Georgia Dominates Arkansas, 45-17

Image – Georgia Bulldogs

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas (1-2, 0-1 SEC) was blown out for the second consecutive weekend and Georgia (3-0, 1-0 SEC) dominated throughout in a 45-17 drubbing.

The Razorbacks trailed by 21-3 walking into the locker room at halftime. The Bulldogs scored 24 points in the second half and the final score ended at 45-17 when the clocks hit triple zeroes.

Georgia did most of its work on offense on the ground against the Arkansas defense, rushing for 254 yards on 42 attempts. Running backs Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowers combined for 25 carries for 114 yards and 4 touchdowns. Quarterback Gunner Stockton rushed four times for 122 yards.

Stockton also completed 10 of 13 passes for 147 yards. He exited the game after a 61-yard touchdown pass to Craig Dandridge to give the Bulldogs a 38-3 lead with 12:42 remaining.

Georgia outgained Arkansas 464-300 in total yards. The Razorbacks gained 142 of those yards in the fourth quarter. The Razorbacks’ offensive line had success protecting in the passing game but failed to generate a push in the running game, gaining only 17 yards on 20 carries.

Both KJ Jackson and AJ Hill saw time behind center for Arkansas against Georgia. Jackson started the game but Hill saw action on some drives.

Jackson completed 20 of 27 passes for 212 yards. Hill completed 8 of 14 for 76 yards.

On their opening drive, Arkansas moved the ball well before back to back incomplete passes on third and fourth down stalled the drive.

On Georgia’s first drive, it moved the ball 62 yards for a touchdown. The important play of the drive was a 33-yard pass from Stockton to tight end Lawson Luckie. Frazier scored on a 5-yard touchdown run to give the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead.

Two pass interference penalties in the end zone set up Georgia well with a 2-yard touchdown for Bowens with 8:45 left before halftime. Lakhi Roland was flagged for pass interference on third-and-8 from the Arkansas 12, and Christian Harrison was called for interference on third-and-goal from the 7 when it appeared the ball was tipped.

Hill completed a 37-yard pass to wide receiver Chris Marshall to the Georgia 34-yard line on the next drive. On second-and-7 at the 31, a double pass from receiver Monte Harrison to Hill was stopped for a 5-yard loss. A play later, Hill was sacked by Justin Hill for a 7-yard loss that knocked that Razorbacks out of field goal range.

Georgia scored another touchdown on their next drive to take a 21-0 lead. Stockton’s 62-yard run on third-and-2 moved the Bulldogs all the way down to the Arkansas 11-yard line. Bowens finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown with 36 seconds to go in the first half.

Jackson led a solid drive during the final minute of the first drive to to give Arkansas its first points. First, he completed a 22-yard pass to Donovan Faupel before back-to-back passes to Marshall of 14 and 17 yards to Marshall, and finally 8 yards to Antonio Jordan.

At the Georgia 14-yard line, Jackson’s intentional grounding penalty forced Arkansas to take a field goal attempt. Razorback placekicker Max Gilbert’s 41-yard kick was good just before time expired in the first half.

On Georgia’s first drive of the second half, the Arkansas defense forced Georgia to settle for a field goal. Bulldog placekicker Peyton Woodring knocked it in from 38 yards out after Razorback defensive lineman David Oke sacked Stockton on third down.

Jackson was strip-sacked by Georgia linebacker Raylen Wilson on Arkansas’ next drive. Jordan Hall recovered the football at Stockton converted a fourth-and-2 from the 24 and third-and-4 from the 7 with passes to Sacovie White-Helton. Bowens finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown to give the Bulldogs a 38-3 lead with 3:35 left in the third quarter.

For the second consecutive week, Arkansas did not score a touchdown until the fourth quarter. Jackson completed a 25-yard pass to Jamari Hawkins on third-and-15 and Sutton Smith scored on a 5-yard run one play later to make the score 38-10 with 8:30 to play in the game.

Jackson led another touchdown drive in the closing minutes against Georgia. He completed a 2-yard pass to tight end Ty Lockwood to set the final score, 45-17.

Marshall finished with seven catches for 104 yards.

Bulldogs’ backup quarterback Ryan Puglisi led an 11-play, 75-yard  touchdown drive after replacing Stockton. Puglisi completed two passes during the drive to Luckie, one for 24 yards to convert a third-and-7 and one for a 2-yard touchdown on the next play.

Dandridge led Georgia in receiving with 74 yards. Luckie added 59 yards on his own.

Notes
Georgia moved to 7-0 against Arkansas in the Natural State. The Bulldogs are the only team in the SEC that has not faced defeat in either Fayetteville or Little Rock.

Arkansas is 0-6 against the Bulldogs in Fayetteville and 0-1 in Little Rock. Georgia defeated the Razorbacks 27-3 in 1992, 38-7 in 2000, 20-14 in 2004, 52-41 in 2009 and 37-10 in 2020 inside Razorback Stadium.

The Bulldogs defeated Arkansas 45-32 in their only appearance at War Memorial Stadium in 2014.

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart is 7-0 against Arkansas. Smart is 6-0 in Fayetteville and 1-0 in Little Rock. He is 2-0 in the state as a head coach, was 4-0 as the defensive coordinator at Alabama and was 1-0 as an assistant at LSU.

Next Up
Arkansas is set to host Tulsa on Saturday, Sept. 26 at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. The Golden Hurricane (3-0) received 18 votes this week’s AP Top 25 poll. They defeated Oklahoma State 24-10 on Sept. 5, one week before the Cowboys upset then-No. 6 Oregon by a score of 39-31 to snap a 21-game FBS losing streak. Tulsa shutout East Texas A&M 42-0 in week 3 to set up their matchup with the Razorbacks.

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