ATHENS, Ga. -- From the very first snap, the message was clear.
Georgia's back.
With a thoroughly dominating performance and plenty of trickery, the No. 11 Bulldogs re-established their presence in the national conversation with the most impressive victory of Kirby Smart's two-year coaching tenure.
Freshman Jake Fromm threw a pair of touchdown passes in another poised showing on the big stage, while the defense stifled Nick Fitzgerald in a 31-3 rout of No. 17 Mississippi State on Saturday night.
"Everyone's always talking Georgia this, Georgia that," receiver Terry Godwin said. "We finally came out and showed you tonight that Georgia's back. Georgia's back being that top dog and being the Georgia Bulldogs that we are."
On the first play of the SEC showdown, Mississippi State's Aeris Williams was thrown for a 6-yard loss, leading to a three-and-out.
Then it was Georgia's turn. All it took was one play to reach the end zone.
Fromm handed off to Nick Chubb for what looked to be a routine run up the middle. Instead, Chubb wheeled around and tossed the ball back to the quarterback on a flea flicker. Terry Godwin broke into the clear downfield. Fromm delivered the pass in stride for a 59-yard touchdown less than 2½ minutes into the game.
It was pretty much all Georgia (4-0, 1-0 SEC) from there. Fromm threw for 201 yards on just 9-of-12 passing, further solidifying his hold on the quarterback job he inherited when Jacob Eason went down with a knee injury in the first quarter of the season opener.
"He was very accurate as a passer," Smart said. "I thought he made good decisions, the plays he put us in. He read the coverages well. He had a good feel of the game plan."
Chubb rushed for 81 yards and a pair of TDs, leading a parade of Georgia runners who pounded Mississippi State (3-1, 1-1).
Georgia burned the visitors again early in the third quarter on a third and 2. Fromm went in motion to the right, Chubb took a direct snap and took off around left end on a 28-yard TD without being touched.
Georgia's final touchdown came when Fromm faked a pitch to the right, again freezing the secondary, before delivering a 41-yard touchdown pass to Isaac Nauta that made it 28-3 late in the third quarter.
The way Georgia's defense was playing, that was plenty.
"They didn't give up a touchdown and that's huge, especially against guys who can score like that," Nauta said. "On offense, we did what we had to do. Ran the ball, passed the ball, made plays. There's not much more you can ask for."
Fitzgerald passed for just 83 yards and was picked off twice while rushing for 47 yards on 10 carries.
"They've got a ridiculous amount of talent," Mississippi Coach Dan Mullen said of Georgia.
NO. 15 AUBURN 51,
MISSOURI 14
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Kerryon Johnson rushed for a career-high five touchdowns and No. 15 Auburn ended its recent offensive struggles in a 51-14 victory over Missouri on Saturday night.
Johnson, who had missed the previous two games with a hamstring injury, finished with 48 yards rushing on 18 carries. He fell one short of Carnell Williams’ school record of six rushing touchdowns in a game.
Jarrett Stidham added 218 yards passing and a touchdown while completing 13 of 17 passes for Auburn (3-1, 1-0 SEC). Auburn’s Carlton Davis also had an interception, one of four Missouri (1-3, 0-2) turnovers in the game.
Drew Lock finished 23-of-39 passing for 216 yards and 2 touchdowns for Missouri, which allowed its most points since a 63-37 loss to Tennessee last season.
NO. 25 LSU 35, SYRACUSE 26
BATON ROUGE — Danny Etling responded to a barrage of bruising blitzes with touchdown passes of 87 and 43 yards, and No. 25 LSU overcame bouts of inconsistency in a victory over Syracuse. Darrel Williams rushed for 92 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
Backup quarterback Myles Brennan entered the game in the middle of the third quarter with LSU (3-1) leading 21-10. It was unclear whether Etling, who was sacked twice and leveled as he released several passes, was in pain. He remained standing on the sideline wearing a headset for three series, returning in the fourth quarter after Brennan threw an interception that helped Syracuse (2-2) pull as close as 28-26 with 5:40 left.
Taking advantage of a failed onside kick, the Tigers marched 56 yards for a game-clinching score with Etling back under center. Receiver D.J. Chark finished it off with a 20-yard run on an end around with 1:52 left.
TENNESSEE 17,
MASSACHUSETTS 13
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — John Kelly rushed for 101 yards with a touchdown and Tennessee’s defense recorded seven sacks on Saturday as the Volunteers staggered to a 17-13 victory over 27½-point underdog Massachusetts.
Tennessee (3-1) was trying to bounce back from a 26-20 loss at No. 20 Florida in which the Vols allowed a tiebreaking 63-yard touchdown pass as time expired. Tennessee coach Butch Jones’ staff was roasted all week for everything from Tennessee’s red-zone play calling to its defensive strategy on the game’s final play. The Vols’ performance against UMass (0-5) won’t quiet that criticism. Tennessee struggled to put away a winless team that played the entire game without star tight end Adam Breneman and most of the second half without starting quarterback Andrew Ford due to injuries.
SOUTH CAROLINA 17,
LOUISIANA TECH 16
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Parker White kicked a 31-yard field goal with four seconds left to give South Carolina a 17-16 victory over Louisiana Tech on Saturday. It was the first field goal the freshman has made in five tries.
The Gamecocks (3-1) trailed 13-0 before a wild fourth quarter that saw South Carolina take a 14-13 lead, Louisiana Tech (2-2) answer with a 10-play, 84-yard drive that ended with a 25-yard field goal by Jonathan Barnes with 55 seconds left. But Gamecocks quarterback Jake Bentley scrambled for 21 yards on third-and-10 and threw a 31-yard pass into three Bulldogs that Bryan Edwards somehow came up with 7 seconds to go. Bentley was 22 of 34 for 295 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Ty’Son Williams ran 13 times for 95.
J’Mar Smith was 23 of 33 for 281 yards, a touchdown and an interception for Louisiana Tech. Teddy Veal caught 10 passes for 110 yards.
Sports on 09/24/2017