-yard touchdown scamper. The checkered overall-clad crowd went nuts. And then Georgia voted. And they voted again. And again. And again. The Dawgs’ victory seemed inevitable after the second offensive possession for both teams. Although Georgia was only up a field goal at that point, it appeared the Vols had no bullets left in the chamber. They were done.
Eko Poly - Perfect for the backyard, beach or lake
Use the code: “DAWG15” to get 15% off & FREE Shipping!
20-Year Warranty | Made in Georgia
The final 38-10 score gave off complete domination vibes. And it was complete domination by the Dawgs, even while not playing their best game. The offensive line struggled to create consistent running lanes all day. Tennessee routinely stacked the box, hoping to force Carson Beck into beating them. Side note – be careful what you wish for. The loss of Tate Ratledge after 20 offensive plays caused the Dawgs to shuffle the offensive line even more so than in previous contests. The Dawgs gained 156 yards rushing, but only averaged 3.9 yards per carry. The Vols’ defensive front also tallied a sack, 4 tackles for loss, and 7 quarterback pressures by my count. The inside run lanes were frequently clogged with orange jerseys, forcing the Dawg rushing attack out of some of its bread-and-butter plays. While Georgia ran multiple play-action passes, most of Beck’s attempts came out of pure pass sets. And it still worked. Inevitable.
The Dawg injury list grew again Saturday as Ratledge, Ladd McConkey and RaRa Thomas all left the game gimpy. No worries. Just insert Dillon Bell who had a career game with 5 catches, 90 yards and a touchdown. And he threw another TD as well! The back-shoulder grab along the Vol sideline was a thing of beauty. No McConkey? Just complete 7 passes to Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint for 91 yards and 2 TDs. The cupboard is quite well-stocked in Athens as playmakers continue to emerge when the main characters aren’t available. Kirby consistently talks about quality depth. He also said, postgame “get them to believe that if they don’t care who gets the credit, they’ll be very successful”. MRJ and Bell personify selflessness. MRJ has had moments this season, but when he needed to be a #1 go to guy, he stepped up and made it happen. Bell has been a Swiss Army knife this season but found himself thrust into a primary role Saturday. And he didn’t flinch. Inevitable.
Shirts Are in Stock Now!
Check this deal out today!
Other than the 75-yard TD run on the first play, there isn’t much to fret over with this defense. If the 75-yard scamper is taken away, the Vols only gained 202 yards for the remainder of the game. There is no way to explain that away other than the Dawg defense played extremely well. Tennessee gained only 55 rushing yards after the opening TD run. For the game. 55 yards from the then- #1 rushing attack in the SEC. Playing without Jamon Dumas-Johnson and Warren Brinson, this defense continues to grow and get better. It’s not the 2021 defense. But it’s a defense that can take a punch and then shut you down for multiple quarters. Before you know it, you’re down 3 or 4 scores and haven’t gained a first down in three drives. That’s what happened to Tennessee Saturday. They don’t dominate in ways we are used to seeing with a Dawg defense. But they dominate, nonetheless. Inevitable.
Finally, Carson Beck continues to operate like a surgeon in the pocket. He layers throws as well, if not better than, as any quarterback in the country. Lose your top targets? No problem. He’ll find others. Bring pressure and he’ll hit MRJ in the face 25 yards downfield on a skinny post. Force him to move in the pocket? He’ll find Bell or MRJ moving into an open space. Don’t leave a spy on him? He’ll take off and gain a first down by scrambling. He’s playing about as well as you can ask a quarterback to play in this complicated, NFL-like system. Playing in front of a hostile (for at least a quarter) crowd, Beck was calm and poised. Nothing seems to rattle him. Not the crowd. Not losing key players. Not the moment. It’s almost like sitting for a couple of years prepared him to be great. Imagine that. Inevitable.
Eight weeks ago, most folks were wondering what was going on with this team. Lackluster offense and deficits to mediocre teams weren’t something the Red and Black fans were used to seeing. Play seemed sloppy and slow. Since the bye week, is there any team playing better than Georgia? Three consecutive ranked matchups, preceded by the annual Cocktail Party, would either be a coronation or spell disaster for the defending champs. In those 4 games, the Dawgs scored 163 points for an average of 40.7 points per game. The opposition? 68 points, for an average of 17 points per game. A 40-17 average score is pretty good, right? Let’s be frank here. There is no program on the same level as Georgia. This is an unparalleled run of dominance that doesn’t show any signs of relenting. Can this team lose? Of course they can. The pointy ball bounces weirdly sometimes. If you saw the video of Kirby with Bell and Kendall Milton in the tunnel before running on the field, you’ll see why there is no end in sight for what is the most dominant program in college football right now. There is no back down in this team. They are, to quote Thanos, inevitable.