Kentucky coach Mark Stoops couldn’t say much after his team’s 13-12 loss to Georgia late Saturday night.
The Wildcats (1-2, 0-2 SEC) played their best for the No. 1 ranked Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0) on a bad night, and it still wasn’t good enough.
“There were still some plays where Georgia made really good plays in some key moments,” Stoops said when asked if Kentucky, the four-touchdown underdog, could have done more to beat the Bulldogs.
“That was one of the reasons why they’re number one. We had some nice plays planned and maybe had a moment of freedom and they made some really nice plays. You know, that’s a big credit to them.”
Kentucky outgained Georgia 284 to 262 yards, including a stunning 170 to 102 rushing yard advantage.
The Wildcats had to earn every yard, and Kirby Smart’s defense did not allow a play longer than 19 yards on any of UK’s 73 offensive plays.
Otherwise, the Wildcats followed a standard plan for an upset that began on offense: The Big Blue dominated the line of scrimmage for most of the evening, managing 23 first downs to the Bulldogs’ 12. This allowed UK to keep Georgia’s offense off the field and had a decisive advantage in terms of time of possession: 35 minutes and two seconds to UGA’s paltry 24:48 minutes.
But as Stoops said, there’s a reason Smart’s football program has proven to be the best in the country, and that reason is largely due to coaching and timely execution.
Despite all the difficulties, the Bulldogs’ offense was unable to help Kentucky with a turnover – just as UGA did not lose the ball in its opening wins against Clemson and Tennessee Tech.
Stoops knew the team had to play a flawless game and win crucial duels, which they did, going into halftime with a 6-3 lead.
“No flukes, no tricks, you can’t outsmart a really good team like that,” Stoops said. “You have to pull yourself together and make the plays you need to make. You have to give them credit. They did more than we did.”
Georgia’s well-coached defense – as weak as it may appear on the interior defensive line – became increasingly rigid as the Wildcats approached the end zone.
Only one of Kentucky’s ten attacks was able to break through UGA’s 20-yard line – the red zone – so the Wildcats had to settle for four field goals.
Meanwhile, Georgia’s offense flipped a switch in the fourth quarter.
Stoops, a defensive genius, was particularly upset when Carson Beck conjured a 33-yard pass down the left sideline with the game still hanging in the balance and the Bulldogs desperately needing a first down to run out the clock and prevent UK from any last-second heroics.
“What I don’t like is one play during that four-minute drive where they had the sailing route,” Stoops said. “We have to get our act together and not give them the sailing route that was completed on their sideline, and that’s the one play that’s going to haunt me tonight and for a long time to come.”
Bobo, of course, had prepared the play and knew he would be there when Georgia needed him most, assuming Beck (15 of 24 passes, 160 yards) and the offense could execute it.
It was second-and-9 at the UGA 16-yard line, Georgia held its lead at 13-12, and there was just over two minutes left – the Wildcats had timeouts – plenty of time for a potentially game-winning drive if they could have gotten a stop.
Beck, on the other hand, dropped back and fired a 33-yard pass further forward to his preferred receiver Dominic Lovett (six catches, 89 yards).
The longest play of the night enlivened the Georgia sideline and gave new courage to Beck, who had looked uncertain for most of the evening.
Two plays later, Beck delivered again – an 8-yard pass to tight end Oscar Delp.
Kentucky lost the ball, but trained receiver Arian Smith was there to grab the ball and give the Bulldogs possession.
The clock continued to tick down for UK as Georgia doggedly maintained possession. Trevor Etienne broke off a crucial 11-yard run on a second-and-7 attempt from the UK 38-yard line, forcing Stoops to use his timeouts.
When UGA’s drive stalled and Brett Thorson’s punt rolled past the Bulldogs, who were in position to dunk the ball at the 1-yard line – one of the few special teams mistakes this season – Kentucky had just 10 seconds left to take a lead from its own 20-yard line.
Stoops regretted not being able to get a stop after making the calculated decision to punt the ball back to Georgia – rather than attempting it on fourth down – after reaching the Bulldogs’ 47-yard line and falling just one field goal short of the lead.
“You know, they’re very efficient — there are things you can’t do to them,” Stoops said. “They catch everything. They’re very efficient, like I said earlier in the week. I think they have a very cohesive offensive line and it’s a very good group.”
Well-coached and confident, Georgia players believe in a system that has led the team to a record 42 consecutive regular-season wins and an SEC-record 28 consecutive conference wins.
“I know people are going to question the fourth attempt,” Stoops said. “You know I’ve been honest with you for years, and if I make a mistake like I did last week, I’ll tell you.”
“I don’t regret kicking the ball. I felt like if we tried it there and didn’t make it, our offense would have to go all the way down the field if we wanted to stop them. That would have been tough against that defense.”
In fact, Georgia’s defense has not allowed a single touchdown in three games – a real winning advantage.
“I think you know I’m not saying I’m satisfied with the moral victory,” said Stoops, Britain’s all-time winningest coach but also the longest-tenured coach in the country who has never won a single division title.
“I care about how we play. I care about how we prepare. I care about how we represent the fan base, how we represent this university and how we play. We played hard. I thought we had a chance to win the game.”
Instead, it was Georgia’s 15th consecutive win over Kentucky on a night when the Wildcats played their best game under the lights at home.
