Georgia got off to a fast start in its win over Marshall, but losing the shutout in the fourth quarter was a "bad beat."
As expected, Georgia dominated Marshall from the jump in the season-opener. While they didn’t manage to cover the 39.5-point betting line, Georgia left little doubt in its 45-7 win over the Thundering Herd.
As always though, Georgia had its share of wins, losses, and yes, even a bad beat in the season-opener.
Win: Fast start
How nice is it not to hear the phrase “slow start?” It was one of the few commonalities between seemingly all of Georgia’s games last season, and while they are through just one game, it’s nice to see that it hasn’t carried over.
The Bulldogs didn’t so much as trail the Thundering Herd, and that’s how it should be considering the 39.5-point line. The 0-0 tie on the scoreboard lasted just one drive. Following an opening three-and-out for Marshall, Georgia drove 70 yards in eight plays.
Dwight Phillips Jr., capped off the drive with a 17-yard touchdown run. Georgia followed it up with another scoring drive, spanning 72 yards in 11 plays, before Gunner Stockton found the end zone with a 13-yard run.
14-0, just like that. To put that in perspective the Bulldogs scored touchdowns on each of its first two drives only two times last season. Those both came in blowout wins over Tennessee Tech and UMass.
Loss: Second quarter snooze
Unlike much of last year, Georgia got off to a fast start. The defense forced two three-and-outs, while the offense found the endzone on each of its first two drives. But that is where the fast start ended, at least for Georgia’s offense.
Georgia would punt on three of their next four drives, all coming in the second quarter. One of those was a three-and-out where Georgia finished with -4 yards after a Dillon Bell run went backwards six yards.
That scoring drought would end with a late first-half field goal from Peyton Woodring. Yet, even that felt like a missed opportunity for Georgia on a two-minute drive where they reached the Marshall 35-yard-line in just four plays.
Bad beat: No shutout
Georgia’s defense was pitching a shutout for three full quarters. Then came the fourth quarter, where Marshall answered Georgia’s eight-play, 80-yard drive with one of their own. Facing the second-team Georgia defense, the Thundering Herd went 84 yards in seven plays ending the shutout.
A pair of explosive plays through the air saw Georgia’s defense lose its shutout. Marshall quarterback Zion Turner first found Antonio Harmon for a 34-yard gain. Then, a few plays later, it was a 44-yard pass from Turner to Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw that set Marshall up on the goal-line for the one-yard rushing touchdown.
Starters or second-string, Georgia expects to see its defense play up to the same standard. Giving up a touchdown in the fourth quarter after giving up some explosives through the air certainly wasn’t up to that standard.
Category: General Sports
