JACKSONVILLE – Needing a big play to overcome what to that point had been another disjointed effort by the Bulldogs, linebacker CJ Allen came through with the play of the game to secure Saturday’s 34-20 win.

After Carson Beck hit Dominic Lovett to break a 20-20 tie, Allen jumped in front of the first pass he saw from Florida quarterback Aiden Warner for a huge interception inside the Gator 15.

“C.J. Allen made a freaky, unbelievable play to jump up and snag it,” head coach Kirby Smart said. “That was probably the biggest change in the game.”

Two plays later, freshman Dwight Phillips raced in the game-clinching score.

However, the touchdown would not have happened if not for Allen’s outstanding play.

“My back was towards it when he made the play but when he did catch that ball, my mouth dropped completely,” linebacker Jalon Walker said. “That's what we needed. We needed that momentum swing to finish out that game. It was just great to see, coming from the linebacker room.”

For Allen, the interception was the first of his career and the first of the game for the Bulldogs, who struggled against the Gators for much of the game.

Even after Florida starting quarterback DJ Lagway was carted off the field in the second quarter with a hamstring injury, Georgia was unable to put the Gators away.

A 16-yard touchdown run by Ja’Kobi Jackson tied the game with 7:29 left to play before the Bulldogs rallied to take the lead.

Trevor Etienne hoped to show his former team what it had been missing after transferring to Georgia.

Unfortunately, he did not play much of a role.

Etienne took a hard shot to midsection in the second quarter and could be seen walking into the Florida locker room.

Smart confirmed after the game that Etienne suffered a minor rib injury.

He did not return.

"He had a little rib injury. He’s fine, but he’s just got a little pain in there,” Smart said. "He’s got a lot of friends on that sideline. He likes and respects those guys, whether y’all believe it or not. The kid is a great kid. He’s got a lot of friends over there. The game meant a lot to him.”

Smart was happy to see Nate Frazier score from 2 yards out in the third quarter to tie the game. He was not happy with what happened next.

After the touchdown, Frazier popped up and threw up a “Gator chomp” at the fans followed by a throat slash bringing on a 15-yard unsportsmanlike taunting penalty.

The yardage was assessed on the ensuing kickoff.

Smart was not pleased.

“I just told him, ‘Don’t be stupid, man,’” Smart said. “We’re not selfish people at Georgia. I’m not interested in all the shenanigans. We’re a meat and potatoes team. We roll up our sleeves every day and go to work. I’m not interested in you gator chomping or throat slashing; it’s not respectful. I think the best way to attack someone is to play hard and beat them.”

On the sideline, the Georgia coach tore into his freshman running back, following up the sideline to get his point across.

The Bulldogs would avoid giving up points as a result of the mistake when a bad snap of a 51-yard field goal attempt resulted in Georgia recovering on the Gator 36.

The mistake almost cost the Bulldogs one of its key starters in the secondary.

During the kickoff, cornerback Daylen Everette went down making a tackle on the return. Trainers rushed to his side, but fortunately, Everette was able to walk off and shortly went back into the game.

It did not take Tate Ratledge long to get back into the swing of things after undergoing tightrope surgery following his ankle injury at Kentucky.

Micah Morris started Saturday’s game but went down on Georgia’s first possession with a lower-body injury. Morris would walk off the field under his own power, with Ratledge taking over at his usual starting position at right guard.

…Smart confirmed after the game that Anthony Evans III is dealing with a hamstring injury. … Defensive tackle Jordan Hall dressed but did not play despite having his name taken off the availability report prior to the game.

When Dwight Phillips II ran in for the game-clinching touchdown, the freshman was mobbed by his teammates.

“He did a great job. I mean, you're talking about everybody on that team loves that kid, little peanut. His parents are great people,” Smart said. “Both ran track at Kentucky. His dad's an Olympic gold medalist. And just what a great story. I've never met a kid that everybody on the team likes as much as him. He just works really hard. So, I was really happy for him to get that play.”

Smart said during the week offensive coaches reached out to make sure Phillips was making the trip to Jacksonville.

“They reached out to me on Tuesday or Wednesday and said, is Dwight going to travel because he hasn't traveled every game, and I said, yeah, he's going,” Smart said. “He's up now with injuries at running back. He'll be an emergency running back. And they put a package in for him.”

…With Evans out, Malaki Starks handled punt return duties with Dillon Bell taking over the role as the team’s kickoff returner. Before the game, Michael Jackson, Sacovie White and Dominic Lovett also warmed up as punt returners; Trevor Etienne, Cash Jones, and Nate Frazier warmed up returning kicks.

…With Dan Jackson and Joenel Aguero missing the first half after their second-half targeting calls at Texas, Georgia’s starting defensive backfield included JaCorey Thomas (star), KJ Bolden (safety), Starks (safety), Julian Humphrey (corner) and Daylen Everette (corner).

Georgia’s 2024 senior class improves to 49-3 overall and 43-1 in the regular season. Georgia leads the series with Florida 57-44-2, including 7-2 in the Kirby Smart era.

…Florida finished with 20 points on 228 yards of total offense. At the half, UF led 13-6 on 150 yards of total offense on 32 plays

…Georgia’s top tacklers were CJ Allen with eight, Raylen Wilson had seven, and Chaz Chambliss with six.

…In the third quarter, Walker recovered a fumbled snap on a field goal attempt and recovered it at the UGA 36. It led to a go-ahead touchdown.

…Georgia finished with 34 points and 455 yards of offense. At the half, Georgia trailed 13-6 with 222 yards of offense.

…The Bulldogs had 146 rushing yards on 33 attempts. Frazier had a team-high 82 yards and a touchdown. Etienne had 31 yards, all in the first half. Phillips scored a touchdown on his first career carry as it covered four yards.

…Georgia has trailed now three times at halftime this season in SEC games, (6-3 at Kentucky, 30-7 at No. 4 Alabama) and today. The Bulldogs came back to beat Kentucky 13-12 and fell at No. 4 Alabama 41-34 and emerged with a 34-20 win today versus Florida.

…Saturday marked the third time this season that the Bulldogs were held to field goals in the first half. In the season opener, Georgia led No. 14 Clemson 6-0 in Atlanta and trailed at Kentucky 6-3. The Bulldogs went on to win those first two games and did so tonight to by a score of 34-20.

…Nine Bulldogs had a catch with the leading receivers senior Dominic Lovett (7-for-52 yards, 1 touchdown) and junior Dillon Bell (4-for-50) and. In the third quarter, Bell had a career-long 33-yard rush to the Florida 15 as part of an eventual game-tying touchdown drive.

…Sophomore kicker Peyton Woodring tallied 10 points on 23-yard and 53-yard field goals and four PATs plus handled kickoffs. Woodring is 14-for-15 this year on field goals including 2-for-3 from 50+ this season.

…Punter Brett Thorson averaged 42.0 yards on five punts including a 51-yarder and two inside the 20 with no returns. Georgia has not allowed a positive yard on a return this season and the streak entering today stands at 26 games.