Tag: georgia vs Baylor

The Georgia Bulldogs are your 2020 Sugar Bowl champs – Quick thoughts

Georgia football is the Sugar Bowl champions after beating Baylor in New Orleans.

Georgia is undefeated in the new decade.

The Dawgs moved to 12-2 on the season and 1-0 in 2020 after defeating No. 7 Baylor 26-14 in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

Things were just clicking on Wednesday night against a Bears defense that is one of the best in the country.

But with 10+ key players sitting out the game, Georgia still came to play. After an embarrassing defeat last year, Kirby Smart made sure that the players who actually wanted to be there were ready for it.

Despite the fact that this was essentially an exhibition game, the win leaves Georgia fans with a nice feeling about things to come.

Recruiting is not over, and I’m sure Georgia targets were impressed by how the Dawgs played.

Speaking of recruiting, the Dawgs have a few big ones coming up this week. 5-stars Zach Evans (RB) and Darnell Washington (TE) will be making their announcements live during the the Under Armour All-American Game on Thursday. Coverage will begin at 6 p.m. on ESPN2.

Looking to next year, we saw a few players who are sure to make a big impact in 2020.

Zamir White took 18 carries for 92 yards. Kenny McIntosh, a freshman, took six carries and looked good as well. It will be interesting to see how they are used next year when Kendall Milton and possibly Evans come to town.

And then there was George Pickens, who was named MVP of the game. Pickens, a true freshman, hauled in 12 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown.

When interviewed, Pickens said “my offensive line is amazing. My quarterback is amazing.”

He then continued to praise his team.

“Put the camera on all these guys. I love them to death.”

Let’s talk about junior safety Richard LeCounte for a second. He receives a decent amount of unwarranted criticism on Twitter, but #2 is an absolute baller. His jersey number matched the amount of interceptions he had on Wednesday night. His NFL decision is unknown at this point, but we will have an answer on that shortly I’d assume.

As for Jake Fromm, the junior threw 30 passes, completing 20 of them for 250 yards, 2 touchdowns and no interceptions. When asked about what his future holds after the game, Fromm did not hint at whether or not he’s staying at Georgia. Instead, he praised God and his teammates. We will have to wait on that one.

D’Andre Swift is viewed as the No. 1 running back in this draft class by ESPN’s Todd McShay. We do not know what he’s going to do, but everyone expects Swift to turn pro. But what he did do was make the trip to New Orleans with his teammates. He was nursing a shoulder injury, but played through as much as he could.

After the game, Kirby praised the junior tailback for his dedication and for what he does off the field.

Kirby was clearly emotional about this win. Following the game, passion was pouring out of the former Bulldog as he hoisted the Sugar Bowl trophy with confetti flying.

Kirby called a great, aggressive game. He was aggressive on defense, pulled out some trickery on a flea flicker and a fake field goal. 

James Coley was also on his game. He was willing to adapt, call outside run plays and get his best available players into a spot where they were able to succeed.

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With the 2019 season officially over for Georgia, we look ahead to a 2020 that will see the Dawgs open with Virginia in Atlanta.

In week three, UGA travels to Tuscaloosa in what will surely be the game of the season at that point.

And Auburn, which complained about its schedule enough that the SEC finally did something, will be coming to Athens in early October rather than November.

Georgia vs Florida will be played on Halloween night in Jacksonville.

The South Carolina and Tennessee games will both be played in November, which will be an odd change of pace. Those games are typically in the first half of the year.

I predict 11-1, with the only loss coming to Alabama.

Dawgs vs Bama in the SEC Championship.

We’ll see….

Watch: Georgia safety Richard LeCounte ices Sugar Bowl with INT

For the Georgia Bulldogs, the 2020 Sugar Bowl was a sweet victory. Junior safety Richard LeCounte provided the icing on the cake.

For the Georgia Bulldogs, the 2020 Sugar Bowl was a sweet victory.

Junior safety Richard LeCounte provided the icing on the cake with a fourth quarter interception, picking off third-string Baylor quarterback Jacob Zeno to seal the game.

The Dawgs went on to win 26-14 and remain undefeated in their five-contest history with the Bears.

Watch: Georgia WR George Pickens gains unlikely first down

After twisting and turning his way past the line to gain, Pickens added ten yards to his school record performance in the Sugar Bowl

Early in the fourth quarter of the 2020 Sugar Bowl, Georgia freshman phenom George Pickens broke six tackles, twelve ankles, and countless Baylor fans’ spirits.

On second and ten with twelve minutes remaining, Jake Fromm threw a routine five-yard pass toward the far sideline to Pickens, who at this point had already amassed 165 receiving yards and a touchdown.

After twisting and turning his way past the line to gain, Pickens added ten yards to his school record performance in the Sugar Bowl.

Watch a freak athlete do freaky athletic things:

Sugar Bowl: Georgia executes fake field goal, Zamir White scores shortly after

Georgia football executed a fake field goal and then handed it Zamir White who scored against Baylor in the Sugar Bowl.

Midway through the third quarter, Georgia faced a 4th and 2 deep in Baylor territory.

Leading 19-7, it would have made sense to take the three points and extend the lead to 15.

Instead, Kirby Smart went with some trickery and pulled off a fake kick that resulted in a Georgia first down.

Punter Jake Camarda, who was in as the holder, kept the ball and ran for a first. Had he not stumbled, he may have went for six.

The next play, Fromm gave it to freshman Zamir White, who has had a nice game so far. Zeus went for 13 yards and extended the lead to 26-7.

Azeez Ojulari gets the crucial 4th down sack

On 4th and 4 from the Georgia 46 yard line, Baylor attempted to convert and keep its drive alive. The Dawgs, leading 19-7 at that point early in the third quarter, were not having it, though. Edge rusher Azeez Ojulari kept his impressive season …

On 4th and 4 from the Georgia 46 yard line, Baylor attempted to convert and keep its drive alive.

The Dawgs, leading 19-7 at that point early in the third quarter, were not having it, though.

Edge rusher Azeez Ojulari kept his impressive season alive and came up huge, getting to Baylor quarterback Charlie Brewer, sacking him and forcing a fumble.

Touchdown! Jake Fromm finds Matt Landers

Late in the first half, with Georgia leading 13-0, Jake Fromm found Matt Landers for a pretty touchdown to put the Dawgs up 19-0. On 2nd and 8, Fromm hit Landers for a 16 yard touchdown. Watch it here. #SugarBowl 1:51 2Q – Georgia 19, Baylor 0 – …

Late in the first half, with Georgia leading 13-0, Jake Fromm found Matt Landers for a pretty touchdown to put the Dawgs up 19-0.

On 2nd and 8, Fromm hit Landers for a 16 yard touchdown.

Watch it here.

Sugar Bowl: Pretty pass and catch from Fromm to Pickens for a TD

Pretty touchdown from Jake Fromm to Georgia football WR George Pickens for a TD over Baylor in the Sugar Bowl.

This was about as pretty as it gets.

Early in the second quarter, Jake Fromm delivered a pretty pass to George Pickens, who hauled it in and dove for a touchdown.

The Dawgs looked good on that drive, getting the ball downfield with a nice mix of tosses and passes.

This is Pickens’ 7th catch of the game. He already has 118 yards and a touchdown.

This put Georgia up 10-0.

Sugar Bowl: Georgia executes flea flicker for a big gain

Georgia football pulled off a pretty flea flicker for a 47 yard gain in the Sugar Bowl vs Baylor.

Tied at 0-0 in the first quarter, Kirby Smart pulled out a little trickery that resulted in a 47 yard gain.

It was D’Andre Swift’s first play of the game, and he played a part in executing a flea flicker to George Pickens.

Earlier in the drive, Tyler Simmons took a jet sweep and was tackled by the facemask, moving Georgia to its own 40 yard line before Pickens got them inside the 15.

Georgia failed to score a touchdown, but Rodrigo Blankenship did knock in a short field goal to give UGA a 3-0 lead.

Matchup preview: Baylor’s offense vs Georgia’s defense

Georgia DC Dan Lanning admits that the Dawgs face a tough test in scheming against a balanced Baylor offense.

Georgia’s defense may be coming off their worst performance of the season (statistically speaking), but the Bulldogs arrive in New Orleans still ranked fourth in total defense to square off against the Baylor Bears in the Allstate Sugar Bowl.

As defensive coordinator Dan Lanning pointed out in his press conference, the Junkyard Dawgs face a tough test in scheming against a balanced Baylor offense.

The Bears feature a proven pocket passer in Charlie Brewer, who was recently cleared to play in the Sugar Bowl. Behind him are “shifty” tailbacks John Lovett and JaMycal Hasty, both totally solid in providing pass protection. Beside him are a group of versatile tight ends capable of receiving and particularly adept at blocking. He’s assisted by the great size and speed of his outside receivers, specifically in senior Denzel Mims and sophomore Tyquan Thornton.

With the Georgia secondary missing J.R. Reed and Tyrique McGhee, the Bears’ Brewer, Mims, and Thornton could take advantage of younger Bulldog players getting some of their first significant playing time in the defensive backfield. The defense has at times struggled with passes over the middle of the field, but has excelled with 50/50 balls to the outside of the field, so this matchup will be strength-on-strength.

Baylor is ranked at a good-but-not great 50th in the nation in team rushing and is presented a tall task in facing a Silver Britches defense ranked third in the country against the run.

Georgia’s defensive front seven is still the only group in the country that has given up only one rushing touchdown all year.  The next fewest: Oregon with four allowed.

If Baylor’s offense has one glaring weakness, it would be their offensive line.

They’re one of the bigger offensive lines in the Big XII and consequently are one of their conference’s better run blocking units. However, their pass protection is wildly inconsistent, they’ve given up more sacks (35) than any of their conference foes, and only eighteen FBS teams have given up more. That’s remarkable for a team that finished the regular season with a single loss.

The Dawgs’ D hasn’t rushed the quarterback as much this year as fans have seen in previous seasons, but with edge rushers Quay Walker, Nolan Smith, Jermaine Johnson, and Azeez Ojulari having combined for 12 sacks, Bulldog Nation should feel confident that Dan Lanning’s squad can notch multiple sacks on Brewer.

Given the injuries Georgia has on the other side of the ball, Baylor’s best chance at wearing down the Junkyard Dawgs is controlling time of possession. If Baylor’s offense can’t control the clock and Georgia’s defensive starters can get ample time to rest on the sideline, I like the Dawgs in this one.

For a full preview of the game, click here.

Georgia football DC Dan Lanning: Baylor offense “doesn’t beat themselves”

Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning took to the podium today for his pre-Sugar Bowl presser.

Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning took to the podium today for his pre-Sugar Bowl presser.

Arriving in New Orleans without Jim Thorpe Award finalist J.R. Reed, Lanning fielded several questions regarding altering his game plan in the absence of the standout senior safety. In addition, fellow defensive back Tyrique McGhee did not travel with the team and has not participated in bowl practices.

“That’s an opportunity [for younger players]. A lot of young guys got opportunities in this game last year. I think that was critical for their development.”

Lanning noted that last year’s Sugar Bowl was a huge opportunity for redshirt freshman Azeez Ojulari, who saw his first playing time in red and black in last year’s game and his since appeared in the starting lineup.

(Note: bowl games are considered exhibition matches by the NCAA and thus players such as Ojulari with a redshirt may participate without forfeiting a year of eligibility).

He believes that the 2019 Dawgs’ heavy rotational play on defense has them prepared for Baylor’s powerful offense.

“We’ve probably had over forty guys who have had significant roles for us in this defense. You’re not necessarily going to see new [players], but you’ll see more [of rotational players]. More Lewis Cine, more Chris Smith, more Otis Reese.”

The defensive coordinator made it clear he didn’t want to single out any player on Georgia’s historically great 2019 defense.

“What’s great about our players is that they don’t care about who gets the recognition. They want to have success but they realize individual success comes within team success.”

The staff and players have dubbed this selfless style of play a “no-name defense.”

The stout Georgia defense earned a lot of team success in 2019 and enters the Sugar Bowl ranked fourth in total defense, but statistics aren’t Lanning’s primary concern.

“We take a lot of pride in our performance…and it’s great that the numbers reflect that. But our number one goal regardless of the numbers is the win.”

Baylor’s offense provides a challenge for Lanning’s defensive unit, and the coach has high praise for the Bears’ balanced offensive attack.

“They’re extremely well coached. They have big tight ends that can block at the point of attack, and they’re really big at receiver on the outside.”

He later added, “they have shifty backs, and their quarterback [Charlie] Brewer is just a winner.”

The Bears rushed one fifty-five percent of their plays (476 pass to 394 rush) in 2019, a bit uncharacteristic of a Big XII offense. Lanning admitted that it’s difficult to scheme around a group that does “a great job of mixing it up.”

“If you want to take away the wideouts, they’re going to be able to run the ball. If you want to take away the run, they’re going to be able to throw the 50-50 ball to the outside.”

The Dawgs will need to play their usual disciplined defense to contain an equally disciplined Baylor offense.

Lanning stated simply: “They’re a team that doesn’t beat themselves.”