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Georgia

Georgia is ranked No. 1 in the nation for the first time since 1982

275133747_4796292347117549_592518599057046758_nby:Jonathan Wagner•10/10/21•

Jonathan Wagner

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Kevin C. Cox via Getty Images.

For the first time in the regular season since 1982, the Georgia Bulldogs are ranked as the No. 1 team in college football. Georgia came away with a 34-10 victory over Auburn in Week 6 to improve to 6-0 on the season and 4-0 in against SEC opponents.

Stetson Bennett again got the start at quarterback on Saturday with JT Daniels still dealing with an injury. Bennett was 14 of 21 against Auburn with 231 yards and two touchdowns. He also had 41 yards on six rushing attempts.

Before the game, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said that Daniels was available to play if he needed to and that he has been able to throw more with no pain in the days leading up to the game.

Georgia’s defense was again strong in the victory. Auburn rushed 29 times for 46 yards, a mere 1.6 yards per carry. Explosive running back Tank Bigsby had 28 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries for Auburn. Auburn quarterback Bo Nix was 21 of 38 for 217 yards and an interception. Georgia’s strong play on defense is a big reason behind its strong start and ability to be ranked No. 1 at this point of the year.

Georgia’s defense is historic, but Kirby Smart isn’t satisfied

Ahead of Saturday’s game against Auburn, Kirby Smart said that while Georgia’s defense has been spectacular, he wants to see more.

“We’ve gotta force more turnovers. We’ve gotta tackle better, especially on the perimeter in the secondary. And we’ve got to do a much better job of gap control upfront,” Smart said.

“Those are the biggest things we can improve on. Those come with opportunities. We’ve got an opportunity this Saturday. We’ve got to stay away from explosives in terms of letting the ball down the field.”

Entering Saturday, Georgia had forced nine turnovers with seven interceptions and two fumbles. The nine turnovers ranked Georgia 21st in the country entering Week 6.

Georgia ranks as the top defense in the country after Week 6 in terms of yards and points allowed per game. The Bulldogs are allowing 201.2 yards per game and just 5.5 points. Georgia has allowed 13 points just once this season, which was Week 3 against South Carolina. The Bulldogs have allowed just 33 total points through six games and have two shutouts.