The Most Unbreakable Bulldog Records

During Georgia’s current championship run, the Bulldogs have often been rewriting their own football record book, so to speak. And it’s safe to say they’ll continue shattering school records during what should be another banner season in 2023.

Considering Georgia’s recent record-breaking trend, the UGASports staff scoured the school’s football record book and came up with a handful of records we foresee no Bulldog player or team approaching anytime soon—not in the upcoming season and not for a long while after that. With a mixture of individual and team marks, whether by game, season, or career, and counting down from five, here’s our opinion of the top five Georgia football records which will likely never be broken:

5) 385 —Most Rushes in a Season (Herschel Walker, 1981)

Herschel Walker’s 385 rushing attempts in his sophomore campaign of 1981 (410 rushes if bowl game is included) currently ranks as the 10th-most in NCAA history. The last time Walker’s total was surpassed in college football was by Alabama’s Derrick Henry (395 rushes) in 2015. Of course, Henry appeared in four more games (15 to 11) than Walker. Since Herschel left Athens 40 years ago, the most rushes in a season at the school is 260—or 125 rush attempts fewer than Walker—by Musa Smith in 2002. Smith, like Henry, appeared in a few more games than Walker. In the first seven seasons of the Kirby Smart era, Nick Chubb’s 224 rushes in 2016—or 161 fewer than Walker—were the most. Therefore, from what we figure, and no matter the number of games played in a season, no Bulldog is likely touching Herschel’s 385 rushes in the foreseeable future.

4) 89 —Most Rushes in a Game (1967 vs. Kentucky)

From most rushes by an individual in a season to most rushes by a Georgia team in a game, our next unbreakable record is from when the sixth-ranked Bulldogs had nine ballcarriers—six running backs and three quarterbacks—grind out a combined 321 rushing yards on what remains an SEC-record 89 rushes in a 31-7 win over a winless Kentucky team on the road in late October of 1967. Since the early 1980s, no Georgia team has even approached the 89-rushes mark in a single game. Even with the addition of overtime play, no team from the SEC has even reached the 80-carry mark in the past 20 years. In Kirby Smart’s first seven seasons as head coach, when Georgia averaged less than 40 rush attempts per game, the most rushes the Bulldogs totaled was only 56 against Arkansas in 2021. In fact, during Smart’s tenure, Georgia has run more than 89 total plays on just two occasions: 93 plays vs. Missouri in 2016 and 95 plays vs. South Carolina in 2019.

3) 2,663 —Most Kickoff Return Yardage in a Career (Brandon Boykin, 2008-2011)

Amassing his 2,663 yards in kickoff returns in just three seasons, Brandon Boykin’s school mark (third in SEC history) is 1,000-plus yards more than Georgia’s No. 2 kickoff returner (1,637 yards: Gene Washington, 1973-1976). Boykin’s record seems especially safe considering the NCAA in recent years has aimed to reduce the number of kickoff returns due to player safety. Since Boykin’s time in Athens, no Bulldog has even totaled 1,000 yards in kickoff returns (Reggie Davis, 2013-2016, the closest with 998 yards). In the Kirby Smart era, Mecole Hardman (875 yards) is Georgia’s leading kickoff returner. During Smart’s tenure, no player in the entire SEC has reached the 2,000-yard mark in kickoff returns. In addition, consider that in both 2009 and 2010—or back when Boykin played—44 FBS teams each season averaged at least 100 yards in kickoff returns per game. In comparison, only one FBS team in the last two seasons averaged at least 100 yards in kickoff returns (Arkansas State, 2021).

2) 35 —Most Passes Intercepted in a Season (1982 team)

Led by Terry Hoage’s 12, Jeff Sanchez’s nine, Ronnie Harris’ four, and three by Tony Flack, Georgia remarkably corralled a school-record 35 interceptions in 11 games in 1982. This included intercepting a staggering seven passes against Ole Miss, six versus BYU’s Steve Young, and four against Athens native Homer Jordan of Clemson. Since then, no team in the entire SEC has come within seven interceptions of reaching Georgia’s lofty mark. From 1987 through 2022—a span of 36 seasons—no Bulldogs team intercepted more than 20 passes in a year. What’s more, during Kirby Smart’s tenure—an era primarily featuring stellar defensive play by Georgia—the Bulldogs are averaging less than a dozen interceptions (11.47) per season.

1) 13—Most Turnovers Lost in a Game (1951 vs. Georgia Tech)

Finally, onto a record no Georgia team would want to break. In a 48-6 loss to Georgia Tech in Atlanta on December 1, 1951, the Bulldogs officially turned the ball over an NCAA-record 13 times. The Bulldogs threw eight interceptions—all by Zeke Bratkowski—and evidently lost five fumbles. Committing 12 turnovers in a loss to Florida State in 1969, Wichita State came close to matching the Bulldogs’ embarrassing record. Still, it’s unfortunately Georgia’s record—and always will be. Although worthy of mention, and as detailed on The Dawgvent years ago, there was clearly an error in record-keeping that afternoon on The Flats. It appears Georgia actually lost just four fumbles, not five. Therefore, the Bulldogs’ dubious record is unofficially, and actually, 12 turnovers lost. Regardless, whether 13 or 12, no Georgia squad is ever going to turn it over as many times—or we would hope not. The most turnovers the Bulldogs have committed in a single game during the Kirby Smart era is four on two occasions (2018 at LSU, 2019 vs. South Carolina—both losses). Also under Smart, the Bulldogs have averaged only 1.16 turnovers committed per game (while forcing 1.39 from the opposition).