The formerly No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs had a massive game against the No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide, and they couldn’t come through, losing a 41-34 barnburner that saw them recover from a 30-7 score by halftime to take the lead, only to give it away 18 seconds later. It’s fitting that it was the Crimson Tide, who have long been the arch rival of Georgia, ended several historic winning streaks Georgia had entering this game.
Arguably, neither team deserved to win more than the other, but the Bulldogs played horrendously on both sides of the ball in the first half. The Georgia defense allowed the Alabama offense to score on almost every single possession and Carson Beck throwing two interceptions and missing several key throws. Georgia played well enough to win in the second half, but their defense crumbled one last time, while the offense stalled out at the Alabama 20 with Carson Beck throwing his third interception.
As a result, the Bulldogs have moved down to No. 5 on the US LBM Coaches Poll, below SEC competitors Tennessee, Texas, and, of course, Alabama. Here are five takeaways from the game as a whole.
Secondary play was a big reason for the loss
There were concerns on how the defense was going to stop Jalen Milroe, and unfortunately, they rarely stopped him in this game. A big part of that was the secondary. Two weeks after earning a spot on the All-SEC team, Julian Humphrey was exposed several times on man-to-man coverage against Ryan Williams and Emmanuel Henderson Jr.
It wasn’t just him: KJ Bolden had some blown coverages, Malaki Starks gave up an electric play to Williams, and overall, Jalen Milroe had arguably the best game of his career passing the ball, which leads me to my next point.
Nobody could stop Jalen Milroe
Jalen Milroe as a passer was amazing, but Jalen Milroe the runner was even better. The Georgia defense couldn’t contend with his speed when he held onto the ball. Even when the defensive line came through, they couldn’t take him down and when he got in the open field, no one could tackle him. There were several missed tackles that made him look like college Lamar Jackson.
Nobody else in the Alabama backfield had over 35 yards or six carries except for Milroe, who had 117 yards and two touchdowns on just 16 carries, good enough for 7.3 yards per carry.
Carson Beck has some work to do
Milroe’s counterpart Carson Beck had a shaky game. He had his moments that proved why some consider him the best QB prospect for the upcoming 2025 NFL draft, but he also had moments that actively made it harder for Georgia to come back.
Beck has immense arm talent. When he throws the ball downfield, he does it with enough zip to complete it to any receiver, even on the deepest of plays. Sometimes, even on the run, he’s able to deliver an accurate ball. It showed in the second half of the game, where he was much better.
However, he stares at his read for too long. That was one of the biggest reasons why he had three interceptions; Alabama defenders keyed in on his reads. He had a couple more dropped interceptions too.
Georgia’s was mismatched in the trenches
Georgia also lost this game from both sides of the trenches. On the defensive side, they were hurting from having Mykel Williams, Warren Brinson, and Jordan Hall all banged up. This caused neutralized their pass rushagainst Alabama’s superb offensive line. They had some good moments, but the defensive line was mostly prey to Jalen Milroe’s scrambling abilities.
Meanwhile, the offensive line was reeling from losing Tate Ratledge a couple week ago. Alabama called a ton of blitzes, and the offensive line of Georgia wasn’t able to stop all of them. This resulted in an interception and an intentional grounding which became a safety.
Georgia still has a tough schedule
For those of you thinking Georgia is out of playoff contention with this loss, there’s nothing to fear. With the expanded playoff, Georgia still has a 61% chance of making the postseason. However, what will keep Georgia fans up at night is the gauntlet they’ll have to face in the coming weeks.
After somewhat easier matchups vs. Auburn and Mississippi State, Georgia will have to play No. 2 Texas, No. 4 Tennessee, and No. 11 Ole Miss in the span of five weeks. Only the Tennessee game is at home.
With how Texas and Alabama has been playing, losing to them could knock Georgia out of consideration for the SEC championship, and with Tennessee and Ole Miss also competing for playoff spots, Georgia might need to win two of the three between Texas, Tennessee, and Ole Miss to make the dance. None of the top 12 teams in the rankings had more than two losses entering the final week of the season last year.