Auburn 27, Georgia 24

 

Well, shit. I don't like this. Not one bit. The previously undefeated, No. 1-ranked University of Georgia Bulldogs lost by a field goal to unranked Auburn (3-2), a team who's biggest win up to this point in the season had been over the Vanderbilt Commodores. 

Georgia looked invincible in the first quarter, scoring two TDs on their first two possessions. However, on the very first possession, in fact the first play of the game, Georgia QB Gunner Stockton rushed for five yards, diving forward at the end of the run and landing on his head. Backup QB Ryan Puglisi came in and passed for 51 yards on three plays, but Gunner came back in the game and handed the ball to running back Dwight Philips Jr. for a 15-yard rushing TD. 

Was Gunner concussed? Should he have been back in the game? He looked fine on the next drive, passing for 79 yards, including a second TD, but for the entire second and third quarters, his play was pretty questionable. He threw two interceptions and was sacked twice, and the Bulldogs didn't score again until almost eight minutes into the fourth quarter.

But the loss was hardly Gunner's fault. The Georgia defense looked tired and listless, and let Auburn score 24 unanswered points in the second and third quarters. Peyton Woodring uncharacteristically missed a field goal in the second. It should also be noted that running back Nate Frazier, who missed late week's game with an injury, was extremely tentative all game and only rushed for 16 yards on three plays. The wheels seemingly had completely come off the Georgia cart.

But in the second half, after Auburn opened with a TD on the first possession, the Georgia D held the Tigers to three consecutive three-and-outs. In the fourth quarter, Woodring made a 42-yard FG and Gunner seemingly returned to form and drove the Dawgs 94 yards down the field for a game-tying TD. The Dawgs forced Auburn to punt on their next possession and with 1:35 left to play, began a drive from their own 39 to get the ball within range for a game-winning FG.

That's when things got really ugly. Gunner fumbled the ball on the Auburn 46 (actually his own center, Drew Bobo, knocked it out of his hands with his elbow as Gunner ran behind him) and the Tigers recovered. Georgia could have kept them out of field goal range with less than a minute remaining to set up OT, but after two first-down plays by Auburn, Georgia defender Gabe Harris hit the Auburn QB late and was assessed a 15-yard roughing-the-passer penalty, putting the Tigers within easy FG range. They connected with 0:03 remaining and won the game.

Epic upset. Demoralizing loss. 

Georgia will lose its No. 1 ranking after only one week on the throne. Doesn't matter, AP Poll rankings during the season are meaningless, beauty-contest awards and the only poll that matters in the Selection Committee rankings at the end of the season. Still, either Notre Dame or Miami will probably be the new No. 1 depending on tonight's scores, and one hates to see either of them nab the beauty contest.

Georgia has a bye week next week, and they need it. Time to rest up, heal a little, think about what went wrong and how to fix it, and get ready for the Halloween afternoon game against the Florida Gators, who beat No. 7 Texas today by the same 27-24 score that Georgia lost by today. More on Florida and Georgia's chances tomorrow after the new rankings come out. 

There are only six undefeated teams left in the Top 25, and two of those are struggling in their games as I write. There are no undefeated teams left in the SEC. But even with the Auburn loss and loss of the No. 1 ranking, Georgia is still first in the conference at 6-1 overall and 4-1 in SEC play. Georgia's path to the National Championship doesn't go through winning the most AP Polls but on winning the conference, getting a good seed in the post-season bracket, and winning the playoff games. 

With the next three games against Florida, Ole Miss, and Missouri, the loss to Auburn just might be the kick in the pants that the Bulldogs needed. Time to rest up, lock down, and barrel through the remaining five games.

Go. Dawgs!