Georgia's defense didn't have its usual first half.

The Bulldogs allowed 14 points and 180 yards to South Carolina in the first 30 minutes of Saturday's showdown at Sanford Stadium. While not a terrible effort, it did contribute to the Bulldogs being down 14-3 at halftime.

But in the second half, Georgia clamped down, limiting the Gamecocks to zero points and 129 yards, as the Bulldogs rallied to a 24-14 win.

"I would say it’s just really next play mentality, honestly," cornerback Kamari Lassiter said. "We gave up two critical touchdowns in the first half. We just had to come together, talk about what happened at halftime, and really just get back to the basics of Georgia football."

The high-level play occurred at all levels of the defense.

On the front end, the Georgia defensive line harassed South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler. The Bulldogs recorded a pair of sacks in the second half and repeatedly got Rattler off his spot. On several occasions, Rattler had a receiver open, but couldn't connect as he evaded the Bulldog pass rush.

"I thought they were more disruptive," Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. "We had them out of rhythm, so it's easy to say we got pressure in the second half—we had them behind the sticks, had them off rhythm, they were a little bit sloppier. They had us off rhythm in the first half, and momentum's a beautiful thing.”

The Georgia secondary also stepped up.

Other than allowing a couple of big plays late in the game, the secondary did a good job limiting explosive plays through the air. Georgia also notched a pair of interceptions, as Dan Jackson and Tykee Smith picked off Rattler on South Carolina's final two possessions.

"It feels amazing for me," Jackson said of his interception. "We practice that every day at practice. We go over two-minute situations, what we’re going to run. I’m just glad we could seal the win."

The second-half performance proved pivotal for the Bulldogs. The defense helped the offense take and then hold the lead to finish the win.

The defensive line helped out the secondary and vice versa. That's the key for Georgia as they look to keep playing at the same level moving forward.

"We just played together," Lassiter said. "We played as one as a unit, from the back end all the way to the front end, rush and coverage working hand in hand. I think once we started playing together and playing as a whole unit, we started playing a lot better."