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Georgia's Lambert struggles while Tide's Coker soars Alabama hands Georgia worst home defeat of Richt era, 38-10 Chubb ties Herschel with 13th straight 100-yard game
In the waning moments of the second quarter of Saturday's Alabama-Georgia football game, the damage had been done.
The Crimson Tide had built a 24-3 lead on their way to a 38-10 blowout, and the Alabama offense - in its second season under coordinator Lane Kiffin - had gotten the better of Georgia's defense in its second season under coordinator Jeremy Pruitt. With 2:23 left before halftime, the Tide had racked up 231 yards and were averaging 9.6 yards per play.
"They did a really good job of hitting some over routes and some play-actions, and we didn't do a good job of affecting the quarterback," Pruitt said after the worst home loss in Mark Richt's tenure as Georgia's head coach. "We've got to do a little better job there, but they just did a better job of executing than we did."
Georgia plummeted in the polls Sunday, with the Bulldogs now ranked No. 19 by The Associated Press and No. 16 by the coaches. The Bulldogs (4-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) opened as two-point favorites for this week's game at Tennessee (2-3, 0-2).
Pruitt speaking after games is not a good thing for Georgia. He chose to face the music after his Bulldogs allowed 418 rushing yards to Florida last November, and he appeared on his own Saturday despite having been available to the media following last Tuesday's practice.
Last Tuesday's news conference was Pruitt's first since before the season, when he tempered the optimism of second-season familiarity with a more youthful lineup. The Bulldogs have just three senior defensive starters this season after having six last season, and Pruitt went to the youth card following Saturday's dismantling.
"You've got to play each and every opponent the same, but you're talking about a lot of 18- and 19-year-old kids," Pruitt said. "We've got to do a better job to where they're reining in their emotions so they can execute. At the end of the day, that's what it's all about."
Saturday was the most lopsided loss for the Bulldogs since a 35-7 pummeling at South Carolina in 2012. Outside linebacker Jordan Jenkins was a freshman on that team, so he's been through what some of the younger players are now experiencing.
"What they're feeling now and what they're feeling on the bus ride back is a learning experience in itself," Jenkins said. "I know they're all going to be pretty down about it, but I think it could be good for them because now they know what this feels like and that they know they need to keep working and stay mentally focused so we don't go through this again.
"This definitely surprised me, because as a defense, we expect to dominate and cause a lot of turnovers and cause a lot of havoc."
Alabama's offense has its share of inexperience given that center Ryan Kelly and left tackle Cam Robinson were the lone returning starters, though tailback Derrick Henry and tight end O.J. Howard played plenty of meaningful minutes the past two years. Youth was no factor Saturday for Tide freshman receiver Calvin Ridley.
The former five-star recruit collected five receptions for 120 yards, including a 45-yard score from Coker with 3:48 left in the half that made it 24-3.
"Ridley was definitely an impact player, but so was everybody else," Bulldogs junior safety Quincy Mauger said. "They can all play."
Pruitt took the blame for Ridley's touchdown, recalling that Alabama was checking to a different play at the line of scrimmage. The Bulldogs tried to change their coverage to another call, but it was too late.
When asked about Ridley's performance, Pruitt praised the freshman before adding, "It's not really hard to catch it when there's nobody around you."
Odds and ends
Richt said Sunday that inside linebacker Reggie Carter, who played at Vanderbilt, is out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery. Sophomore safety Dominick Sanders (shoulder stinger) is probable for the Tennessee game, while junior center Brandon Kublanow (ankle) and sophomore receiver Isaiah McKenzie (hamstring) are questionable. Richt said Sunday that Greyson Lambert will remain the starting quarterback. Georgia was 3-of-17 on third-down conversions against Alabama and now ranks 121st nationally in that category with a success rate of just 29.2 percent. Pruitt on freshman defensive lineman Trenton Thompson getting his first start: "He earned it, and if he practices good this week, he'll start again, and if he doesn't, he won't."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.