Georgia's run game might finally be hitting its full stride.
In their 10th game of the season, the Bulldogs had their best rushing performance of the season. The 300-yard, five-touchdown performance came at the perfect time in Georgia's 52-17 win over Ole Miss.
"To be honest, this was real Georgia football to me," running back Kendall Milton said. "This is the Georgia that I grew up watching. This is the Georgia that I came in as a freshman, sophomore, junior year, the standard of Georgia football."
Milton heard his name called during the Senior Day festivities prior to kickoff. He then responded with his best game in a Georgia uniform.
On just nine carries, Milton accumulated 127 yards. He also found the end zone twice behind a dominant effort from the offensive line.
"I love them boys," Milton said. "I promised them boys, 100 yards, they get dinner. I’m going to play my part. But the line came out with the attitude. Everybody in the locker room before the game was teary-eyed—'It’s Senior Day, it’s the last one in Sanford.' But they came out with an attitude. I’m just proud of my boys. They work every day against the best defense in the country. To have a game like this, I’m proud of those boys to the max."
Head coach Kirby Smart made sure to heap praise on Milton as well.
"Kendall ran really hard tonight," Smart said. "I thought that was like the toughest and hardest I've seen him run. He ran through tackles, he ran through people’s face. He ran like he was mad. He approached the whole week that way."
Milton isn't the only one who had a strong night.
Daijun Edwards contributed 59 yards and two touchdowns. Carson Beck added 30 yards with his legs. Freshmen Andrew Paul and and Roderick Robinson chipped in 69 yards in fourth quarter mop-up duty.
The 300 yards eclipsed the previous season high of 291 yards against Vanderbilt. The next highest total is 190 yards against South Carolina.
A dominant run game helps open up the entire offense. That makes the Bulldogs that much more dangerous if Milton, Edwards, and the rest of the backs start operating at full capacity.
"It helps the entire offense when I can just sit there, catch the ball, and hand it off," quarterback Carson Beck said. "And next thing you know, we’re going 50 yards. I don’t have to do much in those situations, you know? The O-line is just up there tearing it up, opening up the holes. The running backs are hitting them, making the corners and DBs miss. So, it’s obviously really fun to watch."
