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Georgia overcomes lackluster performance to beat Kent State

Palmber-Thombsby: Palmer Thombs09/24/22palmerthombs

ATHENS, Ga. — It was far from pretty Saturday in Athens, but Georgia got the job done, beating Kent State 39-22. Brock Bowers had a pair of touchdowns once again, following up a three-TD performance last week at South Carolina, while Jamon Dumas-Johnson had one of the better days defensively, tying for the team-high with six tackles including 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks. The Bulldogs move to 4-0 on the season as they head into the bulk of their conference schedule.

First Half

The Bulldogs got off to a fast start as Brock Bowers picked up where he left off last week with a 75-yard rushing score on the second play of the game. Then, the defense forced a three-and-out. That’s when things started to go south.

Ladd McConkey muffed the punt that followed. That gave Kent State the ball at the UGA 26 and led to a field goal for the Golden Flashes. Stetson Bennett was intercepted on the next drive.

Georgia was able to get things going in the right direction with a blocked punt that rolled out of the back of the end zone by freshman linebacker Jalon Walker to make it 9-3 before a field goal on the next Georgia drive gave the Bulldogs a 12-3 lead.

Kent State didn’t go down quietly though after Georgia took the momentum. Early in the second quarter, McConkey once again turned the ball over, this time fumbling, and it turned into points once again. This time, a 56-yard touchdown pass.

Bowers was back at it again on Georgia’s next drive, once again getting in the end zone on the ground. It was Bowers’ fourth rushing touchdown of his career and third of the year, more than his receiving touchdown total at the time. The Bulldogs would follow that up by allowing a Kent State field goal before Georgia went on an 11-play, 72-yard drive to go back up by two scores going into the locker room. Bennett capped that one off with a rushing touchdown of his own to make it 26-13.

Second Half

Georgia and Kent State traded field goals early in the second half with Jack Podlesny making on attempts from 31 and 32 yards out. The second put the Bulldogs ahead 32-16.

Kent State scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter to make it a 10-point game. Then, on the following drive, Bennett joined elite College Football company by throwing for 250+ yards and rushing for a touchdown in four straight games. The only other SEC quarterback to do so since 2004 is Tim Tebow the year he won the Heisman Trophy. Bennett and the Bulldogs added a touchdown late in the fourth quarter with a 12-play, 75-yard drive capped off by Kendall Milton‘s 1-yard score on 4th and 1.

Christopher Smith picked off his second pas of the season, tied for the team-high, to give Georgia the opportunity to add to its total or run out the clock. They were able to do just that, killing the final 5:11 of the fourth quarter.

Georgia has gotten through the bulk of its non-conference schedule now and will play nothing but SEC games until the final week of the season when the Bulldogs take on Georgia Tech. Next up for UGA though is a road trip to Missouri with kickoff time on Saturday set for 7:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network.

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