Saturday was Warren Ericson’s kind of game.

“This was fun,” said Georgia’s starting right guard, who helped pave the way for a Bulldogs’ offense that rushed 57 times for a season-best 273 yards in a 37-0 win over Arkansas.

“As an offensive lineman, you love games like that,” he continued. “When you’re running the ball in the second half, scoring a touchdown, and look at their faces and see they’re defeated—that’s the best feeling in the world.”

The Bulldogs had every right to feel good about the situation.

For the first time this year, Georgia's opponent did not try to stack the line of scrimmage, going with six defensive backs for much of the game.

Head coach Kirby Smart credited his assistants for the job they did preparing to take advantage of the looks they knew Arkansas would attempt to use.

“It’s called scheme. It’s not 'reinvigorated run game.' It’s taking what they give us. We felt it was important to play the game patiently, but aggressive. I would have definitely thought there would be 53 runs, 57 runs, whatever there was, because that was the game plan we needed to approach it with,” Smart said. “You know what? It might be different next week. The best teams I’ve ever been around can take on the personality of what they need to take on. I’m really proud of the offensive line; proud of the offensive coaching staff who did a helluva job game-planning against what is a very good defense."

Smart continued.

“It had nothing to do with Stetson Bennett at quarterback. It had nothing to do with a reinvigorated run game; it had to do with what we felt it took to win.”

The Bulldogs (5-0, 3-0) were able to spread the wealth.

James Cook led the way with 12 carries for 87 yards, followed by Zamir White with 16 carries for 68 yards and two touchdowns. White recorded a third touchdown by recovering Dan Jackson’s blocked punt in the end zone.

Kendall Milton chipped in with 13 carries for 49 yards and his first touchdown, with Kenny McIntosh rushing 10 times for 57 yards.

“It gives us a lot of confidence going against our defense every day in practice,” Milton said. “They always show us different coverages, so that also gives us confidence going into games. I feel I face the best defensive line in the country every day.”

Smart liked what he saw.

“We were patient today, but aggressive. That’s hard to beat. That’s hard to be in football, but we were patient and aggressive, and I think that’s important. We preach that every week, one series at a time, and not get ahead of ourselves,” Smart said. “I felt Arkansas had a really good team, but if we were patient while still being aggressive and physical, that we could at least impose some of our own will.”

Along with Daniels, several other injured Bulldogs were given the afternoon off.

That group included wide receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, who sprained his ankle last week at Vanderbilt.

Redshirt freshman Arian Smith, meanwhile, dressed out but missed his third consecutive game recovering from a knee contusion.

Wide receiver Dominick Blaylock also dressed out but did not play.

The Bulldogs did not appear to suffer any significant injuries in the game.

Give Georgia’s sellout crowd a tip of the cap for their contributions in Saturday's win.

During the week, Smart encouraged the Bulldog faithful to come early and be loud.

That’s just what the fans did, and it paid off for the team on the field.

The first two snaps on offense resulted in back-to-back illegal motion calls for the Razorbacks. Their first snap to start the third quarter resulted in the same.

“I think all you guys will admit they were elite and we noticed it. To come in warmups and out of the tunnel, to look up there and see every seat filled for a noon kick is special, and they impacted the game.”

Smart also gave fans credit for the blocked punt and subsequent recovery in the end zone.

“I thought our crowd impacted the blocked punt in terms of cadence and things like that, which forced the touchdown,” Smart said. “So, I give our fans at least 10 points, and that’s big.”

As expected, both tight end Darnell Washington (foot) and defensive back Tykee Smith (foot) dressed for the first time this year.

Washington’s first rep came with 11:26 left in the second quarter. He was not targeted in the passing game, but played a significant role as a blocker in Georgia’s ultra-successful run game.

“I’m extremely excited, because he's another guy that bought into his role. We said it all week. There's a difference between knowing your role and buying into your role,” Smart said. “We had several conversations with Darnell where, if you're ready we want to play you. If you're not, we'll wait. After he smacked about three linebackers during the week, we knew he was ready. He embraced his role. He's not 100 percent, and he'll be the first to tell you that. Man, go back and watch the film, and see a guy fight for his teammates. I have immense respect for guys who buy into team values, and Darnell did that today.”

Smith did not get in the game.

… Georgia has outscored its opponents in the first quarter 91-0 through five games.

… Arkansas accomplished an odd hat trick during the third quarter, when the Razorback defense was called for a holding, offsides, and pass interference on the same play.

… The Razorbacks punted six times, all following a three-and-out by the Bulldog defense.

… For only the third time in school history and the first time since 1976, Georgia posted a shutout of a top 10 team. It was the first time since 1980 that the Bulldogs posted back-to-back shutouts of SEC opponents, doing it then against Vanderbilt and Kentucky. Today, Georgia posted its seventh shutout in the Kirby Smart era and the fifth in an SEC game. The other shutouts of top 10 teams came when No. 6 Georgia blanked No. 10 Alabama 21-0 in 1976, and when No. 5 Georgia beat No 2 Georgia Tech 34-0 in 1942. Both wins occurred in Athens. The Razorbacks finished with 162 yards of total offense (75-rushing, 87-passing) after entering the game averaging 35.8 points a game.

… Georgia leads the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 4.6 points per game. Opponents now have scored just 23 points on the Bulldogs this year.

… The Bulldogs are now 12-6 against top-10 opponents under Smart, including 4-0 at home. Georgia improved to 4-2 when ESPN College GameDay is in town, including winning its last four. The Bulldogs are 5-0 under Smart for the third time (2017-19).

… Georgia’s leading tacklers today were Devonte Wyatt with six, along with Adam Anderson and Channing Tindall with five apiece. Georgia also got a total of four sacks from Wyatt (1.5), Nakobe Dean (1.5), and Anderson (1). Dean has 3.5 sacks for the year and those were the first for Wyatt this year. Anderson has a team-best four sacks this year.

… Coming in Saturday, Arkansas had not allowed any points in the first quarter, outscoring their foes 34-0. Today, Georgia led 21-0 after the first.

… Senior punter Jake Camarda had two punts for a 43.5-yard average and handled the kickoffs. Junior Jack Podlesny was 4-for-4 on extra points to improve to 26-for-26 this year. Podlesny was also 3-for-3 in field goals as they covered 47 yards (a season long), a 30-yarder, and a 37-yarder. Podlesny is now 7-for-9 in field goals this year. In the first quarter, Jackson blocked an Arkansas punt that was recovered by White in the end zone to make it 21-0. Before today, the last time Georgia blocked a punt was against Arkansas last year by White. The last blocked punt returned for a touchdown before Saturday was Eric Stokes at Missouri in 2018. Georgia now has five special teams touchdowns in the Smart era.