No. 1 UGA bends ‘resiliency,’ outlasts Kentucky
Sep 14, 2024, 11:52 PM ET
LEXINGTON, Ky.– Branson Robinson rushed for a 3-yard, go-ahead touchdown early in the fourth quarter, and top-ranked Georgia overcame a sluggish performance to rally past and after that hold off Kentucky 13-12 on Saturday night.The Bulldogs(3-0, 1-0 SEC)had a hard time to discover connection on either side of the ball and tracked 9-3 early in the 3rd quarter against a Wildcats team intent on rebounding from its own flat effort in a 31-6 home loss to conference-rival South Carolina. Peyton Woodring’s 30-yard basket late in the 3rd quarter got Georgia within 3 before the Dawgs followed with their longest drive of the night at simply the right time.Trevor Etienne’s
12-yard run, 11-yard reception and 8-yard rush got the Bulldogs to the Kentucky 29. The Florida transfer then broke right for a 17-yard run to the 11, stepping out of bounds as he tiptoed down the sideline trying to reach the end zone. Robinson took it in from there 3 plays later for Georgia’s very first lead at 13-9.
The Wildcats weren’t done, answering with Alex Raynor’s 51-yard basket to get within a point. His school-record 55-yard kick provided Kentucky the initial lead, and he included two more from 32 and 40 yards for an advantage that held for more than 3 quarters– though not enough to put Georgia away. Kentucky (1-2, 0-2) got the ball one final time at its 20 with 9 seconds left but could get just 17 lawns on two plays before time ran out.
“So happy with the resiliency our kids revealed,” stated Georgia coach Kirby Smart, whose group beat Kentucky for the 15th successive time. “They never ever flinched. We thought this would be a blow-by-blow game. We talked all week about blow by blow, delivering more blows than them. We stated the very first chop of the tree does not chop the tree down. It takes often 272 ax chops, and it took every single one tonight to do the job.”
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Etienne rushed 19 times for 79 lawns, while Robinson, a sophomore who missed out on last season with a torn ACL, had 5 yards on two carries. Quarterback Carson Beck completed 15 of 24 passes for 160 lawns, including his longest conclusion of 33 lawns to Dominic Lovett with 2:45 left. That put the Bulldogs at midfield and offered breathing space in a game where absolutely nothing came easy.Kentucky quarterback Brock Vandagriff, who moved from Georgia after backing up Beck last season and Stetson Bennett during the Bulldogs’2 nationwide title runs, finished 14 of 27 passes for 114 lawns however was sacked three times. 2 sacks came consecutively in the 2nd quarter, the 2nd leading to a strip fumble by Raylen Wilson that was recovered by Damon Wilson II at the Kentucky 23 to set up Woodring’s 34-yard field goal that tied the game 3-3. The Wildcats were the assailant for the very first 30-plus minutes, building a 6-3
halftime lead off Raynor’s first 2 basket. The Wildcats likewise outgained the Bulldogs 130-63 by the break, absolutely nothing fantastic but a substantial enhancement from recently’s uninspired 183-yard getaway. They were outgained 199-124 after halftime.”Give them credit. They made more plays than us,”Kentucky coach Mark Stoops stated.”We played tough and thought we
had chances to win the game.”Up next, Georgia check outs No. 4 Alabama on Sept. 28 in a rematch of last season’s SEC championship won by the Crimson Tide 27-24.