JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The most decisive statistic in No. 8 Georgia's 24-17 defeat of No. 6 Florida on Saturday was evident from the start.
The Bulldogs were 12-of-18 on third-down conversions inside TIAA Bank Field. The Gators were just 2-of-9.
"Third downs are huge," Georgia outside linebacker Azeez Ojulari said. "They changed the game. We converted them when we needed to and stopped them when we had to. It was great."
Georgia's 12-2 advantage in third-down success helped result in an 11-minute, 36-second advantage in possession time. The Bulldogs converted third-and-14 and third-and-11 opportunities during their first possession to take the ball into Florida territory, then converted third-and-1 and third-and-6 situations before settling on Rodrigo Blankenship's 31-yard field goal and a 3-0 lead.
The Gators opened the game with the ball, but they committed a false-start penalty on their first third-down situation and then had a fourth-and-1 pass from Kyle Trask to tight end Kyle Pitts broken up by safety Richard LeCounte III.
"Third down is the money down," Bulldogs linebacker Monty Rice said, "and we had a big fourth down to start the game when Richard knocked down the ball. That was huge in the game. They decided not to take the three points, and it was great play calling by us to get some pressure on Trask and make him get rid of it."
By halftime, Georgia had built a 13-3 lead largely due to its 8-of-11 success rate on third down coupled with Florida's 0-for-4 ineptitude. It was more of the same in the second half, when a 16-yard pass from quarterback Jake Fromm to running back Brian Herrien on third-and-8 helped set up a 27-yard Blankenship field goal that made it 16-3.
Florida's two third-down conversions occurred during the final 10 minutes of the game and with Georgia up 24-10.
"Third down was really good," Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. "We were able to convert some really big third downs. Florida has been really good defensively on third-and-long, and it's tough to convert those. When Jake has time, he is really efficient, and I think our receivers gained confidence throughout this game.
"We had all of them healthy and accounted for, and they helped Jake. Let's also be honest. Those five guys up front were blocking some really good pass rushers one-on-one, and that was probably the difference in the game."
The Gators entered Saturday with 29 sacks through eight contests but never got to Fromm.
Fromm's 52-yard touchdown pass to Lawrence Cager that made it 24-10 with 10:01 remaining transpired after D'Andre Swift had converted two third-and-1 situations with runs of 2 and 3 yards. Swift's first four carries of the game netted minus-3 yards, but the Bulldogs were not about to abandon their ground attack.
Swift finished with 25 carries for 86 hard-earned yards.
"We had to stick to the plan and know that they were going to wear down," Swift said. "We're more physical. We did a great job on third down. We're an elite team on third down, and we got to show that today."
With 2:53 remaining in a 24-17 game, the Bulldogs were at their 35-yard line with a third-and-7 to convert. After Florida used its last timeout, the Bulldogs collected their 12th conversion with a 22-yard pass from Fromm to tight end Eli Wolf to the Florida 43.
Game over.
"It was a one-on-one, and we talked all week about winning our one-on-one matchups," Fromm said. "I wish I could have given him a little better ball, but he made a great play and the offensive line did a great job of holding up.
"That really kind of sealed the deal for us."
Odds and ends
Georgia improved to 53-43-2 all-time against the Gators, including a 4-3 mark in top-10 matchups between the teams. Fromm is the third quarterback in Georgia history to win his first three starts against the Gators, joining Johnny Rauch (who went 4-0 from 1945 to '48) and Buck Belue (1979-81). Georgia won the rushing battle 119-21, marking the 14th straight year in which the team that rushes for the most yards in Jacksonville has won. Blankenship made all three field-goal attempts to improve to 15-of-17 this season and 68-of-81 in his Bulldogs career. Bulldogs senior safety J.R. Reed made his 37th consecutive start, while Fromm made his 36th in a row. The Sugar, Peach, Citrus and Outback bowls had representatives at the game. Smart on the Georgia faithful: "I'm just proud of the support that our fans provided for us, even if they didn't think Jake could throw the ball."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524. Follow him on Twitter @DavidSPaschall.