Georgia Bulldogs: 10 Most Painful Losses Since 2008

Oct 19, 2013; Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores wide receiver Jonathan Krause (17) drops a pass as he is hit by Georgia Bulldogs linebacker Ramik Wilson (51) during the second half at Vanderbilt Stadium. The Commodores beat the Bulldogs 31-27. Mandatory Credit: Don McPeak-USA TODAY Sports

Under HC James Franklin, Vanderbilt was a strong SEC football team.  For about 3-4 years you could expect the ‘Dores to win 8-9 games a make a bowl game.  They finished the 2013 Season ranked #24 in the country.  So I’m not infuriated that the Georgia Bulldogs lost on the road to a then good Vanderbilt Commodores team.  I’m mad about how it happened.

It was a rainy early morning kickoff in Nashville, Tennessee.  The previous meeting between the Dawgs and the ‘Dores in Music City was a feisty one with Vanderbilt HC James Franklin and Georgia DC Todd Grantham got into a verbal altercation in the fourth quarter of the 2011 contest.  You could tell that Franklin wanted to beat Georgia so badly.

To me, I got the feeling that most of the Georgia team was still asleep for an 11AM CT kickoff as the offense looked drowsy for the first half.  It was a very competitive game if I’m remembering it correctly.  I kept thinking that there would be one play in the second half that would forever tilt the game in one team’s favor.  Unfortunately that play went Vanderbilt’s way.

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In the second half ILB Ramik Wilson got called for targeting a defenseless receiver and thus ejected.  Targeting was still a newly enforced rule in the SEC and could not be overturned once called.  So in a game where stopping the run was paramount, UGA was stripped by its best tackler thanks to referee extraordinaire Penn Wagers’ terrific judgement.

Vanderbilt would go on to win the ball game 31-27, but I will forever believe that Georgia would have won that game had Wilson stayed in and finished the drill for the Dawgs.  I normally don’t hate on officials but this ‘targeting’ call will bother me for a good while longer.

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