Georgia Smothers Florida in Atlanta, Rolls to 27-8 Win

Georgia did all of its important work by halftime Saturday, building a 24-0 lead with an efficient running game and a defense that kept taking the ball away, and the Bulldogs beat Florida 27-8 before 72,541 fans at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Georgia improves to 7-1 overall and 5-1 in the SEC. Florida falls to 5-3 and 3-3.

The Bulldogs scored on the ground first. Nate Frazier finished an eight-play, 41-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 1:50 left in the first quarter, which came after Peyton Woodring missed a 43-yard field goal on the opening possession. In the second quarter, Florida’s mistakes started piling up. Florida quarterback Aaron Philo threw two interceptions in relief, and Georgia turned the short fields into a 28-yard Woodring field goal and a 10-play, 81-yard drive that ended with Bo Walker’s 1-yard touchdown run with 1:55 left before halftime. The play that put the game away came with 29 seconds left in the half. Linebacker Chris Cole picked up a Florida fumble and returned it 66 yards for a touchdown, and Georgia went into the locker room up 24-0. All 17 of Georgia’s second-quarter points came after Florida turnovers or set up by them.

Florida controlled the ball for more than 10 minutes in the third quarter but still could not score, and neither team scored in the period. The Gators finally scored with 6:59 left in the game. Tramell Jones Jr. ran in from 2 yards out to finish a nine-play, 48-yard drive and then hit D. Wilson for the two-point conversion, ending the shutout bid. Georgia answered with a nine-play, 61-yard drive that took 3:25 off the clock, and Woodring’s 21-yard field goal with 3:34 left made it final.

Georgia won the game on the ground. The Bulldogs ran for 217 yards on 42 carries, an average of 5.2 yards per rush, and spread the work across their backfield. Frazier and Dwight Phillips Jr. each ran for 67 yards, with Phillips getting his on just eight carries, including a 26-yard run. Quarterback Gunner Stockton ran for 45 yards in addition to completing 13 of 23 passes for 101 yards without a turnover. C. Dandridge Jr. led Georgia receivers with three catches for 39 yards. The Bulldogs also scored on four of their five red zone trips and held the ball for 32:10.

The Georgia defense may have been even better. Florida finished with 48 rushing yards on 28 carries, an average of 1.7 yards per attempt, and Jadan Baugh was held to 38 yards on 17 carries. Georgia sacked Jones four times, made 11 tackles for loss, intercepted three passes and recovered a fumble. Ellis Robinson IV, D. Jones and B. Conley each had an interception. Cole led the team with nine tackles to go with a sack and his touchdown return, and R. Wilson added eight tackles.

Jones did what he could for Florida, completing 17 of 24 passes for 172 yards, and B. Stockton caught eight passes for 76 yards. But the Gators had four turnovers, eight penalties for 78 yards and only one trip inside the Georgia 20 that ended in points. That was not enough to make it a game against a Georgia team that has now won seven of its first eight games.