COLUMBIA, S.C. – In case anyone thought Georgia forgot how to run the football, Saturday night’s 45-16 win over South Carolina erased that notion.
One week after quarterback JT Daniels shredded Mississippi State through the air, the Bulldogs were able to flex their run game muscles by rushing for a season-high 332 in Saturday night’s 45-16 win.
Georgia’s previous high was 215 yards in its win at Kentucky earlier this month.
“Let's be honest. A lot of it has to do with the other team and what they do. So, we didn't call a lot of different runs; we didn't go out and re-invent the wheel to run the ball,” Smart said. “We played a team that had three or four guys out. They had some Covid issues, a couple of other injuries that probably hurt their depth. They're a very beat-up football team, and they’re probably not as stout as Mississippi State up front.”
Last week against Mississippi State, with Mike Leach’s team showcasing an eight-man front, the visiting Bulldogs effectively negated Georgia’s running game, holding Smart’s squad to a season-low 23 yards (excluding sacks), putting the onus on Daniels to throw the ball.
Daniels ravaged MSU for 401 yards and four touchdowns.
Against South Carolina, he didn't have to, as the Gamecocks had absolutely no answers for Georgia’s running game.
“Our guys came out from the very beginning," Smart said. "They knew South Carolina had some guys out, but they didn’t play down to that level. They played physical, they knocked people off the ball, they ran the ball, and I thought our O-line’s second effort and our backs’ second effort were the difference in the game.”
As one might suspect, the individual results were impressive.
James Cook led the Bulldogs with a career-high 104 yards and two touchdowns, followed by Zamir White with 13 carries for 84 yards and two scores.
Kenny McIntosh added nine carries for 79 yards with true freshman Daijun Edwards rushing 14 times for 79 yards.
“Just knowing we can pass the ball and have a physical offensive line to run the ball, that’s going to open up the offense more,” Cook said.
No, Daniels’ numbers were not at the level they were last week. Then again, they didn't have to be.
In just his second start, Daniels completed 10 of 16 passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns, a 6-yard touchdown pass to Tre McMitty and a 29-yard strike to true freshman Arian Smith.
“You take what they give you, right? It's an opportunity to run the ball and win the game. That's our ultimate goal: to win the game. That's what we wanted to do. We weren't going to throw it just to throw it. We took some shots. We took some first-and-10 shots,” Smart said. “We had one to Jermaine (Burton) on the sideline we missed. We had one when he threw the ball away. I think he made a good decision, on a shot play. He ended up throwing it away because a guy was not there. It wasn't like we came out and said we're just going to run it; we're (not) going to throw it. We’re going to do what we’ve got to do to be successful.”
Yes, this game belonged to the running backs.
Although the score enabled the coaches to rest Cook and White for most of the second half, McIntosh and freshman Daijun Edwards were able to keep the chains moving.
Edwards, who carried three times for 16 yards during a drive that Jack Podlesny capped with a 32-yard field goal, would have had his first career touchdown if not for an illegal motion penalty.
“We wish he'd gotten his touchdown, but it got called back,” Cook said. “But him getting his feet wet, picking up pad protection, just knowing he could bang through it without us being out there, was great.”
