Week 9 - Saturday 27th Oct - Sunday 28th Oct
The Bulldogs responded to their nightmare performance at Death Valley two weeks ago with a convincing win over Florida at the world's largest cocktail party in Jacksonville Florida. Jake Fromm bounced back from his shaky performance in the LSU defeat to lead his side to a huge win against their fierce rivals and 9th ranked Florida. There had been criticism towards Kirby Smart following the LSU game for not showing in Freshman QB Justin Fields as Fromm struggled against a very organised Tigers defence. Speculation grew building up to the SEC match-up that Fields would feature for the Dawgs, offering a more dynamic approach on offense with his ability to run the ball like a tailback.
This was much to the delight of the travelling Georgia Fans however Jake Fromm played lights out going 17 for 24 passing with 240 yards and 3 touchdowns keeping the entertaining yet inexperienced Fields rooted to the Bulldogs side-line. CBS commentator Gary Danielson noted early doors his approval as the Bulldogs persevered with the run game having given up on the ground quickly during their loss in Baton Rouge. Elijah Holyfield rushed for 28 yards on Georgia's opening drive whilst Deandre Swift picked up 35. A sack on Fromm by the highly rated Gators line-backer Vance Joseph reduced Georgia to just a field goal. Two weeks ago at LSU Georgia turned the ball over four times, two fumbles and two interceptions whilst the Dawgs couldn't force any turnovers from the Tigers. Winning the turnover battle goes a long way to a victory and on The Gators first drive Georgia forced a change in possession and momentum. On 3rd and 2 Florida's Jordan Scarlett rushed for 12 yards before line-backer Monty Rice jarred the ball loose allowing Geo Richard LeCounte to pick it up and dart 32 yards back towards The Gator end zone. Holyfield was swallowed up for a loss of four whilst Swift only gained a yard before Jake Fromm found Jeremiah Holloman for a 16 yard TD pass to give Georgia a two score cushion after just six minutes. Florida searched for motivation following the disastrous start switching between the Lamical Perine run game and Franks passing ability to march 30 yards up field. Worst case scenario for Florida was another turnover and despite putting together a tidy drive, Feleipe franks' careless pass intended for Josh Hammond was picked off by Tyrique MeGhee.
Georgia couldn't take advantage of the interception, running the ball three times for just 6 yards before punting. Perine's 22 yards on the Gator's third drive of the day helped Florida into Bulldogs territory. Dan Mullen's men caught a lucky break on 4th and 1 from the Georgia 3 when Frank's incompletion to Moral Stephens was saved by a flag on Juwan Taylor for pass interference. The resulting play saw Jordan Scarlett gain 14 of the 15 yards needed for a Gator touchdown. 1st and goal from the Georgia 1 Feleipe Franks went air-borne for Florida's first points of the game. Both sides traded punts as the interval neared but with 45 seconds remaining Georgia looked to drive up the field and add to their three point margin. Jake Fromm connected with tight end Isaac Nauta four times as the Bulldogs raced against the clock to get into scoring range. Fromm found Mecole Hardman for 9 more yards. An incompletion to Riley Ridley on 1st and goal had milked so much off the clock that the Georgia Bulldogs could only add a field goal to their score.
Florida came out from the break needing any kind of score to keep the pace with a professional Georgia performance and after two 6 yard gains from Scarlett they found a breakthrough on just the third play of the second half Feleipe Franks floated one up the middle of the field perfectly into the path of Freddie Swain for The Gators first lead of the afternoon. Florida were only ahead a couple minutes, as Georgia responded in perfect fashion. Holyfield carried the Dawgs 17 yards on a few runs before Fromm hit junior tightend Charlie Woerner for 35 more. Kirby Smart's side were balancing the running and passing game well as hey put a drive together. The Bulldogs were knocking on the door and Florida let them right in. Holloman's second touchdown of the game, this time a 12 yard pass from Fromm restored the lead for the travelling Bulldogs. Shortly after the go ahead touchdown Georgia had a tremendous chance to add a third touchdown to the box score. Wide receiver Mecole Hardman downed a punt at the Florida one yard line and on the next play Feleipe Franks tried to rush for breathing room when Tyrique McGhee forced a fumble that fellow Bulldog Geo Tae Crowder recovered. Had the play happened in the pros it would be a Georgia touchdown but the review clearly showed Crowder's knee on the ground before his army crawl into the end zone. Florida held Georgia to just 3 points after two Gator penalties gave the Dawgs seven attempts from the one yard line. An impressive goal line stand by the defence helped by a couple of clutch stops from Gator lineman Jabari Zuniga kept his team in the contest at 23-14.
Dan Mullen mixed things up at the QB position as the forth quarter approached and it almost paid off. Emery Jones' pass intended for Van Jefferson would have been a certain touchdown if not for Tyson Campbell's pass interference. Franks returned for Florida following the penalty but couldn't rally them to six points as Evan Mcpherson kicked the 42 yard field goal. Deandre Swift and Jake Fromm helped the Bulldogs move into Gator territory as they looked to put the game to bed. On 3rd and 9 from the Florida 24 Fromm threw his third TD of the day. Terry Goodwin the scorer this time around. The failed 2pt conversion made it 29-17 Dawgs. Deandre Swift added a 33 yard touchdown following a Gator punt to finish off Florida in Jacksonville. The 7-1 Georgia Bulldogs now face a trip to one of college footballs surprise packages of the year Kentucky in a battle for the SEC East title and a place in the conference championship the winner will most likely face no.1 Alabama however their showdown in Death Valley (also this weekend) will be pivotal in deciding the West. November is crunch time in college football and the SEC never fails to entertain. Alabama didn't even make the SEC title game last season yet found themselves squeezed into the play off picture by the start of December.
Best win of the weekend: Oklahoma State 38-35
Texas player of the weekend: Kyler Murray, QB, Oklahoma
Shout-out of the weekend: Kentucky Wildcats who started the season with 0.3% chance to win the SEC East title. Won on the last second TD at Missouri and now face Georgia in a winner takes all scenario.
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