Report Card: Georgia puts it on Oregon 49-3

It’s always smart to take at least one more look at a football game before you start starting strong opinions. Well, we’ve done that after Georgia took down Oregon 49-3 on Saturday and now we’re ready to hand out grades to each position group.

Georgia quarterbacks

Stetson Bennett IV put on a show. It was one of those games where he did everything well. He made good decisions, put the short throws where his guys could make plays after the catch, fit the ball into tight spots and extended plays. He dismantled what should ultimately be a pretty productive defense. Carson Beck came on in relief and did more of the same as long as the offense was on the attack. Grade: A+

UGA running backs

The Bulldogs didn’t really get a breakout performance on the ground but Kenny McIntosh flourished in the passing game. He had 9 catches for 117 yards and finished with 135 total yards on the day. Kendall Milton had a touchdown rushing and a touchdown receiving. Daijun Edwards also ran the football hard and had one of UGA’s eight catches of 20 yards or more. Grade: A+

Georgia receivers and tight ends

Ladd McConkey led this group with five catches for 73 yards and a score. He also had two carries for 16 yards and a touchdown. He was really tough for Oregon to handle when he got into space. AD Mitchell made a couple of tough catches and caught four total for 65 yards and a score. Darnell Washington and Brock Bowers each caught two passes and combined for 71 receiving yards. Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint had a big third-down catch on the opening drive and blocked extremely well on the perimeter. Grade: A+

UGA offensive line

A lot of Bulldogs saw crunch-time action in the offensive trenches. Stacy Searels used several combinations and they all worked really well. Georgia busted a few protections but Bennett bailed them out. The offensive line also gave Bennett all day to throw on several occasions and those resulted successful gains. The Bulldogs never committed to the run so it’s tough to get a true read on how well the front five played in that area. None of the linemen really struggled but redshirt sophomore center Sedrick Van Pran had a particularly impressive showing. Grade: A

Georgia defensive line

We saw a lot of good, very little bad, and very little great. The Bulldogs have a solid group of front and it is one that has the potential to grow into something much better. Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins stood out with his run-stuffing ability. Jalen Carter did Jalen Carter things and was blatantly held more than once. We also saw some flashes out of Nazir Stackhouse. This group has to get better to live up to the standard set by the 2021 group but Saturday was a solid start. Grade: B+

Georgia linebackers

Oregon was getting the ball out quickly on Saturday. The outside linebackers were negated because of that. Still, Nolan Smith and Robert Beal did a nice job of keeping Bo Nix in the pocket and forcing him to make plays from there. They also played the run well.

The inside linebackers had an up-and-down day. Smael Mondon made some nice plays early on but seemed a step hesitant in coverage. Jamon Dumas-Johnson flashed at times, as did Trezmen Marshall. Xavian Sorey showed off that trademark speed we had heard about during preseason camp. Grade: B+

UGA defensive backs

The two interceptions were impressive. Malaki Starks wasted no time in announcing his presence with perfect coverage on a slot fade. It’s tough to play the ball in the air any better and he finished it with a great catch for the pick. Christopher Smith’s second-quarter interception was a veteran play and it put a stop to a potential Oregon scoring threat. Kelee Ringo and Kamari Lassiter tackled well on the edge and we really liked what we saw out of Javon Bullard at the STAR/nickel position. Grade: A

Georgia special teams

The kick coverage was strong. UGA only punted once and both the punt and the coverage was very good. Kearis Jackson had a really nice 36-yard kickoff return to start the second half. Jack Podlesny made all seven of his PATs. Grade: A

Overall

Georgia had a tremendous plan coming into this game. The defense bent a bit but it did a nice job of hunkering down after Oregon got a couple of first downs. The offensive game plan and execution were almost perfect. The Duck defense was off balance the entire way. Grade: A+