There were several legitimate reasons why Georgia allowed six sacks in a game seven years ago.
Chad Lavalais, Marcus Spears and Marquise Hill were members of LSU's domineering defensive front that throttled the Bulldogs in the 2003 SEC championship game. Those Tigers went on to sack Oklahoma's Jason White five times in the BCS title game.
Georgia had not allowed six sacks in any game since then until last Saturday, when Arkansas repeatedly got to redshirt freshman Aaron Murray during the Razorbacks' 31-24 win. After the game, it appeared Murray was as much at fault as anybody.
"There were some times he held on to the ball a little bit too long instead of getting it out," offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said. "He's young and he's going to learn."
The six sacks resulted in a loss of 37 yards, the final one being the most costly. With 1:04 remaining in a 24-24 deadlock and the Bulldogs facing a third-and-4 from midfield, Murray was stuffed for an 8-yard loss by Hogs defensive end Jake Bequette.
Georgia's Drew Butler had a rare bad punt, and quarterback Ryan Mallett needed just three plays to guide Arkansas 73 yards for the winning score.
Head coach Mark Richt said after studying video that the offensive line, running backs and Murray shared in the struggles, which have added up to nine sacks in three games after Georgia yielded 12 all of last season. Richt did admit Murray fared much better when he didn't overdo his movement in the pocket.
"The times when he moved up into the pocket, some very positive things happened, and if there was anything negative at all, it might have been a very minimal loss," he said. "The times he tried to move up and then back - any time he didn't move forward, he was more apt to get drilled. He has got to learn to continue to work his way up in the pocket and throw the ball in time. If it's not there, don't try to create something.
"He did make a lot of positive plays rushing the football and moving up in the pocket either throwing or running, but you just can't ask guys to block too long by trying to move up and then move back and reset. You can forget that."
Murray had a bandage wrap on his chin after the game, which he said his chin strap caused during one of the hits he sustained. He did not seem fazed by the amount of times he was taken down.
"I had a couple of good hits, but you're going to get hit," he said. "It's football. You're not going to go out there and be clean every day. A lot of times I was out there running around and trying to make a play and got hit. It happens."
In the first half of the past two games, Murray has just eight combined completions for 99 yards. In the second half, however, he has 21 completions for 346 yards and a touchdown.
The comfort level coaches have with Murray continues to rise.
"I don't think anybody will question his toughness," Richt said. "I don't think anybody will question his competitive nature, his arm strength, his devotion to the team or his work ethic. He has so many positive attributes that are maybe even coming more to light to us as a staff.
"As he continues to experience these things, he's only going to get better."
Odds and ends
Kris Durham, the senior receiver from Calhoun, is among Georgia's captains this week at Mississippi State. ... Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett on Georgia's defense: "We didn't see much man-to-man - a lot of zone. What we did was we went to our base plays and got the win."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.