Georgia coasts past South Carolina in 2020 border battle

Eight games into this whirlwind of a 2020 season, Georgia has finally played close to a complete game.

The Bulldogs (6-2) had it working in all three phases on Saturday night, as they jumped out to a huge early lead and cruised to a 45-16 victory over South Carolina (2-7).

After a 401-yard, four touchdown performance in his Georgia debut last week, redshirt sophomore quarterback J.T. Daniels picked up right where he left off. He passed for 51 yards on Georgia’s opening 65-yard march, including a 40-yarder to graduate transfer tight end Tre’ McKitty and a six-yard scoring toss to the tight end three plays later.

Daniels quieted down after that and turned it over to the running game. After just eight yards on the ground as a team against Mississippi State last week, the Bulldogs got back to pounding the rock at will against the Gamecocks.

First it was junior James Cook with a four-yard scoring run at the end of a drive he kickstarted with a 44-yard run. Redshirt sophomore Zamir White followed with an untouched 22-yard score on the next drive, and Cook scored again on a 29-yard run later in the half.

Overall, the Bulldogs rushed for 208 yards on nine yards per carry in the first half, a far cry from their performance last week. Combined with a solid effort from the defense, Georgia built a lead of 21-0 before taking a 28-10 advantage into halftime.

Georgia put it away early in the second half. Redshirt sophomore receiver Kearis Jackson returned a Gamecock punt 52 yards after an opening 3-and-out, and three plays later White found the end zone for the second time to push the lead to 35-10. The Bulldogs coasted from there, rushing for a total of 332 yards and emptying the bench in the blowout win.

3 stars of the game

James Cook - Saturday served as another big game in what has been a breakout year for the junior running back. He scored his first two rushing touchdowns of the season and ran for a career-high 104 yards. The shifty back repeatedly gashed the Gamecocks, posting an average of 17.3 yards per carry.

Zamir White - Following a 21-yard performance last week, White returned to the form he’s been in most of the season. He ran for 84 yards on 13 carries and also found the end zone twice, giving him nine scores on the ground in 2020.

Lewis Cine - In his third game without secondary running mate Richard LeCounte, the sophomore safety Cine might have played his best game. He notched a career-high in tackles with 12, all solo, as he flew around the field all night to bring down Gamecocks.

Next Georgia football game

Georgia’s schedule gets even easier next week. The Bulldogs return to Athens for the final home game of the season against Vanderbilt, a team that’s 0-8 and coming off a 41-0 loss to Missouri.

UGA, USC stats, box score

First Quarter

UGA—McKitty 6 pass from Daniels (Podlesny kick), 12:10.

UGA—Cook 5 run (Podlesny kick), 5:52.

UGA—Zam.White 22 run (Podlesny kick), 2:23.

Second Quarter

SC—Harris 1 run (P.White kick), 14:57.

SC—FG P.White 39, 8:23.

UGA—Cook 29 run (Podlesny kick), 4:31.

Third Quarter

UGA—Zam.White 3 run (Podlesny kick), 11:38.

UGA—FG Podlesny 32, 4:26.

Fourth Quarter

UGA—A.Smith 31 pass from Daniels (Podlesny kick), 14:53.

SC—Muse 7 pass from Doty (kick failed), 9:27.

——TEAM STATS——

• First downs: Georgia 24-18
• Pass yards: South Carolina 190-139
• Rush yards: Georgia 332-83
• Time of possession: Georgia 31:09 to 28:51

——INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS——

RUSHING—Georgia, Cook 6-104, Zam.White 13-84, McIntosh 9-79, D.Edwards 14-77, Hudson 1-7, (Team) 1-(minus 1), Daniels 2-(minus 18). South Carolina, Harris 17-53, Amos 6-39, Zaq.White 5-6, Doty 15-(minus 15).

PASSING—Georgia, Daniels 10-16-1-139. South Carolina, Doty 18-22-1-190.

RECEIVING—Georgia, Burton 3-33, G.Pickens 3-25, McKitty 2-46, A.Smith 1-31, K.Jackson 1-4. South Carolina, Muse 8-131, Harris 4-30, J.Brooks 3-14, J.Vann 1-5, Caldwell 1-5, Amos 1-5.

MISSED FIELD GOALS—South Carolina, P.White 53.

This story was originally published November 28, 2020 at 10:38 PM with the headline "Georgia coasts past South Carolina in 2020 border battle."