Georgia Football: Past, Present and Future on Display in Win
The Present of Georgia Football
The stars of UGA present were also on full display in the win over Murray State. D’Andre Swift was at the forefront. He again looked incredibly fast and explosive.
Swift only carried the ball six times, due to the lopsided score of Saturday’s matchup. However he made the most of those attempts, rushing for 60 yards, an average of 11.2 yards per attempt.
One third of Swift’s touches resulted in a touchdown for the Georgia Bulldogs. His longest run was a 40 yard burst. D’Andre also added one reception for nine yards.
Junior quarterback Jake Fromm also played very efficiently in Saturday’s win. He completed every pass he attempted except one, finishing 10/11 for 166 yards. That gave him a strong quarterback rating of 247.7 and an ESPN QBR of 95.5.
One of those passes was a 15 yard touchdown pass, with just over six minutes remaining in the first half. Fromm averaged a robust 15.1 yards per passing attempt for the game, before taking a seat late in the first half. His efficiency and ability to make plays, will be paramount to the Dawgs title hopes.
Senior running back Brian Herrien also made his presence felt, scoring a touchdown for the Dawgs for the second consecutive week. Overall he carried the ball five times for 31 yards.
Sophomore running back James Cook continues to carve out a role with the Georgia Bulldogs. New offensive coordinator James Coley used Cook in a variety of ways, including screen passes and jet sweep handoffs.
James Cook the brother of Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook, finished the game with 57 total yards. That includes three carries for 30 yards, with the addition 27 yards coming by way of two receptions. Cook averaged more than a first down on every touch.
Junior wide receiver Demetrius Robertson has emerged as the Georgia Bulldogs leading receiver, thus far in this early portion of the season. He added three more catches and a touchdown to his totals, in limited action against Murray State.
Tight end Eli Wolf a senior transfer from Tennessee, had the best performance of his NCAA career. After catching only five passes for 30 yards as a Vol last season, Wolf caught four passes for 73 yards against Murray State.
In one game Wolf smashed his yardage total from last season. Counting his one catch against Vanderbilt, Eli has already equaled his catch total form last year. He is only four catches away from matching his career total of nine while on Rocky Top. He could possibly tie or eclipse that number, this week against Arkansas State.
The play of Andrew Thomas and Cade Mayes won’t show up on the stat sheet, but both men did yeomen’s work against Murray State. They both held up well in pass protection and did a great job blocking down field. This Georgia offensive line counties to be one of the best in the NCAA, the one question that remains is if they can handle top-notch speed rushers.
Defensive Lineman Tyler Clark played a tremendous game. He had three tackles and a tackle for a loss, but his impact was much greater. He constantly whipped the man in front of him, and was disruptive all game long.
Junior defensive back Mark Webb was smoked by Murray State’s Daquon Green for a 60 yard touchdown. However he more than made up for it.
Webb led the Georgia Bulldogs with six tackles, including one for a loss. He also had a pass breakup on the game. However where Webb really made up for his miscue, was forcing a fumble on running back Jared McCray.
The fumble was scooped up by senior safety J.R.Reed who took it to the house for a touchdown. Reed played well in the game, adding four tackles, with one tackle dropping the Murray State ball carrier for a loss.