Top-ranked Georgia pounds Cats
Georgia tight end Brock Bowers pulled away from Kentucky's Maxwell Hairston after a catch in Saturday's game at Sanford Stadium in Athens. (Dale Zanine/USA Today Sports)
Jeff Drummond • CatsIllustrated
Managing Editor Edit
@JDrumUK
Kentucky was not ready for the big stage.
Despite significant buzz that the No. 20 Wildcats might be poised to challenge two-time defending national champion Georgia for SEC East supremacy, it was the No. 1 Bulldogs who made it clear that a sizeable gap remains between the two programs.
Georgia (6-0, 3-0 SEC) raced to a 21-0 lead and never looked back en route to a 51-13 rout of the mistake-plagued Cats at Sanford Stadium in Athens.
"Gotta give (Georgia) a lot of credit, but I'm not very proud of that effort," Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops said. "We didn't play very good, we didn't play very smart, we did not play tough, we did not handle this atmosphere. Just not good. However, that (Georgia) team put it all together tonight."
The Bulldogs recorded 608 yards of total offense, including 435 through the air against what had been one of the nation's top defensive units this season. Quarterback Carson Beck completed 28 of 35 passes for 389 yards and four touchdowns on the night.
Elite tight end Brock Bowers showed why he's considered one of the top players in the country, hauling in seven of Beck's passes for a game-high 132 yards and one touchdown.
"There's no way to sugarcoat it: we got whipped," UK defensive coordinator Brad White said.
Kentucky (5-1, 2-1 SEC) managed only 183 yards of total offense against a rebuilding UGA defense that lost several key members of last year's championship team to the NFL.
In stark contrast to Georgia's passing success, UK quarterback Devin Leary completed only 10 of his 26 attempts for 128 yards, although he did throw a pair of touchdown passes to Ray Davis and Josh Kattus.
It marked the 14th consecutive win by Georgia in the series against Kentucky dating back to the Cats' 34-27 victory at Sanford Stadium in 2009.
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In this "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK loss...
KEY MOMENT:
Three consecutive major penalties helped put Kentucky in a deep hole to start the game. Offensive lineman Jager Burton had two miscues that wiped out first-down gains of seven yards on once-promising drives that morphed into punts. And perhaps the most egregious error was a personal foul by defensive lineman Deone Walker that wiped out a third-down stop with the game 14-0 and the Cats set to receive the ball in good field position. Instead, it led to the Bulldogs marching 80 additional yards to make it 21-0 and all but end any serious thoughts of a comeback.
GAME BALL:
Carson Beck, Georgia -- The Bulldogs' new quarterback looked a whole lot like the old quarterback, throwing the ball with great timing and touch all night long. He finished with 389 yards and four touchdowns on a night where he completed 80% of his passes.
BY THE NUMBERS:
1st - Opponent to rush for more than 100 yards against the UK defense in the last seven games. Georgia finished with 173 rushing yards.
2-for-11 - Third-down conversion rate for the UK offense. Georgia entered the game ranked sixth nationally in allowing only 25% on third down.
8.3 - Yards per play by the Bulldogs. The Cats managed only 3.7.
12 - Different Bulldog receivers caught at least one pass. Seven of those had multiple receptions.
33 - Consecutive regular-season SEC wins for Georgia, tying Tennessee (1937-1941) for the longest streak in league history.The Bulldogs go for the record next week against Vanderbilt.
50 - Total plays by the UK offense. It marked the fifth time in six games that the opponent has finished with more snaps than the Cats.
QUOTABLE:
"We just gotta turn on the tape, look at the man in the mirror, be honest with yourself and your teammates, and get better." -- UK tight end Josh Kattus
UP NEXT:
Kentucky returns to action next week at home against Missouri. The Tigers (5-1, 1-1 SEC) dropped from the ranks of the unbeaten today, losing 49-39 at home to LSU after holding a 22-7 lead early in the game. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 ET on the SEC Network.
