Most everyone who picked this game, including the analysts on television beforehand, thought it would be a low-scoring, close game well into the fourth quarter. Well, that’s exactly what we got, just in a manner that probably no one could have predicted. Here are my general observations, with our initial, pre-review PFF grades (www.PFF.com).
Defensive effort despite the three-and-outs
Through three quarters, the Georgia defense was dominant, facing 57 plays and only allowing 179 yards (3.1 yards per play). The key number, though, is 57, as Georgia’s offense had six three-and-outs and the play count numbers for Auburn’s offense kept climbing. The defense then allowed 164 yards on 30 fourth-quarter plays (5.5 yards per play) as the offense struggled. The 87 total plays faced by the defense were the most in a game this season, with the previous high being 71 plays against South Carolina. In the end, though, the Bulldogs depth and youth helped close out the Tigers with two huge fourth-down stops—one courtesy of Bo Nix’s inaccurate throw, and the other a Trayvon Walker sack to seal the game.
Throughout the game, Auburn had little success running the ball and generally wanted no part of running, despite Georgia daring them to do so. Georgia played with at least five defensive backs and only six (and often just five) defenders “in the box” basically the entire game. The Bulldogs never had to truly commit an extra defender to the box to stop Auburn’s running game and could, in turn, make Bo Nix (65.0 initial game grade) work for every yard in the passing game (only 4.9 yards per attempt).
