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B2 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2025 The Eatonton Alessenger www.msgrnews.com AUAVAMC 11 2025 SEASON 7-1 AWAY SAME s II SEC RECORD 5-1 WEEKLY COVERAGE OF THE GEORGIA BULLDOGS Bowens sparks Dawgs’ win over Florida Lance McCurley lance@msgrnews.com Chauncey Bowens provided a spark for Georgia late in the fourth quarter against Florida last week. Bowens, who was once committed to play for the Gators but flipped to the Bulldogs, scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 36-yard run to help No. 5 Georgia secure a 24-20 victory at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. Bowens switched his commitment to the Bull dogs during his official recruiting visit to Athens in June 2023. Last week, the Florida native told reporters about how glad he was to choose Georgia over the Gators. “It’s awesome to be able to go home,” Bowens said. “I know the weight this game has, and obviously, I was committed to them at a point in time. But I know what side I picked, and obviously, I love the decision I made.” Bowens is the team’s leading rusher through eight games, with 446 yards on 49 carries and five touchdowns. The 5-foot-ll, 225-pound running back delivered another impressive performance on Saturday. Bowens led Georgia in rushing against Florida, with 70 yards on nine attempts and scoring a touchdown. The Gators held a 20-17 lead over the Bull dogs with just under four minutes left when Bowens’ number was called. Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton saw something in how Flor ida’s defensive front was lined up, so he changed the play at the line of scrimmage. He then handed the ball off to Bowens, who started running to the right before cutting back left, allowing him to evade several Gators defenders and cross the goal line untouched for six. “I knew the play call, and I was like, Alright, he’s about to make some thing happen,’” Georgia wideout Zachariah Branch said of Bowens’ run. “So, I was excited to see him go out there and execute that.” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said he thought it was among the game’s most pivotal moments. “I thought that the check on the run for the touchdown was the second biggest play of the game, because Gunner saw something, changed the O-line, picked it up, and it’s really hard to run that,” Smart said. “It’s hard to defend that play with them stunting the line as they were doing it. And it was a great check by him.” Another huge run by Bowens happened when the Bulldogs faced a 3rd-and-7 at the 2:21 mark of the fourth quarter. Bowens took a toss sweep and rushed 14 yards past the chains for the first down to help seal the game. As a team, Georgia accumulated just 138 yards on 45 rushing attempts. Bowens deliv ered the explosive plays, averaging 7.8 yards per carry, whereas Nate Frazier, with 12 carries for 45 yards, gained the hard yards. “Chauncey is one of the most consistent players on our team,” Smart said. “Chauncey’s number one, a great kid from a great family, from a great school. He loves getting better. He’s happy for his teammates. He’s really talented.” With the win, Georgia improved to 7-1 overall and 5-1 in the SEC. LANCE McCURLEY/Staff Georgia's Chauncey Bowens (33) led the team in rushing last week with 70 yards on nine attempts and a touchdown against Florida. Georgia preps for ‘hard to beat’ Mississippi State Lance McCurley lance@msgrnews.com After knocking off Florida last Saturday, No. 5 Georgia will face Missis sippi State on the road this week. The Bulldogs of Starkville (5-4, 1-4) got BANK OF MADISON COMMITMENT: HERE. NOW. ALWAYS. Contact us for your Lot and Construction Loans! COME IN AND MEET THE LAKE TEAM their first conference win last week, defeating Arkansas 38-35 in a thriller. Georgia’s Kirby Smart said he respects how fast Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby has turned the team around. “I know Jeff well. He’s a good guy and has done a great job with the energy and enthusiasm coming out of that program,” Smart told reporters on Monday. “You can see it in the way their kids play. They’ve got no quit in them; these guys have competed. They have been in every game they’ve played.” However, the Maroon Bulldogs have been on the losing end of three games decided by seven points or less. Their luck changed drastically against the Razorbacks last week, though, as they managed to pull out the close win. Smart expects that success will provide Mississippi State with a lot of confidence coming into Saturday’s matchup. “It shows hard work pays off,” Smart said. “They’ve continued to work hard. They’ve stayed true to themselves. All you’ve got to do is watch the tape. They’ve been in every game. They’ve had several games they should’ve won — games they could’ve won — but they didn’t. “Obviously, it didn’t slow them down, even against Arkansas. Every game they’ve been in, they’ve scored tons of points. They’re a hard team to beat.” Mississippi State quar terback Blake Shapen leads an offense that averages 33.22 points per game, ranking them eighth in the SEC. The Maroon Bulldogs run a pass-first offense, averaging just over 250 yards per contest. Through nine games, Shapen has completed 65.1% of his passes for 2,148 yards, 15 touchdowns, and six inter ceptions this year. Mississippi State also uses backup Kamario Taylor in running pack ages. He’s rushed for 147 yards and two scores. “He’s got great arm talent, great vision, and quick release, which is critical in their offense,” Smart said of Shapen. “He can spin it. He under stands their system and knows where to go with the ball; he makes all the decisions in terms of running, throwing, and box counts. He’s a very experienced, talented player, and he’s also got great legs, and they’ve got another quarterback (Taylor) who is a really good player as well.” Former Georgia wide receiver Anthony Evans III and Brenen Thompson are Mississippi State’s leading receivers. The two playmakers have combined to catch 93 passes for 1,369 yards and 10 touchdowns this year. The Maroon Bulldogs also have two solid options at running back in Fluff Bothwell and Davon Booth. Defensively, Missis sippi State has struggled at times, giving up an average 24.67 points a game. However, the unit is known for being “disrup tive” up front, with 18 sacks and 45 tackles for loss so far this season. Smart said the Maroon Bulldogs’ defensive strengths are getting after the quarterback and creating turnovers. “They’re very disruptive. They confuse you with different packages. They have some different looks they use. They’ve got some long length,” Smart said. “I haven’t seen this kind of length in a long time. That corner and safety in terms of length allows you to tip balls, knock balls down, intercept balls. “They’ve done a really good job this year creating those turnovers. They’re plus in the margin and any time you’re plus in the margin, in our league that’s winning, because it’s a really competitive league in terms of turnovers.” Georgia and Mississippi State will kick off at noon EST Saturday. CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWERS Lake Country Loan Production Office 1041 Founders Row Greensboro, GA 30642 (762) 445-1133 Main Office 133 N. 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