Tennessee Volunteers Vs. Georgia Bulldogs Final Score: Georgia Beats Dooley, 41-14

Athens, GA (Sports Network) – Aaron Murray threw for two touchdowns and ran for another two, as the Georgia Bulldogs cruised to a 41-14 win over the Tennessee Volunteers in SEC play at Sanford Stadium.

Murray completed 17-of-25 passes for 266 yards in the win. A.J. Green hauled in six passes for 96 yards and a score to help the Bulldogs (2-4, 1-3 SEC) snap a four-game losing skid, their longest since 1990.

Vols (2-4, 0-3) quarterback Matt Simms completed 9-of-13 passes for 179 yards with one touchdown and one interception before being replaced by Tyler Bray. Justin Hunter paced the receiving corps with 110 yards and a TD on four catches.

Georgia grabbed a 7-0 lead midway through the opening quarter when Murray broke loose for a 35-yard touchdown run.

The Bulldogs’ defense came up with an interception on the very next possession, which eventually led to a 42-yard field goal by Blair Walsh at the 2:15 mark of the first quarter.

Tennessee fumbled away the ensuing kickoff, setting up another Georgia touchdown as Murray found Rantavious Wooten for a nine-yard score with less than a minute to play in the opening frame.

UT got on the board at the 12:58 mark of the second quarter, when Simms connected with Hunter for a 38-yard scoring strike to cut the deficit to 17-7.

But the Vols lost another fumble midway through the quarter, which resulted in a 22-yard touchdown pass from Murray to Green with 6:42 remaining until halftime.

Georgia pushed its lead to 27-7 on a 20-yard field goal by Walsh with 2:15 to play in the half.

The Bulldogs made it a 34-7 game at the 10:26 mark of the third quarter, as Murray scored on a five-yard scamper.

UT trimmed the margin to 34-14 on Tauren Poole’s two-yard touchdown plunge with 7:07 remaining in the third quarter.

Four minutes later, Georgia added another touchdown on a one-yard run by Shaun Chapas to account for the final score.

Georgia had a nine-minute edge in time of possession, as the Bulldogs’ defense held the Vols to just 269 yards of total offense, including only nine yards on the ground.

All Geogria had to do in the fourth quarter was finish and they were able to do just that.

The Bulldogs held on to the ball for nearly 10 minutes and gave the Vols little time to make any type of comeback.

Final score was 41-14 and the Bulldogs improve to 2-4 and get their first SEC victory of the season.

Aaron Murray finshed the day 17-of-25 with 266 yards and fourt total touchdowns (two rushing and two passing).

For A.J. Green, it was another day at the office, pulling down six catches for 96 yards and one touchdown.

Caleb King had 58 yards on 13 carries whlile Murray added 41 rushing yards on seven carries.

The most important number is zero, as the Bulldogs did not turn the ball over.

Good win for a team that needed it.

It seems Aaron Murray is getting better and better each game.

On the Dawgs opening drive, they were at the Vols 5-yard line and Murray was able to elude a sack a run it in for a UGA TD to put them up 34-7.

Tennesee was able to answer, thanks to a Matt Simms 58-yard pass to Rajion Neal and that led to a Tyrone Poole 2-yard tochdown run to cut the lead to 20.

But Murray was able to lead the Dawgs down the field on the ensuing drive and that led to a Shaun Chappas 1-yard toudown run to put the game out of reach.

There is one more quarter left and if the Bulldogs jsut need three points to tie the biggest score vs. Vols in the history of the series.

Via Mock Session, of course.

Recent honorees:

And some of their Vol counterparts:

Another possession, another scoring drive.

Aaron Murray threw another 48 yards while Washaun Ealey pitched in nine on the ground, and fullback Shaun Chapas finished things off with a hearty plow into the end zone.

Georgia's now outgained Tennessee 339 to 189, and last year's been just about avenged.

Tauren Poole ran in a two-yard score off left tackle, but it was Matt Simms’ 58-yard pass up the right sideline to Rajion Neal that set up Tennessee’s second appearance on the scoreboard.

Simms has now thrown for 170 yards on only eight completions, averaging 14.2 per.

Tennessee hasn’t turned the ball over yet this half (they have yet to possess it!), but the Dawgs punched it in yet again.

Aaron Murray was good for all but one yard of the 63-yard drive, throwing four-for-four and running in the final play, tapping the pylon with the ball on his way out. He was ruled out, but the call was overturned after review.

Georgia is crushing Tennessee on every line of the box score. OK, they have one more penalty than the Vols. Whatever.

The second quarter was a little better for the Vols, as they were able to score on their opening drive, via Matt Simms 38-yard touchdown pass to Justin Hunter to cut the lead to 17.

But Georgia was able to strike back later in the quarter with an Aaron Murray 22-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Green. The touchdown was setup thanks to a Eric Gordon fumble on a Tennesee punt return which was recovered by Blake Sailors.

Georgia was able to add more insurance with a Blair Walsh 20-yard field goal to put the Bulldogs up by 10.

You want to know why the Dawgs are playing well? Because UT has three turnovers while UGA has zero.

Let’s see if the Georgia can keep up that trend in the second half.

Tennesse’s crumbling. After three first-half turnovers, a missed snap set them up with a 3rd-and-31 at their own three, which they tried to convert to no avail. On the next punt, a late hit out of bounds gave Georgia the ball at Tennessee’s 21.

On the Dawgs’ brief drive Aaron Murray took a neck-snapping hit from Janzen Jackson and A.J. Green dropped a moderately difficult (for him) touchdown, but Blair Walsh knocked in his second field goal to take advantage of yet another Vol cockup.

Georgia’s best play: get the ball in Tennessee return man Eric Gordon’s hands. It won’t stay there long.

Gordon flubbed a fair catch into Georgia possession. (Georgia’s designated fair catcher Logan Gray ran back a punt for 20 or 30 yards a few minutes ago, though it was called back on a penalty.)

Aron White caught-and-thundered a 29-yarder after the turnover, dragging a smaller defender up the right sideline and lunging to advance the ball. Great-looking effort.

Tavarres King dropped an easy, easy touchdown after an Aaron Murray scramble, juggling the ball for what felt like forever while laying on the ground until a Tennessee defender kneed the ball out.

Washaun Ealey fumbled the ball out of bounds on the next play.

Murray then found A.J. Green shooting up the middle for a 22-yard score.

Brenda Dooley’s boy ain’t going out like that.

After being sacked on the previous play by Justin Houston, Matt Simms shook off a return trip by Houston and tossed a 38-yarder into Justin Hunter’s arms. Hunter turned and saw nothing but green.

Hard to tell if Georgia’s secondary let up after assuming Houston had the sack.

I don't think anybody saw this comming.

Georgia came out the gate like they were on fire, as they put 17 points on the board to start the game with bang.

Credit has to go to the UGA defense for not giving up a opening-drive score, something they haven't done in the last four games.

On UGA's opening drive after forcing Tennessee to punt, Aaron Murray scrambles for a 35-yard touchdown run to get the scoring started.

They were able to get the ball back after a Matt Simms intercpetion to Bacarri Rambo and that led to a Blair Walsh 42-yard field goal.

The Dawgs got the ball back no to long after that, as Eric Gordon fumbled the kickoff return and UGA recoved which led to a Murray 9-yard touchdown pass to Rantavious Wooten to go up by 17.

Not bad Bulldogs. Not bad at all. 

Another turnover, another score.

Aaron Murray fired a nine-yarder into the back corner of the end zone, where Rantavious Wooten made a nice catch to give Georgia its best start since … ?

After pulling down a lob from Aaron Murray deep into Vols territory, A.J. Green took a pounding to the chest but hung onto the ball. He rolled on the ground for a moment and went to have a seat, but looked ready to go as Georgia scored.

Yes, this means Georgia just scored without Green.

So this is how Tennessee’s record is what it is.

Tennessee kick returner Eric Gordon broke a decent return up to Tennessee’s 40 before fumbling the ball. Georgia recovered.

Georgia’s moving the ball better than I’ve seen all season, with 93 yards already, but a blown block gave Janzen Jackson an easy sack of Aaron Murray, killing a drive started at midfield.

Blair Walsh kicked a 42-yarder to give Georgia a two-score lead.

On a Vance Cuff tip of a Matt Simms pass, Bacarri Rambo snared an interception while hauling out of bounds. He had to tumble over the hedges, then took a moment to figure out how to get back between the hedges.

He safely returned to Georgia’s sideline.

The closest thing I can offer you to game footage of Rambo’s adventure:

Georgia had to break a big play sooner or later, but I don't think we expected Aaron Murray's feet to be responsible. The quarterback shot up the right sideline for a 35-yard score. Tennessee did not appear concerned about preventing this. Also, wonders never cease:

Athens, stop acting like Atlanta. You know what time kickoff is.

Via our own @captainannoying.

As expected, Branden Smith (concussion), Marlon Brown (shoulder) and Richard Samuel (knee) will be inactive for today's game against Tennessee.

However, there are a couple new injuries to report, as Carlton Thomas and Cornelius Washington were not dressed when they came onto the field this morning. Thomas suffered a hamstring injury and like Smith, Washington will be out because of a concussion.

Double D, a writer for the Boston Herald (I have now idea what Double D stands for and I probably don't want to know) came out with his weekly college picks and has picked Georgia over Tennesee and lay the 11.5 points.

Here's one of the things he says about the game tomorrow:

"It would certainly help Richt’s cause if the Dawgs could lay the lumber to a struggling Vols team with issues of its own. Georgia, favored by 11 points at home, will take Tennessee to the woodshed. Lay the points."

I'm sorry I have to ask, does Double D, along with Vegas, know something we don't ?

This is something no Bulldog fan wans to hear.

When Tennessee rolls in to Athens Saturday afternoon, expect the offense to have new wrinkles for the UGA defense.

Tennessee was able to do a few different things against LSU, and they were effective, converting 7-of-15 third down plays.

They may not do anything different against the Bulldogs, but because the way the defense has look so this year, they may not have to.

And for Vols injuries, kicker Daniel Lincoln will miss his second game due to a quadriceps injury and tackle Dallas Thomas has a ankle injury and he will be a game-time decision.

Mark Richt had to do something that he did not want to do and that was to burn a redshirt off a freshmen offensive lineman.

Kenaroius Gates, who has yet to see the field this season, will likely start as right guard in the game Saturday against Tennessee. He will replace Josh Daivs who has been benched.

In other news, Kirs Durham sufferd a pinched nerve in his neck in the game agaisnt Colorado and his stauts for Saturday's game is questionable. Marlon Brown suffred a shoulder injury and he has been ruled out.

So this means A.J. Green will have a bigger game than last week because he will pull down 20 balls and rack up 275 yards.

Not really, but Aaron Murray will be throing a lot of balls his way on Saturday.

SB Nation’s Rocky Top Talk is publishing a four-parter by our Doug Gillett on the special blend of hate that arises from the mingling of firetruck red and Home Depot orange.

From part one:

But if a classic rivalry’s primary ingredient is hate, then Georgia-Tennessee is on its way to classic status even with a relatively paltry 38 meetings between them. UGA-UT may have been played far fewer times than Tennessee-Alabama (91), Georgia-Florida (86), or even Georgia-Clemson (62), but few modern rivalries run on the kind of professional-grade, 98-octane schadenfreude that Georgia-Tennessee does. Part of it has to do with the streakiness of the series: Since the two teams first squared off 110 years ago, only four times (not counting last year) has either team won or lost only “one in a row.” More often, one or the other has gone on a winning streak long enough to engender garment-rending, wrist-slitting angst and humiliation in their opponent, followed by that opponent rising up and taking out their frustrations for several long, gleeful years.

But it also has to do with the fact that, at least for the moment, there doesn’t appear to be any of the kind of grudging respect sometimes found in rivalries like these. Rather, both fan bases just seem to be incredibly annoyed with one another. Admit it, Vol Nation, y’all have to suppress your collective gag reflex at the mere sound of Larry Munson’s voice after being on the butt end of so many of his most famous calls (“My God a freshman,” “hobnail boot,” and “Sean Jones all the way,” just for starters). We Bulldogs, meanwhile, still can’t believe we let Phillip Fulmer build the longest winning streak we’ve ever given up to a single opponent. Even among the Dawg and Vol partisans for whom SEC football in general is a consuming passion, there are few smiles as they enter the second week in October, just plenty of sneers.

How’d it come to this in such a short amount of time? Perhaps a bit of history will teach us.

Part two is here, and you’ll just have to hang out at Rocky Top Talk as you wait on parts three and four.

Ordinarily this'd be the part where I tell you hey, buck up, sport, Tennessee's offense has been even worse than Georgia's this year! Which it pretty much has been. But so were Mississippi State's and Colorado's, and, well, you obviously saw what happened with them. (How can I tell? The red marks on your arms where you cut yourself to see if you could still feel pain, of course. I've got them too.) Not that it necessarily impacts Georgia's performance this Saturday at all, but let's run the numbers anyway.

TENNESSEE'S OFFENSE, BY THE NUMBERS
Passing: 226.3 yards per game in 2009 (46th nationally); averaging 196.2 yards per game (78th) across their first five games of 2010.
Rushing: 157.2 yards per game in 2009 (54th); averaging 136.2 per game this season (also 78th).

REASONS TO BE EXCITED
Does your eyelid twitch every time you so much as hear a mention of how badly Georgia's offensive line has performed this season? Well, just be glad we don't have Tennessee's O-line -- it wouldn't be an eyelid twitch, it'd be a full-blown seizure. The Vols were already coming into 2010 with a set of five brand-new starters, among them two freshmen and a sophomore. Then center Cody Pope suffered a concussion against Oregon. Then guard JerQuari Schofield broke a bone in his foot. Now sophomore left tackle Dallas Thomas has been hobbled by an ankle problem, and when asked on Monday where he'd go if Thomas got knocked out of the game, coach Derek Dooley responded, "Right now, we'd play with four."

Needless to say, these issues have manifested themselves in some unpleasant ways on the field. Tennessee is currently fourth from the bottom in D-IA in sacks allowed -- they've given up 19 already, and the season isn't even half-over yet. The UT running game, too, is languishing near the bottom, less productive than any SEC competitor save for Arkansas. QB Matt Simms isn't a statue like, say, Ryan Mallett is, but whatever mobility he's got has been utterly neutralized by the way even semi-competent pass rushes have been able to vaporize his protection (even lowly UAB, one of the weakest defenses in FBS for three years running, managed to take Simms down five times). Justin Houston and his fellow headhunters in the Georgia front seven have been stymied by some mobile QBs over the past few weeks, but they'll get their opportunities on Saturday.

And even when he's been able to get the passes off, Simms has been less than spectacular. He's only thrown three interceptions this season, which is fewer than you'd expect had you seen him in spring practice, but he's ranked 81st nationally in passing efficiency, and four of his six TDs this year came against UAB and Tennessee-Martin. Even if Georgia's struggling pass rush doesn't get to Simms directly, it could rattle him just enough to force him into some poor decisions.

REASONS TO WORRY
If you've observed Georgia's defense as it's worked through the difficult transition to a 3-4 alignment, you may have noticed that they have trouble bringing down opposing running backs. Well, Tennessee's Tauren Poole might be the best one they'll have faced so far this year. Poole has battled a bum wheel himself over the past few weeks, but he's a strong runner and not a fan of going down on the first contact. He's also quite adept as a pass-catcher, and that kind of versatility has stymied the Bulldogs' front seven in the past. It's a bit much to expect him to pile the whole team on his back this weekend, but he did manage 109 yards, a TD and a 4.5-yard per-carry average against LSU's stifling defense in Baton Rouge last week -- far and away the best performance an opposing RB has had against the Tigers all season. Georgia will have to get in position to clog Poole's running lanes and do a more thorough job of tackling this weekend, or Poole will crack the century mark again, open things up for Simms, and turn the game into yet another festival of third-down conversions that leave an entire generation of Bulldog fans bald by the end of the third quarter from all the hair they pulled out.

It would also be unwise for Georgia to underestimate Tennessee's receiving corps. That unit hasn't had a lot to work with in the way of expertly thrown passes, but they're extremely athletic and have made the most of the chances that have come their way; at 6'6", 253 pounds, Luke Stocker makes for an imposing safety valve for Simms in the short passing game. Georgia's defensive backfield has not been great in pass coverage this season, and when they have broken up passes, too often it's been thanks to some kind of egregious personal foul (ahhh, it's like Willie Martinez never left). It'd be a shame if the front seven got some consistent pressure on Matt SImms, only for him to get off some decent passes and make our secondary look like chumps.

MATCHUP TO WATCH
Georgia LB Akeem Dent vs. Tennessee RB Tauren Poole. Inside linebacker Dent leads the Georgia defense in tackles and is second in tackles for loss; let's hope and pray he has a bunch on Saturday, because if the game's leading tackler is someone like Bacarri Rambo or Jakar Hamilton, that probably means Poole was able to blast through our front seven and spend all afternoon baiting our secondary into a decidedly not-fun game of tag. Tennessee's offensive line may or may not have enough oomph to let Poole make anything happen up the middle, but he's been dangerous enough on the outside to compensate for that, and his skills in the short passing game could give Matt Simms the kind of breathing room we really don't want him to have.

Tennesse did lose the game last Saturday against LSU, but they were able to move the chains against the Tigers by completing nearly half of their thrid downs.

One of the reasons they were so efficient on third down was the return of wide receiver Gerald Jones who caught three third down conversions. This is something Dawg fans don't want to hear because the defense has had trouble getting off the field on third down all season long.

If it weren't for their hideous, all-pervading orangeness, the Volunteers could be a mirror image of the Bulldogs right now: storied program struggling mightily to keep its head above water; O-line issues headlining an incredibly frustrating season on the offensive side of the ball; just got done having their hearts ripped out in a winnable road game; and oh, yeah, they're both still looking for their first SEC win of 2010. Which should make for an atmosphere fraught with desperation in Sanford Stadium this weekend, if nothing else. First team to 14 wins?

TENNESSEE'S DEFENSE, BY THE NUMBERS
Against the pass: 169.2 yards allowed per game in 2009 (12th nationally); giving up 219.8 per game this season (73rd).
Against the run: 149.5 yards per game in 2009 (65th); currently allowing an even 157.0 per game (75th) in 2010.

REASONS TO BE EXCITED
For all the wrists being slit over Georgia's soul-murdering loss to Colorado last week, it's worth mentioning that, oh yeah, the offense actually looked better than it has in weeks -- when A.J. Green was in the game. Which he should be this Saturday, and if the trainers can keep him conditioned and fully hydrated, he might even play the full 60 minutes. For the most part, Colorado didn't have the horses to both stack up against the run and account for A.J.'s presence in the deep passing game last week, and given Tennessee's much-publicized depth issues across the board, they may not be able to, either; the Vols have been strong in the first half through five games, giving up only 34 first-half points, but they've given up a total of 84 in the second half.

Of course, the personnel shortcomings sown by years of half-assed recruiting on the part of Phil Fulmer are only part of the issue; the other part is injuries, which have turned UT's starting lineup into the kind of M*A*S*H unit we're usually accustomed to seeing from, well, Georgia. Particularly up front, the Vols are in a tremendous bind -- Ben Martin, one of only two upperclassmen on the Vols' starting front four, was lost to an Achilles injury in August; his neighbor at defensive tackle, sophomore Marlon Walls, is effectively out for the season with a near-identical injury; Victor Thomas, Walls' replacement, is officially listed as "day-to-day," as is DT Gerald Williams. Caleb King showed a real spark in an otherwise disappointing rushing attack last week, at least until his game-killing fumble with under two minutes remaining; if he (or any of the Georgia RBs) can hold on to the ball, they could make some headway against the Vols.

QB Aaron Murray may also get a reprieve from the pressure that's dogged him over the last few weeks, as the ailing Tennessee defensive front has averaged just a single sack per game through the first month of the season. A.J. Green's return opened up plenty of opportunities in the middle of the field for Murray last week in Boulder, and we even saw some passes go to the tight ends for once. Considering that the Tennessee pass defense has given up 725 total yards and an aggregate 121.3 passer rating over the past three weeks to Florida's struggling John Brantley and the backup QBs for UAB and LSU, Murray could have the kind of breakout game he's deserved for weeks now -- if the coaching staff shows him enough confidence to let him air it out.

REASONS TO WORRY
Reasons to worry? How about the Georgia offense's entire season (except for the UL-Lafayette game, of course) up to this point? They should've opened up the passing game against South Carolina; they didn't. They should've been able to run the ball against Arkansas and Mississippi State; they couldn't. They should've been able to take advantage of prime scoring opportunities in each of those games and against Colorado, but either an agonizing fumble or an extraordinarily ill-timed sack took them out against each of those opponents. At this point, the Dawgs simply can't take anything for granted on offense no matter how many opponent weaknesses it looks like they should be able to exploit.

That goes double for a running game that has been, at best, fitfully productive since the opening-day rout of the Ragin' Cajuns. Even after a relatively inspiring performance against Colorado, the Dawgs are still mired at 10th in the SEC (and 76th nationally) with just 137 rushing yards per game, and it's not guaranteed to get any better against the Vols. They may be hurting big-time up front, but the Vols have a very solid, and very smart, starting linebacking unit in 2010 (Nick Reveiz, LaMarcus Thompson and the awesomely named Herman Lathers), along with two others who have starting experience. They are a tenacious bunch whom you rarely see trying to arm-tackle people, so all of Georgia's RBs (and their blockers) had better be on their best behavior.

Same goes for A.J. Green, as junior cornerback Art Evans is almost certain to be on him like an electric blanket all afternoon long, and free safety Janzen Jackson -- whom many people have suggested might have even more potential than his former partner in crime, top-five draft pick Eric Berry -- will be hunting heads as well. Georgia can't count on dominating the field-position battle, either, even though the Vols have been suspect in covering punt returns this year; Branden Smith suffered his second concussion of the season last week in Boulder and won't play against UT.

MATCHUP TO WATCH
Georgia RB Caleb King vs. Tennessee MLB Nick Reveiz. Despite the late fumble against the Buffaloes, King is clearly the best thing Georgia's running game has for it right now, and he looks to retain the starting position this Saturday. If last week's game is any indication, A.J. Green may keep the Vol defense honest enough to open up some running lanes for him, but he can't take anything for granted, particularly up the middle. Reveiz is an extremely smart player who always seems to have a knack for being right where the ball is, and once he gets there, he doesn't let up until the ball carrier is flat on his face and the whistle has sounded; he's emblematic of a Tennessee defense that has refused to say die this year despite obstacles that seem to grow bigger and more imposing every week.

(Tomorrow we'll look at Georgia's defense versus the Tennessee offense. After last week, there'll be no gloating about any offensive struggles on the part of the opponent, thank you very much.)