For a team that prides itself on playing to its standard, Saturday’s 33-0 win over Samford wasn’t quite what the Bulldogs had in mind.

“Yeah, there was probably more excitement over last week,” quarterback Stetson Bennett said. “But that’s not an excuse. We’ve still got to execute to our standard and not to the opponent. Yeah, maybe there was a little bit of that.”

Head coach Kirby Smart partly agreed.

Although Smart said his team had good focus to start the game, that wasn’t the case in the second half, one that saw the Bulldogs manage just three points.

“Coming out, we had really good energy. We were fired up. I didn’t think it was real good coming out of halftime,” Smart said. “I think playing at home helped with that, almost got a little kick. I thought we had really good energy in warmups, really good atmosphere in the stands. We started fast—we just didn’t score touchdowns.”

Although energy should not be a problem next week when the Bulldogs (2-0) open SEC play at South Carolina (Noon), running back Kendall Milton acknowledged the team learned a lesson against Samford.

“I don’t think we met the standard of play, but I feel like this team has the potential to uphold that standard and do more than that,” Milton said. “We have unbelievable depth. We’ve just got to get better as team as a whole.”

As we reported earlier this week would be the case, cornerback Nyland Green did not play while nursing an injured hamstring.

… Wide receiver AD Mitchell limped off the field during Georgia’s first offensive possession with a left ankle injury. Mitchell did not return, although he was spotted on the sideline riding a stationary bike. After getting off, he did not exhibit any major signs of a limp.

“He looks OK,” Smart said. “We thought he could have gone back in. But we held him at that point with an ankle.”

… Smart was also asked about Arian Smith, who watched the game from the sideline but did not dress out. Smart said he’s unclear when he might return. “I don’t know, I don’t know,” Smart said.

… Freshmen defensive end Mykel Williams recorded his first career sack and Georgia’s lone sack of the year in the fourth quarter.

“I was proud of Mykel. He does a good job. Mykel works really hard. He’s a kid that just works. You look out there on Sunday, and he’s out there hitting a sled, running. It pays off like it did today. It was good to get out there and get after the quarterback,” Smart said. “They weren’t going to let us rush their quarterback; they’re trying to keep their quarterback healthy for the rest of the season, so the ball is coming out really quick. That can be frustrating for a defense. But when you get three-and-outs, you tackle people in space, that certainly helps us get off the field."

… Once again, the Bulldogs were able to mix and match their offensive line. Saturday, Warren Ericson received extensive reps at center, with Devin Willock rotating at right guard with Tate Ratledge. As he did last week, Amarius Mims also received extensive reps at right tackle, with Warren McClendon moving to left.

… Tykee Smith received his most extensive reps since recovering his torn ACL. "He's gaining more confidence. He hit some higher speed this week, and we played him more. He got an opportunity to play a little more,” Smart said. “He's growing and getting better. He's got to get confidence, too. His confidence in his knee, his confidence in our system.”

… Dominick Blaylock made his first catch of the year with a seven-yard reception in the third quarter.

… According to Smart, it was Samford coach Chris Hatcher’s request to play a 12-minute fourth quarter. “He asked about it. I’ve got respect for Chris, and I wanted to be fair to his players. But that conversation, that stays between me and Hatch.”

… There was no big to-do before the game to honor last year’s national champions, and that was just fine with Smart. “I haven't had one conversation with anybody about that. I don’t know what the expectation should be," Smart said. "I'm so thrilled about last year, but I’m so into this year. Nobody said, ‘Oh, do you not want anything?' I haven’t even thought about it. I’m worried about South Carolina now, but today I was worried about Samford,”

… Longtime sports information director Claude Felton missed his first game in years to attend the wedding of his niece.

Another Shutout For The Defense: For the ninth time in the Smart era, the Bulldogs registered a shutout in posting a 33-0 win over Samford today. Samford finished with 128 yards of total offense on 43 plays. The leading tackler for the Bulldogs was Smael Mondon with four stops and 1.5 TFL. Samford finished the first half with only 59 yards of total offense on 23 plays. Late in the second quarter and trailing 23-0, they turned it over on downs at their own 44, which led to a touchdown. Georgia forced one turnover that led to three points. Last year, the Bulldogs posted three shutouts (Vanderbilt, No. 8 Arkansas, and Ga. Tech). In the season opener last Saturday against No. 11 Oregon, Georgia limited the Ducks to three points on the day, including a goal-line stand with less than two minutes left in the contest. For the day, Oregon ran 68 plays and had 313 yards of total offense.

Offense Puts Up 33 Points: Georgia rolled up 479 yards of total offense on 75 plays. In the first half, the Bulldogs were 6-for-6 in the red zone with three touchdowns and three field goals, tallying 329 yards of total offense on 47 plays in building a 30-0 lead. At the start of the 4th quarter, with Georgia leading 30-0, it was announced that by mutual agreement of the coaches, the fourth quarter would be shortened to 12 minutes. The Bulldogs would add one field goal in the second half and finish 7-for-8 in the red zone.

Georgia’s first drive of the day resulted in a 27-yard field goal and a 3-0 lead with 7:52 left. Georgia converted a pair of third downs until stalling out at the Samford 4. It was a 12 play, 47-yard drive. Following a turnover, Georgia reached the red zone again and had to settle for a field goal on a five-play, 34-yard drive. Georgia’s third possession resulted in a touchdown on a three-yard rush by Stetson Bennett. It capped a seven-play, 71-yard drive in 3:44. It was Bennett’s second rushing TD and sixth of his career. Georgia extended its lead to 19-0 as Bennett directed another 71-yard drive on nine plays, capped by a 3-yard touchdown pass to freshman Dillon Bell. Kenny McIntosh had a one-yard run to finish the final scoring drive of the half and a 30-0 lead. It was the second of the year for McIntosh and eighth of his career. It was Bell’s first career touchdown catch.

Bennett finished the day 24-for-34 for 300 yards and one touchdown in three quarters of action. In the first half, he was 20-for-28 for 252 yards and one touchdown plus four rushing yards with one rushing touchdown. Redshirt sophomore Carson Beck (5-for-7, 52 yards) entered the game with 2:34 left in the 3rd quarter. Saturday's leading receiver was McIntosh with five for 61 yards, with junior Kendall Milton leading all rushers with 85 yards on 10 carries. A total of 15 different Bulldogs caught a pass Saturday. Redshirt freshman quarterback Brock Vandagriff also got into the game late and threw one incomplete pass.

Podlesny Tallies 15 Points: Senior kicker Jack Podlesny scored a career-high 15 points today (4 FGs, 3 PATs) and that was the most by a Bulldog placekicker since 2017, when Rodrigo Blankenship had 17 against Missouri. He connected from 27 yards out for his first field goal of the year and a 3-0 lead with 7:51 left in the first quarter. Later in the first quarter, he made a 25-yard field goal for a 6-0 lead. He made a 26-yarder with 5:01 left in the half to make it 23-0. He made three PATs. Podlesny had six touchbacks on seven kickoffs, with one going out of bounds. In the second half, he attempted a career-long 54-yard field goal, and it was short. It was his first career miss from 50-plus after going 3-for-3 in 2020, and he did not attempt one from that distance last year. In the second half, Podlesny added a 25-yarder for a 33-0 lead with 11:11 left. In his career, he is now 16-for-16 in the 20-29-yard range.

For Starters & Game Captains: Georgia had one first-time starter today in freshman Malaki Starks (DB). Samford won the toss and elected to take the ball. Georgia forced the Bulldogs to punt. Senior Warren Ericson (OL), junior Zion Logue (DL), and junior Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint (WR) were the captains.

Points Off Turnovers: Georgia got three points off one turnover today. In the first quarter, junior Dan Jackson caused a fumble that was recovered by redshirt freshman Xavian Sorey. The Bulldogs are plus-3 for the year with 17 points off turnovers. In the first half of the season opener against No. 11 Oregon, Georgia converted two interceptions into 14 points.

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