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HURT: Team shows
fight, looks ahead
► From Page 1
Heads seemed to hang
heavier. Voices seemed to
be softer. Answers seemed
to be shorter.
“This is one of the big
gest rivalries in college
football. I felt like we
fought to the end,”
Georgia wide receiver A. J.
Green said. “We gave it all
we got. A lot of guys left
their heart on the field I
know I left mine out
there.”
The Bulldogs seemed to
lack passion the first five
games they found it
against Tennessee. The
Bulldogs appeared to final
ly realize they could com
pete for the SEC East title
and redefine the 2010 sea
son.
But when the season
came to a crescendo
Saturday, all the cheering
was coming horn the
opposite sideline.
A silence swept over the
men in red after yet anoth
er loss at the hands of the
Bulldogs’ kryptonite.
“It’s definitely not a
great feeling, but this team
has fought back all year. I
mean, we could've quit
three, four weeks ago and
we didn’t,” quarterback
LOSS: Georgia hopes to earn bowl bid by winning out
► From Page 1
as each of Georgia's four
previous losses: Dig a hole.
Fight out. Then fall apart.
“I thought they fought
valiantly. I don’t think any
body could question their
effort or competitive spir
it,” head coach Mark Richt
said. “Just one of those
games where someone had
to lose, and unfortunately
it was us.”
Richt’s right. His team
did fight the Gators.
And it was better than
the blowout losses of 2008
and 2009, but at some
point, you have to wonder:
How does Georgia beat
these guys?
“You win a game like
this,” Richt said. “But we
didn’t do it."
It was an especially cruel
end for a Georgia team
that seemed to outplay
Florida, minus four crucial
turnovers.
And an even crueler end
for a Florida kid playing in
his home state, one that
had just set his home-state
school’s defense on fire
with a splendid second half
performance, but whose
interception on Georgia’s
final offensive play cost
them.
If there Is a silver lining
in this outcome for Georgia,
it is Murray, the star quar
terback who has the ability
to transcend momentum,
shifting it back in Georgia’s
favor in his next three sea
sons.
But on the overtime
drive, Murray’s protection
collapsed, he fired the pass
INSTANT REPLAY
Aaron Murray said. “This
team has a lot of fight in
them and we’re gonna
keep fighting, keep getting
better.”
But their fight wasn’t
enough Saturday.
And the same will they
drew upon to score 21
points in the second half
against Florida is the type
of will the Bulldogs have to
learn to play with through
out a game.
“This team’s got heart.
We really do,” wide receiver
Tavarres King said. “It just
sucks that it ended the
way it did because we fight
so hard week in and week
out. Monday through
Sunday, we’re up early,
grinding and it's tough to
lose this one.”
Though the players
talked about not dwelling
on losses and moving for
ward, I have a feeling their
minds will linger on this
one more than the other
four. And the only solution
is to do what Green,
Murray and King all spoke
of— fight.
“Just keep fighting,
keep grinding,” head coach
Mark Richt said. “Show up
to work, be a grown man
and do your job. And eqjoy
it.”
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▲ Georgia was able to rebound from a 21-7 first half deficit with the help of sophomore tight end
Orson Charles, who turned in a career game with six catches for 108 yards and a touchdown.
out earlier than he wanted
and slightly behind Green
leading to an almost
fatal Will Hill interception
—and left Georgia wonder
ing: “What is there left to
play for?”
All hopes of somehow
backdooring their way into
the SEC Championship
game with a late-season
South Carolina slide were
dashed with the Florida
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▲ After falling to Florida for the 18th time in 21 games, the disappoint
ment was evident for the Bulldogs during and after the game.
loss. To even gain bowl eli
gibility, a feat seventy col
lege football teams will do
this season with the myriad
of meaningless bowls held
nationwide these days,
Georgia will need to win
two of their last three
games. One of those games
will pit the Bulldogs against
Idaho State, a Football
Championship Division
opponent.
SPORTS
“Right now we think
about winning the rest of
our games starting with
Idaho State,” Richt said.
“There’s honor in that. We
have fans that have paid
their money for their sea
son tickets. We’ve got peo
ple that still love the Dogs
and want to see them do
well.”
With 10 offensive start
ers returning, it’s about the
The Red a Buck I Monday, Novkmbek i, aoio
worst-possible scenario
anyone could have predict
ed for this season.
But that scenario has
become a potential reality,
and so Georgia will try to
do what it has struggled to
do all season.
“We Just got to finish,"
Green said. “We got anoth
er big one with Auburn and
then Georgia Tech, and we
just got to finish strong.”
GAME
REWIND
PLAYER OF THE
GAME!
Trey Burton, Florida
quarterback
The 6-foot-2, 222-pound
freshman was all over the
field Saturday, as the
Gators executed their
three-quarterback system.
Burton rushed for 110
yards on 17 carries and
two touchdowns and had
171 total yards. His legs
—and John Brantley’s
arm kept the Gators'
offense moving, as they
capitalized on Georgia's
four turnovers.
OVERLOOKED PLAYER
OF THE GAME:
Janoris Jenkins, Florida
cornerback
Jenkins had the daunt
ing task of containing wide
receiver A.J. Green. But
the 5-foot-ll junior largely
took Green out of the
game, limiting him to just
42 yards receiving and one
touchdown. Jenkins also
picked off Aaron Murray in
Georgia's first offensive
play from scrimmage and
despite the fact that he is
five inches shorter than
Green, Jenkins held the
Bulldogs' go-to man to an
uncharacteristically quiet
day.
KEY MOMENT:
Chas Henry's gamewin
ning field goal in overtime
After a fourth quarter
comeback by the Bulldogs
tied the game at 31,
Georgia had to keep
momentum rolling into
overtime —but a Murray
interception on third down
left the game in the
defense’s hands. Though
Henry has not been stellar
this season just 4-of-8
the senior punter
turned-kicker put the nail
in Georgia’s coffin with a
37-yard field goal after
missing his first attempt of
the day in the first quarter.
He was 2-of-3 on the day.
KEY DECISION:
Georgia coaches allow
ing Murray to continue to
throw
Murray was shaky
throughout the first half,
showing a side the red
shirt freshman had not
previously shown. He final
ly had a performance
that’s expected of a fresh
man first-year starting
quarterback, throwing two
picks in regulation. But
Murray looked improved in
the second half and the
coaches continued to let
him sling the ball to his
receivers, racking up 313
yards and three touch
downs. And though Murray
seemed to take care of
the ball better in the sec
ond half and didn’t over
throw his receivers as
much,' Murray's overtime
interception was the down
fall of allowing him to
throw, rather than run the
ball.
QUOTE OF THE GAME:
Georgia quarterback
Aaron Murray on his over
time interception:
"I was looking at AJ.
[Green] and I think I just
threw it behind it. You
throw it anywhere near him
and he's gonna make a
play but I threw it way too
far behind him. The
[Rorida defender] made a
nice tip on the ball and
with the athletes they
have, when the ball's in
the air someone’s gonna
make a play."
BY THE NUMBERS:
Georgia's total offense:
439 yards
Rortda’s total offense:
450 yards
Georgia's third down con
versions: 8-of-15
Rorlda’s third down con
versions: 4-of-14
Georgia’s turnovers: 4
Rorlda’s turnovers: 1
Rachel 0. Bowers
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