No. 1 Georgia handles Kentucky to stay unbeaten

Athens, Ga. --- The Georgia Bulldogs played their first regular season game in nearly 40 years as the Associated Press’ No. 1 team and pulled away in the 2nd half for a 30-13 win over No. 11 Kentucky.

Stetson Bennett continued his stellar play as he completed 14 of 20 passes for 250 yards and three touchdowns.

James Cook led a balanced rushing attack with 51 yards on six carries. Zamir White added 46 yards and a touchdown as the Bulldogs ran for 166 yards on the day.

Georgia improved to 7-0 overall and 5-0 in the SEC. Kentucky dropped to 6-1 on the year and 4-1 in the conference.

The Bulldogs’ vaunted defense limited the Wildcats to 243 yards of offense, 180 yards below their season average. Linebacker Quay Walker led Georgia with nine tackles, while nose tackle Jalen Carter had one of the three Bulldogs’ sacks and also led the team with 2.5 tackles for loss.

“I’m proud of our guys today,” said Georgia head coach Kirby Smart. “That was a really physical football team we played.”

After a scoreless first quarter, the Bulldogs took a 7-0 lead when Bennett hit Cook on a 19 yard scoring strike on the first play of quarter number two. It was Bennett’s team leading ninth touchdown pass of the season.

The Bulldogs struck again on their next possession as White scored on a 24 yard run. The TD was White’s seventh of the season and gave the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead. Kendall Milton had the big play of the drive, a 35 yard run, which was Georgia’s longest of the season.

Kentucky then answered with its first score of the game as quarterback Will Levis found tight end Justin Rigg on a one yard touchdown pass. The TD was just the third allowed by the Georgia defense this season and cut the Bulldogs’ lead to 14-7 with 3:53 remaining in the half.

Georgia opened the 2nd half scoring with a six play, 75 yard drive capped off by Bennett’s 2nd touchdown pass of the game. He found tight end Brock Bowers on a 27 yard strike to give the Bulldogs a 21-7 lead.

Special teams also played a huge role in the 3rd quarter. Jack Podlesny kicked a 26 yard field goal to give Georgia a 24-7 lead midway thru the quarter, and the Bulldogs then kept Kentucky off the scoreboard as Devonte Wyatt blocked a Matt Ruffolo 33 yard field goal heading into the final period.

Georgia then put together a seven play, 82 yard drive that saw Bennett throw his third touchdown pass of the day, and second to Bowers, on a 20 yard score with 11:27 remaining. The Bulldogs led 30-7 but Podlesny missed the extra point which snapped an NCAA record of 363 in a row dating back to 2014.

Bowers led the Georgia receivers with six catches for 101 yards and two touchdowns.

The end of the game was not without some mild drama as Kentucky drove to the Georgia one yard line and then called timeout to try and get one final score. The Wildcats were then able to find the end zone as Levis threw a TD pass to Wan’Dale Robinson with four seconds left on the clock.

Both teams are off next Saturday. The Bulldogs play again October 30th in Jacksonville against the Florida Gators. Kickoff is set for 3:30 ET.

Kentucky’s next game is also on October 30th when the Wildcats play on the road against Mississippi State.

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