In Saturday’s loss to South Carolina, Georgia threw the ball more than fifty times. That’s downright uncharacteristic for a team that almost always finishes seasons in the top ten nationally in rushing offense. Georgia scored only seventeen points despite entering the game averaging 42.8 per contest, out-gained the opponent by 162 yards, and still managed to lose in double overtime.
Welcoming Kentucky to Athens, what can we reasonably expect from offensive coordinator James Coley in the game following the debacle against the Gamecocks?
I wouldn’t be surprised to see upward of thirty called pass plays. Unfortunately, Georgia is now 0-5 when Jake Fromm has surpasses thirty attempts. While that may seem meaningless to some in terms of how that affects the Kentucky game (it doesn’t), it is certainly enough to scare some of the Georgia faithful.
The run-the-damn-ball crowd (of which I am a proud member) may be getting antsy already. Know this: in the Wildcats’ previous three SEC contests, they saw one opposing running back surpass 100 yards rushing against Arkansas, two running backs at South Carolina, and two more against Mississippi State. So pardon me if I’m crazy for suggesting to run the damn ball.
Kentucky ranks 60th nationally in total defense and has given up most of of their yardage through the air, though the totals are close enough to make me think it’s not terribly significant at the season’s halfway point. Teams playing against Kentucky average nearly six yards per play and have tallied eighteen touchdowns on the season.
The thing that worries me most about their defense is just looking at Kentucky’s game results. In four SEC games with an injury-plagued offense that has had trouble staying on the field in recent weeks, the Wildcats’ defense has bent but not broken, keeping conference opponents to 20, 24, 28 and 29 points. Not that any of this is especially spectacular, it does show that their defense doesn’t simply lie down against other talented teams.
On paper, Kentucky’s defense isn’t equipped to handle Georgia’s talented offense, which is assuredly more talented than any the Wildcats have faced in 2019, but we learned this past Saturday that the players actually have to play the game, the coaches have to coach, and we all know a bit less than we think we do about college football.
