By Dan Mathews
Offensive rhythm seemingly is what doomed Georgia on Saturday afternoon, in their 20-17 overtime loss to South Carolina. The Bulldogs turned the football over four times to the Gamecocks.
Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm was intercepted three times in the game. One of them even went back 53 yards for a touchdown by South Carolina cornerback Israel Mukuamu. Another crucial interception came in overtime, when the ball bounced off the hands of wide receiver Tyler Simmons and into the hands of Mukuamu.
The fumbled snap for UGA came on the first play of the fourth quarter, when the Bulldogs were at the South Carolina 30 yard line. This was also to go along with another missed scoring chance, when Rodrigo Blankenship had a 53 yard field goal blocked at the end of the first half.
The Georgia offense was able to outrush South Carolina 173 to 142 yards. However, the Bulldogs were held to four yards per carry.
This was also the case where the Bulldogs needed to rely on Jake Fromm to make plays with his arm. The junior quarterback threw the ball 51 times for 295 yards, one touchdown and those three interceptions.
This flies in the face of how Georgia has been able to find success as a team, when they have to rely on the passing game. Usually it does not end well.
The Bulldogs defense was able to limit South Carolina to just one offensive touchdown in this game. It came at a huge cost, when freshman quarterback Ryan Hilinski found standout wide receiver Bryan Edwards for a 46 yard touchdown in the first quarter.
The Gamecocks did have to make an adjustment on the fly, when Hilinski went down with an apparent knee injury. This allowed for Dakereon Joyner to come into the game and throw for 116 yards, while running for 28 more.
The key for Georgia on defense today was two-fold. They didn’t pressure South Carolina’s backfield much and they also didn’t cause any turnovers.
The Bulldogs finished the game with just three tackles for a loss. They were unable to sack either quarterback.
