After seeing the debacle which was Missouri, failing to remain competitive against Alabama, and losing a heartbreaker to Florida, it would be foolish to fully expect Tennessee to knock off Georgia, the undefeated reigning back-to-back National Champions. However, having watched the Vols utterly dismantle U Conn, and seeing the gutsy fights against Texas A&M and Kentucky, and knowing the raw talent Joe Milton has, it would not be beyond comprehension to believe the Volunteers could upset the Bulldogs. After all, Georgia needed to pull away late against South Carolina, Auburn and Vandy, and Mizzou was in it until the end. Georgia was not unscathed as far as undefeated teams go. They had shown to be vulnerable on many occasions.
One such occasion was the opening drive of the game. After a stirring launch to the game, Jaylen Wright took a handoff on the first play from scrimmage and went untouched through the secondary, pulling away from defenders the longer the run went. This one went down as a 75-yard touchdown, and a 7-0 lead just over 10 seconds into the game. The brilliant performance by Dolly Parton to get the game going seemed to have stirred something in the Smoky Mountains, and emotions were raised high.
As one who likes to look for ill omens (though I admittedly just see and define them as trends), Carson Beck recovering his own fumble on the Bulldog’s first drive would be an ill wind. Georgia would still kick a field goal, being unable to completely overcome the lost yardage, but getting three points after putting the ball on the grass is a win. And from then on out, it was the Georgia show. Tennessee’s offense barely averaged over one first down per drive. After scoring their TD, the Milton led offense had a dozen first downs in ten drives. Over half the team’s rushing yardage was from their first play, and yet, somehow, the team still averaged more rushing yards per play than yards per pass. Milton completed 17 of 30 passes, but for a mere 147 yards. Georgia had three players with more receiving yards than Squirrel White, the Vols’ leading pass catcher. And to mount on disappointment, Tennessee controlled the ball for less than half the time of Georgia (40:58 to 19:02).
UT also lost the 3rd down comparison appallingly, converting two of 11 tries compared to Georgia converting 9 of 13. The Volunteers simply could not sustain drives. On their first 3rd down, needing three yards, Tennessee took to the air, with Milton completing a pass to Squirrel White, but for no gain. The next drive ended with a pass to Squirrel which was incomplete, as did the one after that. The Vols finally converted their first 3rd down with under 2 minutes left in the first half on a Jaylen Wright run. If you are again looking at omens (again, really trends), Milton and Squirrel did not connect on their first 3rd down attempt in the second half. It finally worked out on the last play of the 3rd quarter when Milton hit White for 19. But the drive was brought to an end when Milton went back to the well, and again failed to connect with White, leading to a missed field goal. Missed opportunities led to a 38-10 final, obviously favoring the Bulldogs.
Miraculously, Tennessee was not overly destroyed by a penalty disparity. They were only penalized three times for 20 yards, and Georgia twice for 15. Tennessee also won the turnover battle, recovering a Bulldog fumble and not turning it over themselves. This was a game which was decided on the field, and it was decided emphatically. Georgia rarely had a bad drive. They only had one three-and-out per half. The offensive play calling created opportunities which the visitors capitalized on time and again. On their first touchdown, some trickery with a running back pass led to a wide-open receiver, and an easy score for a lead which would not be relinquished for the rest of the day. All three of UGA quarterback Carson Beck’s scoring passes were on simple crossing routes. The lone Georgia rushing touchdown fake was well executed (I admit, I lost track of the ball), and then UGA running back Kendall Milton simply left UT’s Elijah Herring once again exposed. Herring was left eating dust from Cody Schrader all last week, Kendall doubled down on Herring’s lack of speed. The secondary and linebackers were also put in terrible positions in the pass game the whole game. Time and again with their crossing routes, the UT defenders would be forced to decide between collisions with teammates, or keeping with their assignment, and it was exploited for a pair of touchdowns.
On a personal note, my family took a vacation this summer. First, we spent a few days outside of Knoxville proper. We were visiting family there before going to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. We then headed into Georgia to visit friends, including a couple day trips into Florida to see manatees and dolphins. One of our activities was kayaking down a river, our boats laden down with more kids than was prudent, perhaps, but we managed it without any real difficulty. In order to accommodate my family and theirs, our hosts needed to borrow kayaks from a friend of theirs. The last time we had taken a vacation to visit, we had used these kayaks as well, simply launching from their back yard into a small lake which we were told was inhabited by alligators. Both times we had gone there for kayaks, our friend had told us it was the house Kirby Smart grew up in. His family and Kirby’s family grew up together, and their siblings were consistently commingled. They also both chose FSU for graduate school, and both work in the University of Georgia system.