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Kidsfest @ Faulkner County Courthouse — 04.06
The 2013 Kidsfest Superhero Race in downtown Conway supported the Children’s Advocacy Alliance of North Central Arkansas.
Georgia's offensive identity this football season has differed by the week.
After rushing for 326 yards and throwing for just 29 in the 28-14 win at South Carolina on Oct. 9, the Bulldogs flipped the script in Saturday's 17-16 loss to Vanderbilt. Georgia freshman quarterback Jacob Eason bounced back from his frustrating performance in Columbia to throw for 346 yards against the Commodores, but the ground game headed by junior tailbacks Nick Chubb and Sony Michel was held to 75 yards on 35 carries.
The Bulldogs look balanced if the totals from their past two games are combined, but doing both successfully in the same game will be on their growing to-do list in their lone off week of the season.
"We've got to work on a little bit of everything," junior receiver Isaiah McKenzie told reporters following Saturday's stunning setback. "We've got to communicate better. We've got to run the ball better, and we've got to throw the ball better."
Georgia will resume its season against Florida in Jacksonville on Oct. 29, with that game again being televised by CBS at 3:30 p.m.
The Bulldogs were run-heavy in the opening win over North Carolina and pass-heavy in their one-point escape of Missouri, and their overall lack of consistency offensively is being reflected in the national statistics. Of the 128 programs in the Bowl Subdivision, Georgia ranks 92nd in scoring offense (25.1 points per game), 73rd in total offense (402.9 yards per game), 45th in rushing (195.6) and 91st in passing (207.3).
Though rushing has been the stronger suit to this point, the Bulldogs were held to 2.1 yards per carry against the Commodores and 2.7 at Missouri and averaged 4.3 yards against Nicholls State, which plays in the Championship Subdivision.
First-year head coach Kirby Smart said Saturday that the size of Vanderbilt's interior defensive linemen affected the outcome.
"We had trouble moving them," Smart said in his news conference. "We know that we're going to struggle at times running the ball against a bigger, physical front."
Florida has a run defense that is allowing just 119.7 rushing yards per contest and 3.2 per carry. The Gators also have a secondary littered with NFL talent, so the Bulldogs may be challenged doing either the next time out unless they put this extra time to good use.
"It's frustrating to come out and not win games," Chubb said. "It just boils down to us not executing when we need to. We've got to get physical in practice this week and make improvements where they're needed."
Robinson promoted
Former Georgia linebacker and current Ole Miss graduate assistant Christian Robinson will take over coaching the inside linebackers for the Rebels, coach Hugh Freeze announced Monday at his weekly news conference. Defensive coordinator Dave Wommack previously handled that role but now will focus on outside linebackers.
Robinson played for the Bulldogs from 2009 to 2012.
Ole Miss allowed 200 rushing yards in Saturday night's 34-30 loss at Arkansas. The Rebels rank 104th among FBS teams in rushing defense, yielding 212.8 yards per game.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.