ATHENS — Anyone who suggests Georgia didn’t score any style points beating Georgia Tech wasn’t watching the play of Kirby Smart’s defense.
The Bulldogs, who ranked eighth in the nation in Red Zone defense entering the Tech game, kept Haynes King from passing or rushing for a touchdown in the 16-9 win over the Yellow Jackets on Friday.
UGA opponents scored 17 touchdowns and made four field goals in 29 trips inside the Georgia 20-yard line entering the game with Georgia Tech on Saturday.
The Bulldogs made King, who accounted for five touchdowns in last season’s 44-42 Georgia win in eight overtimes with 303 yards passing and two TD strikes, along with 110 yards rushing and 3 TD runs, look mortal most of Friday afternoon.
King’s final line at Mercedes-Benz Stadium: 19-of-27 passing, 181 yards and an interception; 10 carries for 39 yards.
It’s the first time since the Yellow Jackets’ 2024 season-opening game against Florida State last season — 23 games ago —that a defense managed that feat, and King was frustrated by it after the game.
“We found ways to move the ball,” said King, one of the most dangerous dual-threat quarterbacks in the nation, “we just couldn’t finish in the Red Zone.”
Time and time again, the Bulldogs came up with key stops, led by KJ Bolden’s nine tackles from the safety position.
King, whose team fell behind Pitt last Saturday in a 42-28 loss that greatly damaged the No. 23-ranked Yellow Jackets’ CFP hopes, said slow starts are a problem.
“You know, I don’t know how many plays we had, but I think we had like 21 in the first quarter, that’s not very good, unless you’re scoring from far out and had pretty explosive plays, but we didn’t do that,” said King, whose longest pass play went for 30 yards to UGA transfer tight end Brett Seither in the first quarter.
“We spot people a couple possessions, you can’t really run that much either, you gotta go tempo, like I said, spread it out. Try to get it going, momentum, whatever it is.”
Whatever it was didn’t work against the Georgia defense, which has seemingly improved each week and is playing its best football of the season.
Georgia Tech’s nine points were a season low, as it managed just 250 yards of total offense after entering the day averaging 485.9, which ranked fifth in the nation.
