JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Stetson Bennett remained Georgia’s quarterback and the Bulldogs’ defense remained the best in college football as the Bulldogs validated their No. 1-ranking with a convincing 34-7 win over Florida on Saturday.
Spurred by a flurry of defensive takeaways at the end of the second quarter, the Bulldogs broke open a tight game to leap ahead 24-0 at halftime. Georgia managed one field goal and a late touchdown in the second half, but that was more than enough to register a fourth win in the past five meetings against the Gators.
With the victory, the Bulldogs improve to 8-0 (6-0 SEC) for the first time since 2017 and keep a headlock on the SEC’s Eastern Division lead. Georgia returns home to take on Missouri (4-3, 1-3) on Saturday, which got its first conference victory with a 27-21 win over Vanderbilt on Saturday in Nashville.
Junior outside linebacker Nolan Smith was the defensive star for the Bulldogs. His interception and a snatch-away fumble recovery deep in Florida territory set up two Georgia touchdowns in the final 2:16 of the second quarter. Inside linebacker Nakobe Dean jumped in front of a pass for Florida’s Malik Davis and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown with seven seconds remaining in the first half.
Meanwhile, after two weeks of debate about whether Georgia should start an apparently healthy JT Daniels at quarterback, the Bulldogs stuck with Bennett from the beginning. The senior got his fourth consecutive start and led Georgia four scoring drives, a couple of them very short thanks to the defense.
But while Bennett improved to 5-0 as the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback this season, the debate likely will continue. He threw two interceptions on a pair of very ill-advised passes and was called for grounding on Georgia’s opening possession on a play that ultimately took the Bulldogs out of scoring range.
But Bennett also made several plays with his feet, avoiding pressure several times to extend plays and rushing for positive yards. He had 35 yards on the ground, with a long run of 20 yards.
Zamir White led the Bulldogs with 105 yards rushing on 14 carries, the last of which resulted in a 42-yard touchdown with 1:57 to play. It was White’s first game of 100 or more yards this season.
James Cook added 46 yards on 10 attempts and an 11-yard touchdown. Kearis Jackson led Georgia in receiving with 59 yards on three catches, including a 36-yard touchdown.
Florida fell to 4-4 and 2-4 in SEC play. The Gators gave quarterback Anthony Richardson his first start of the season. He finished with 82 yards on 12-of-20 passing, but gave way to Emory Jones in the second half. Jones was 10-of-14 passing for 112 yards and scored Florida’s only touchdown with 4:53 remaining. The Gators’ 355 yards was the most allowed by Georgia this season and surpassed the Bulldogs’ 354 on the final play of the game.
While not meaningful to the outcome of the game, Florida’s late score extended its streak to 418 games without being shutout. The last time the Gators were was against Auburn in 1988.
