WHAT HAPPENED: Quarterback Stetson Bennett passed for 316 yards and two touchdowns, the tailback duo of Kenny McIntosh and Daijun Edwards combined for 196 rushing yards and four scores, and the top-ranked Bulldogs' vaunted defense gave Anthony Richardsonand company fits Saturday in routing the Gators in the 100th meeting of their storied Southeastern Conference rivalry at Jacksonville. Short touchdown runs in the first quarter by Edwards and McIntoshwere followed by Bennett scoring throws of 73 yards to tight end Brock Bowers and seven to wide receiver Ladd McConkey in the second, as UGA opened a commanding 28-3 halftime lead, with UF limited to a career-best 52-yard field goal from Adam Mihalek. The scoreboard wasn't the only thing that was lopsided at intermission. The Bulldogs out-gained the Gators 346 yards to 88 in total offense, while forcing a half-dozen UF punts (compared to a combined four over the previous four games). UF, though, gave the fans in its half of TIAA Bank Field reason to stick around, thanks to a 75-yard drive to a 3-yard touchdown run by tailback Trevor Etienne, followed by a forced McIntosh fumble and defensive recovery that led to a 26-yard Mihalek field goal and made the score 28-13 midway through the third quarter. On the Bulldogs' ensuing possession, Bennett was intercepted by linebacker Amari Burney, further igniting the UF side, with the energy going next level when Richardson fired a 78-yard touchdown strike to Xzavier Henderson that made it a one-possession game, 28-20, with 3:31 to go in the third. That was as close as it got, though. Georgia answered with a 78-yard drive, capped by Edwards' second rushing TD, a 22-yard run up the middle that made it 35-20 with 35 seconds left in the period. Then, after turning Florida away on downs, the Bulldogs drove to a 4-yard McIntosh scoring run, keyed by a Bennett-to-Bowers completion of 29 yards on fourth-and-7 to set up what amounted to the put-away touchdown. When it was over, the Bulldogs had cranked out 555 yards of offense — the most ever by a Georgia team in the series (surpassing the previous high of 502 in 1976) — versus 371 for the Gators. Richardson completed 18 of 37 passes for 271 yards and one score, was held to just 19 yards on 11 rushing attempts, was sacked three times and hurried all game. The UF ground attack, averaging 212.6 yards per game coming in, was limited to 100 yards on 34 carries by a defense ranked No. 2 nationally, including fourth against the run.
Florida wideout Justin Shorter (4) hauled in a 41-yard reception from Anthony Richardson in the second quarter, with the play accounting for nearly half of the Gators' 88 yards of offense in the first half Saturday.
WHAT IT MEANS: Georgia's recent dominance in the series now shows five wins over the previous six meetings by an average of 22 points. Meanwhile, the Gators have dropped four of their first five SEC games for the first time since the 1979, the first under Charley Pell, that finished 0-10-1.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Take your pick of Bulldogs, but what an X-factor Bowers is for that offense, whether he's lined up tight or split out. He finished with five catches for 154 yards and the long TD.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: The Bulldogs' 25-point halftime lead marked the largest at the break in the series for either team since 1996. Florida was up 34-0 on Georgia that year on the way to a 47-7 victory. That UF team was ranked No. 1, as well, and went on to win the national title.
UP NEXT: Florida (4-4, 1-4) hits the SEC road with a trip to face Texas A&M (3-5, 1-3). The Aggies lost their fourth consecutive game Saturday at 15th-ranked Ole Miss. Meanwhile, Georgia and No. 3 Tennessee will play next week at Athens, Ga., for what could be the SEC game of the year (and a possible College Football Playoff preview).
