No. 1 Bulldogs rally past Wildcats

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The top-ranked Georgia football team scratched and clawed its way to a 13-12 win over Kentucky in the Bulldogs’ SEC opener Saturday night at Kroger Field. Down 9-3 in the third quarter of a game controlled by the defenses, the Bulldogs got a 30-yard Peyton Woodring field goal and a three-yard Branson Robinson touchdown to take the lead for good.

The win is Georgia’s 42nd in a row during the regular season, the Bulldogs’ 28th straight in SEC regular-season games, and the program’s 15th straight over Kentucky (1-2, 0-2 SEC). Georgia (3-0, 1-0) had just 63 yards of offense in the first half before finding some rhythm and hitting some big plays in the second to finish with 262.

Quarterback Carson Beck finished the game 15 of 24 passing for 160 yards, while Trevor Etienne ran for 79 yards on 19 carries. Georgia’s defense held Kentucky to 284 yards, 3.9 yards per play, and forced a turnover that led to a Bulldog field goal. Cornerback Daylen Everette led the defense with eight tackles, including six solo. Eleven Bulldogs had at least four stops.

The Wildcats forced a punt on Georgia’s first possession, and then Kentucky was able to move the ball into UGA territory before linebacker Gabe Harris Jr. got a strip sack on third-and-7 at the 44. Kentucky recovered and punted down to the Bulldog 13-yard line.

Kentucky later took a 3-0 lead on a 55-yard Alex Raynor field goal with 2:45 left in the opening quarter. The field goal marked the first first-half points that the Bulldogs had allowed this season. After two games, against then-No. 14 Clemson and Tennessee Tech, Georgia went into its SEC opener having surrendered just six points all season.

After forcing a Kentucky punt, the Bulldogs caught their first break when wideout Dominic Lovett managed to haul in a tipped pass for a 15-yard gain on third down. It was Georgia’s first play to gain double-digit yardage. However, the Bulldogs were forced to punt soon after, and Brett Thorson’s boot went out of bounds at the Kentucky 8.

Consecutive 15-yard penalties on Georgia’s defense, plus a 15-yard Brock Vandagriff run on third-and-12, put the Wildcats in Georgia territory. A Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins sack led to a six-yard loss, to the Bulldog 49. On the next play, Raylen Wilson sacked and stripped Vandagriff, and Damon Wilson II recovered the ball for Georgia at the Kentucky 23.

The turnover led to a 34-yard Woodring field goal, tying the game 3-3 with 3:48 to play in the half. The Wildcats answered with a drive inside the Georgia 20 and another Raynor field goal, this one a 32-yarder that put Kentucky ahead 6-3 at the half.

At halftime of the defensive battle, the Bulldogs’ offense had produced just three first downs and 63 yards, while Kentucky had 12 first downs and 130 total yards. It was Georgia’s fewest first-half yards since 2009. Thorson, who had punted just five times all season before Saturday, had four in the first half.

The Wildcats got the ball to start the second half and drove down to the Bulldog 22 before having to settle for a 40-yard Raynor field goal that pushed the Kentucky lead to 9-3.

Georgia’s offense had its best drive of the game on the ensuing possession, with Beck completing a 33-yard pass to Lovett, followed soon after by a 20-yard completion to Dillon Bell. However, the Bulldogs eventually had to settle for a 30-yard Woodring field goal, cutting the Kentucky lead to 9-6 with 3:52 to play in the third quarter.

The Bulldog defense forced a three-and-out on Kentucky’s next drive, and the offense took over at the Georgia 32. On third-and-2, Etienne ran for 12 yards. On the next play, Beck hit Etienne on a screen that resulted in an 11-yard gain, and that was followed by an eight-yard Etienne run to the Kentucky 29 on the final play of the third quarter. After being held to 63 yards in the first half, Georgia produced 107 in the third.

Etienne nearly scored on the first play of the fourth, narrowly stepping out of bounds at the 11 on a 17-yard run. Later, Robinson ran the ball in from the 3 for a touchdown and the Bulldogs’ first lead of the game, 13-9, with 12:20 to play.

Kentucky answered with an 11-play drive that resulted in a 51-yard Raynor field goal, cutting the Bulldog lead to 13-12 with 8:01 remaining. The Georgia defense forced a Kentucky punt with 3:02 remaining, and the offense took over at the 15. On second down, Beck hit Lovett for a 33-yard gain up the left side, to the Georgia 49. Later, Beck connected with Oscar Delp for eight yards and a first down. Delp fumbled on the play and Arian Smith dove on the loose ball to help seal the win.

The Bulldogs are off next Saturday and return to action Sept. 28 at No. 4 Alabama. It is the first of three road games this season against teams currently ranked in the Associated Press top five. Georgia also plays at No. 2 Texas on Oct. 19 and at No. 5 Ole Miss on Nov. 9.

POST-GAME NOTES

*Defense Yet To Allow A TD This Season: On the year, the Bulldogs have allowed just 18 points on six field goals with UK booting four tonight. The Bulldogs came in ranked tied for fourth in the nation in Scoring Defense (3.0 ppg). 

*Georgia’s leading tacklers tonight were Daylen Everette with a career-high eight plus Malaki Starks had eight. CJ Allen and Chaz Chambliss were next with had six apiece. It was a career-high for Chambliss too.

*UK finished the game with 284 yards of total offense on 73 plays. In the first half, the Wildcats led 6-3 with 130 yards of total offense on 39 plays.

*On its second possession tonight, UK became the first team to score on the Bulldogs in the first half this season after making a school-record 55-yard FG.

*In the first half, the Bulldogs had three sacks and forced three fumbles but only recovered one. Sophomore Gabe Harris Jr, notched his first career sack. Late in the 2nd quarter, junior Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins picked up a sack, his first of the year and second of his career. On the next play, Georgia’s Ryalen Wilson sacked Brock Vandagriff and forced a fumble which was recovered by Damon Wilson at the UK 23. It led to a game-tying field goal. For Raylen, he now has 1.5 sacks for the year and two for his career. It was the first career fumble recovery for Damon Wilson.

*UK began the second half with an 11-play, 61-yard drive in 5:52 that ended with a 40-yard FG and a 9-6 advantage.

*After the Bulldogs cut it to 9-6, they forced UK on its second possession to a three-and-out with 2:17 left in the 3rd quarter.

*Georgia took a 13-9 lead, and UK answered with a 51-yard FG to cut it to 13-12 with 8:01 left in the game.

*Summary Of The Offense: Top-ranked Georgia edged UK 13-12. They ran 54 plays and tallied 262 yards of total offense.

*Senior QB Carson Beck finished 15-for-24 for 160 yards. In the first half, Beck was 5-for-11 for 32 yards plus one rush for five yards. Beck improved to 16-1 as the starting quarterback.

*Up 13-12 with 2:58 left in the game, the Bulldogs began a drive at their own 15. On 2nd-and-9, Beck connected with Dominic Lovett for a 33-yard gain to the UGA 49. The Bulldogs would run the clock down to nine seconds before punting.

*Georgia’s fifth possession in the 1st half began at the UK 23 after a fumble recovery. It resulted in a 34-yard game-tying FG to make it 3-3 with 3:53 left.

*Georgia’s first possession of the 2nd half resulted in a 30-yard field goal to trim the deficit to 9-6. It capped an 11-play, 63-yard drive in 5:11.

*On their second possession of the 2nd half, the Bulldogs marched 68 yards on 10 plays in 4:57 for a  go-ahead TD. The drive was capped by a three-yard scamper by Branson Robinson, his 2nd TD of the year. Following the PAT, Georgia had its first lead at 13-9 with 12:20 left in the contest.

*Senior Dominic Lovett finished with a team-high six catches for 89 yards.

*The Bulldogs tallied 102 rushing yards. Junior Trevor Etienne had a team-high 19 carries for 79 yards.

*Starting right guard Tate Ratledge went down in the first half with a knee and ankle injuries and did not return.

*In the first half, the Bulldogs collected just 63 yards of total offense on 23 plays and trailed 6-3.

*Georgia’s three points in the first half was its lowest since last season when it trailed South Carolina 14-3 and eventually won 24-14.                                                                       

*Streaking: With tonight’s 13-12 win over UK, top-ranked Georgia (3-0) now has won 42 straight regular season games dating back to the 2020 season. *Georgia extended its SEC and school record streak of consecutive SEC regular season victories to 28.

*The Bulldogs extended their current FBS-leading streak of wins in an opponent’s home stadium to 16.

*Georgia now has won 15 straight over the Wildcats and lead the UK series 64-12-2.

*The Bulldogs are 49-2 in their last 51 games.

*Special Teams In Action: Junior Brett Thorson’s had six punts for a 49.5 average. Georgia punted only five times in their first two games.

*Thorson’s first punt tonight covered 56 yards. His next punt came out of the endzone and was 39 yards with no return. His third punt went 58 yards and into the endzone for a touchback. He has six punts of 50+ yards this season. His fourth punt of the half went for 44 yards and was downed at the UK 8. His first punt of the 2nd half covered 56 yards and went out at the UK 16. His final punt of the night was a squib attempt that went 40 yards for a touchback

*Sophomore PK Peyton Woodring tallied seven points on field goals of 34 and 30 yards plus one PAT. He handled the kickoffs too. For the year, Woodring is 6-for-6 in field goals including 4-for-4 from the 30-39 range.

*Captains, Coin Toss and For Starters: Georgia’s captains were Smael Mondon, Malaki Starks, Tate Ratledge and Trevor Etienne. UK won the toss and deferred the ball until the second half. There were two first-time starters in sophomores London Humphreys (WR) and Damon Wilson (LB). Humphreys, who is in his first year with Georgia, started five games at Vanderbilt last year.

*Up Next: The Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0 SEC) have an open date next Saturday before resuming SEC action at No. 4 Alabama (3-0) on Sept. 28 at 7:30 pm.