Halftime Notes: Georgia trails Alabama 17-7
ATLANTA, Ga. — Georgia’s 29-game win streak is in serious danger at halftime of the 2023 SEC Championship game. The Bulldogs jumped out front 7-0 but Alabama has scored the last 17 points to take a 10-point lead into the half. DawgsHQ is using the break to tell you what we thought of the first half.
*** Let’s start with the possession where Georgia missed the field goal. I did not like the two straight runs when the Bulldogs had it on 1st and 10 from the 19. Mike Bobo has been run heavy on first down since the first two possessions and against this pass rush, first down seems like the best time to use play-action and get the pass game going. It almost seems like Bobo is scared of Alabama’s pass rush with Amarius Mims on the sideline with an ankle injury.
*** Carson Beck has had a couple of iffy throws in this game, putting the ball in harm’s way twice. He didn’t see Dillon Bell open in the flat on one of those. Other than those two, he has been pretty good. I think he had the option to give it on the first play of the second possession and tried to get the ball to Brock Bowers, resulting in a three-yard loss. The Bulldogs are going to need to put more of this game on his shoulders if they’re going to win it.
*** The run game has been pretty solid. Alabama got after Georgia on those first two plays in the second red zone trip, but the Bulldogs have had some consistent success outside of that position. The counter play that allowed Kendall Milton to score on the opening possession hasn’t been as big a part of the game plan as I thought it might.
*** The Bulldogs are creating separation and they’ve picked up some chunk plays in the passing game. Ladd McConkey limped off on that two-play series right before the half. I expected Dillon Bell to be a bigger part of this game but he has been targeted just once.
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*** The Georgia defensive front was a little more stout at the end of the first half but it got pushed around in the second quarter. They’re doing a good job of keeping Jalen Milroe in the pocket, but to his credit, he’s doing a great job of distributing the football with a ton of time.
*** Linebacker play hasn’t been very good for Georgia today. The outside linebackers are being used a lot in space and they’re not doing well with that. The inside linebackers aren’t fitting the run well and they’re not striking the ball carrier well enough to get off the field.
*** Daylen Everette got picked on as Alabama took a 17-7 lead to end the first half. He has been the weak link in the secondary and the Crimson Tide found him twice. With that said, he was asked to cover for a long time on both of those plays. Again, you have to give Milroe a lot of credit for finding the open man and playing well from the pocket.
*** Georgia has a very tough uphill climb ahead of it after that first half. You couldn’t have drawn up a better start but the Bulldogs have jumped out front in all three of the previous meetings between these two teams inside this stadium. It obviously starts with getting points on the opening drive of the second half to make this a one-score game.
