ATLANTA - This trip to Atlanta was barely an annoyance for No. 4 Georgia.
The Bulldogs are really focused on their return to the A-T-L next weekend.
Jake Fromm threw four touchdown passes Saturday afternoon as Georgia tuned up for the Southeastern Conference championship game with a 52-7 victory at Georgia Tech, the Bulldogs' most lopsided win ever against their in-state rival from the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Bulldogs (11-1) were 28-point favorites, and this one was never in doubt - even as they fumbled the ball away three times, dealt with injury woes, had a key player ejected and failed to cover an onside kick.
It was Georgia's third straight win in the one-sided series known as "Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate," all of them blowouts as the Bulldogs have outscored Tech 135-35 during that span. The Yellow Jackets (3-9) completed their first season under coach Geoff Collins by matching their fewest wins since 1994.
AP photo by Joshua L. Jones / Georgia tight end Charlie Woerner (89) celebrates with wide receiver Tyler Simmons after scoring a touchdown during the first half of Saturday's game at Georgia Tech.When Tyson Campbell recovered a fumbled punt for Georgia's final touchdown in the closing minutes, it surpassed the Bulldogs' previous biggest margin over the Jackets, a 51-7 rout in 2002.
"This was the next step," Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. "We expected to win this game. We expected to dominate this game. We go on to the next one."
The "next one" is next Saturday's SEC title game, which will be held about a mile away at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and is against No. 1 LSU for a berth in the College Football Playoff.
"Any time we play in Atlanta, we like to play well," Fromm said. "We feel like we're playing at home."
Not all was well for the Bulldogs despite the final numbers.
Star running back D'Andre Swift was knocked out by a shoulder injury. Freshman receiver George Pickens didn't play in the first half for discipline reasons, then was ejected in the second half for throwing a punch at Tech cornerback Tre Swilling, which means he must sit out the first half against LSU.
Fromm failed to complete half his passes for the fourth week in a row, but it didn't matter. He finished 14-of-29 for 254 yards, connecting on touchdown throws of 20 yards to Charlie Woerner, 17 yards to Tyler Simmons, 41 yards to Pickens and 9 yards to Dominick Blaylock, which came with less than five minutes left in the third quarter and wrapped up a mixed day for Fromm.
"He's got to play better," Smart said. "But we've got to help around him. We've got to help him in the run game, help him in the passing game, help him play the way he needs to play."
AP photo by John Amis / Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm threw four touchdown passes — three in the third quarter — to help the Bulldogs rout Georgia Tech 52-7 Saturday in Atlanta.Things got chippy as the game turned into a blowout. The scrape between Pickens and Swilling broke out during Blaylock's score but on the other side of the end zone, with each player throwing punches. The officials assessed offsetting penalties for unsportsmanlike conduct but ejected Pickens.
Swift's injury is another concern, though Smart said it was merely a contusion that shouldn't prevent his No. 1 back from taking on the Tigers. He fumbled twice Saturday, and the second time he was left crumpled on the turf and holding his left shoulder. After a trip to the medical tent, he watched the rest of the game from the bench with a towel over his head.
However, Georgia receiver Lawrence Cager's college career appears to be over after he sustained a serious ankle injury in practice ahead of the Tech game and underwent surgery Friday. Smart said it's doubtful the graduate transfer from Miami will return this season, no matter how long it lasts.
"I wish it didn't come to an end like this and if I could go back in time to the beginning and do it again, there isn't another school I would rather choose," Cager, who had 33 catches for 476 yards and four touchdowns this season, wrote on his Instagram account.
Tech finished with just 139 yards of offense, gained only seven first downs, had 11 possessions that went three-and-out and was forced to punt a school-record 13 times. James Graham was 5-of-20 passing for 40 yards, and his 6-yard touchdown to Tyler Davis in the second quarter was set up by a fumbled punt recovered at the Georgia 17.
"Our guys kept battling, but it got away from us in the third quarter," Collins said. "We let it slip and couldn't find a way to get it back."
Tech's finale was simply another harsh demonstration of how much work remains for the program. The roster was woefully equipped to make the switch from the triple-option-heavy flexbone scheme employed for more than a decade by Collins' predecessor, Paul Johnson, to a pro-style offense, so it's vital coaches put together several strong recruiting classes.
The Jackets' 2020 schedule has not been finalized beyond the nonconference opponents, with the first of those a Sept. 12 home game against Football Championship Subdivision member Gardner-Webb. In addition to visiting Athens to complete the regular season against the Bulldogs, the Jackets will host Central Florida on Sept. 19 and take on Notre Dame on Nov. 14 at nearby Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The Bulldogs look like the most heavily flawed of the playoff contenders, especially on offense, but their stellar defense gives them a shot in every game. If the three-time reigning SEC East champions come up short against LSU, a bowl trip of the Orange or Sugar variety seems likely.