Georgia keeps rolling with win over Auburn

ATHENS, Ga. — One week after clinching a spot in the SEC Championship game, the Georgia Bulldogs built on their momentum Saturday night with a 27-10 win over Auburn at Sanford Stadium.

Georgia trailed narrowly for much of the first half before scoring two touchdowns in the final three minutes of the second quarter for a 20-10 lead. A 77-yard touchdown run by tailback D’Andre Swift gave the Bulldogs a 17-point early in the fourth quarter, completing the game’s scoring.

The win was Georgia’s second over Auburn in three meetings over a period of 12 months. Last season, the Bulldogs lost a regular-season game at Auburn, then defeated the Tigers in a rematch for the SEC championship.

Saturday’s win improved No. 5-ranked Georgia’s record to 9-1 (7-1 SEC) and dropped No. 24 Auburn to 6-4 (3-4 SEC). The Bulldogs will finish the regular season with non-conference games against Massachusetts and Georgia Tech, both in Athens, before facing Alabama for the SEC title on Dec. 1 in Atlanta.

In Georgia’s first home game in more than a month, the Bulldogs led Auburn 20-10 at halftime Saturday despite twice settling for field goals after having first-and-goal inside the 5-yard line.

The Bulldogs’ first score, a 25-yard Rodrigo Blankenship field goal with 7:01 left in the first quarter, came four plays after a pass-interference penalty against Auburn gave Georgia a first-and-goal at the 2-yard line. The next three plays: loss of two, loss of 4, incomplete pass.  Then Blankenship made it 3-0.

Auburn claimed a 7-3 lead with 4-½ minutes left in the first quarter when a 9-yard pass from running back JaTarvious Whitlow to tight end John Samuel Shenker completed an eight-play, 75-yard drive.

Early in the second quarter, Georgia again settled for a field goal despite having first-and-goal twice on the drive.

A first down at the 10 led to a sack of Jake Fromm on third down, but a targeting penalty against Auburn on the play gave the Bulldogs another first down at the 4.  A 3-yard run by D’Andre Swift moved the ball to the 1-yard line, but the Bulldogs came away from the drive with only a 20-yard Blankenship field goal, inching within 7-6 with 8:15 left in the half.

Similarly, Auburn settled for a 27-yard Anders Carlson field goal on its next possession after reaching Georgia’s 4-yard line.

Georgia scored its first touchdown of the game on a 14-yard pass from Fromm to Tyler Simmons with 2:47 left in the half, completing a 59-yard drive that included a key 14-yard run by tailback Brian Herrien to the Auburn 20. That drive gave the Bulldogs their first lead of the game at 13-10.

Georgia added another score in the dwindling seconds of the half. Opting against a 55-yard field-goal attempt, the Bulldogs scored a touchdown on 4th-and-2 on a 38-yard pass from Fromm to Terry Godwin.

That marked the fourth game this season in which Georgia has scored a touchdown with less than two minutes to go in the first half.

Georgia had more than a 2-to-1 advantage in possession time during the first half -- 20:02 to 09:58 -- and outgained Auburn in total yards 266-149.

Georgia’s 20-10 lead held through a scoreless third quarter.

Swift’s 77-yard touchdown stretched the Bulldogs’ lead to 27-10 with just under 14 minutes to play in the fourth quarter.

Georgia then forced an Auburn punt and got the ball back with 12:04 to play. The Bulldogs kept the ball until only 3:20 remained, a 13-play drive ending on an incomplete pass by Blankenship on a fake field goal.

Cox Media Group