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Tag: Trevor Etienne

  • No. 5 Georgia knocks off No. 1 Texas 30-15; Travis Etienne runs for 3 TDs

    No. 5 Georgia knocks off No. 1 Texas 30-15; Travis Etienne runs for 3 TDs

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    AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Trevor Etienne ran for three touchdowns, the first two set up by cornerback Daylen Everette’s takeaways, and fifth-ranked Georgia went on to beat Quinn Ewers and No. 1 Texas 30-15 on Saturday night.

    Etienne’s last score was a 1-yard plunge on fourth down with 12:04 left. That came right after an ugly sequence when Texas fans littered the field with water bottles and other trash after referees called a pass-interference penalty that initially wiped out an interception and long return, before the flag was picked up and set up a Longhorns TD.

    “These players bring the best out of me,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “They tried to rob us with calls in this place. And these guys are so resilient.”

    Georgia (6-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference), which began the season at No. 1, has won three in a row since a 41-34 loss at then-No. 4 Alabama, when the Bulldogs overcame a 28-0 deficit and went ahead late during an exchange of long TD passes.

    The Bulldogs never trailed in their first trip to Austin since 1958 to take on the SEC newcomer that had gotten through the first half of its schedule pretty much unscathed.

    “Nobody gave us a chance. Everybody doubted us,” Smart said, then making a reference to ESPN’s “College GameDay” pregame show that broadcast from the Austin campus earlier in the day. “Did you watch the show this morning? I didn’t because I was in meetings, but I got 8,000 texts about it.”

    Texas (6-1, 2-1) won at reigning national champion Michigan in Week 2 and had been behind for less than four minutes all season before facing the the back-to-back national champ before the Wolverines.

    The 15-point loss was the most lopsided for a No. 1 team at home since Notre Dame’s 31-16 win at Pittsburgh in 1982, according to Sportradar, when Dan Marino was the Panthers quarterback.

    “Unfortunately, we didn’t play our best football tonight, but we were still competitive. Hopefully, we get another crack at them,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. ‘They’ve been the standard in college football now for about five, six, seven years and we played them really well in the second half.”

    Georgia quarterback Carson Beck improved to 19-2 as a starter, including a 7-2 mark against ranked teams. He was 23 of 41 for 175 yards and finished with three interceptions, though Texas didn’t get anything out of the two he threw in the first quarter. The Longhorns had only 38 yards total when trailing 23-0 at halftime.

    Jahdae Barron’s pick and 36-yard return to the Georgia 9 late in the third quarter came after contact with Arian Smith that drew a pass interference penalty. Sarkisian was irate at officials, then went to the far corner of the field where students sit signaling for them to quit throwing things.

    As the debris was being picked up, officials were discussing the play and picked up the flag. Two plays later, Ewers threw a 17-yard touchdown to Jaydon Blue to get the Longhorns to 23-15.

    The Southeastern Conference released a statement early Sunday morning that said officials made the proper decision with their decision to not call a penalty on the play.

    Ewers completed 25 of 43 passes for 211 yards.

    Everette’s blindside sack late in the first quarter jarred loose the ball from Ewers, and the defender recovered at the Texas 13 after several of his teammates had tried to pick up the fumble. That led to Etienne’s 2-yard TD for a 7-0 lead.

    A 15-yard TD run by Etienne, with a late lunge into the end zone, made it 17-0 after Everette stepped in front of a receiver for an interception at the Texas 34.

    “We all always say that takeaways come in bunches,” Everette said. “We practice taking small details seriously.”

    Peyton Woodring kicked three field goals before halftime for Georgia, the last a 44-yarder as time expired after freshman Arch Manning, in for a second series, fumbled while being sacked.

    The takeaway

    Georgia: Smart got his 100th career win in 117 games over nine seasons. … The defense set the tone for the Dawgs, including seven sacks and forcing four turnovers that Georgia turned into 17 points.

    Texas: This was the Longhorns’ biggest test so far in the SEC, and it turned into a jarring reminder of how difficult things can be in their new league. Texas has lost its last five home games against top-five opponents, since a win over No. 3 Nebraska in 1999 when they were in the Big 12 together.

    Poll implications

    Texas will fall out of the No. 1 spot, it is just a matter of how far. Oregon (6-0) is likely to take over at the top from No. 2, but Georgia could possibly replace the Ducks there. No. 3 Penn State and No. 4 Ohio State, whose only loss was at Oregon, were both off this weekend.

    Up next

    Georgia: Faces Florida on Nov. 2 in their annual game in Jacksonville, Florida.

    Texas: At Vanderbilt on Saturday.

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  • Beck passes for 459 yards and 3 TDs as No. 5 Georgia holds off Van Buren, Mississippi State 41-31

    Beck passes for 459 yards and 3 TDs as No. 5 Georgia holds off Van Buren, Mississippi State 41-31

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    ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Carson Beck didn’t panic when No. 5 Georgia found second-half resistance from heavy underdog Mississippi State.

    Beck passed for a career-high 459 yards and three touchdowns and Georgia withstood Mississippi State’s second-half comeback bid for a 41-31 win Saturday.

    “He’s experienced,” said Georgia coach Kirby Smart of Beck, a senior. “The game gets a little tight there and he’s cool, not panicked.”

    Georgia (5-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) played at times as if it were looking ahead to next week’s visit to No. 1 Texas, but had enough offense for its 28th consecutive home win.

    Georgia led 34-10 early in the second half before freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr., making his second start, led the State Bulldogs (1-5, 0-3) to two straight touchdowns. Van Buren’s strong performance helped Mississippi State finish the game on a 21-7 run. It was not enough to prevent the team’s fifth consecutive loss.

    “Our guys responded,” said Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby. “… I hate that we’re sitting here disappointed, frustrated that we’re not on the right side of it, but our guys are continuing to fight like heck for each other and I’m proud of them for that.”

    Beck threw two interceptions, including one on Georgia’s second play to set up a Mississippi State field goal.

    “It’s, like, it is what it is,” Beck said. “Let’s go. It doesn’t matter, just keep playing the game, keep going. And then you start to find a rhythm.”

    With Georgia leading 34-24, Beck led a 16-play touchdown drive to put the game away. On fourth down at the MSU 1, Trevor Etienne was pushed across the goal line by Georgia’s offensive line.

    Van Buren completed 20 of 37 passes for 306 yards and three touchdowns, including scoring passes of 24 and 35 yards to Kelly Akharaiyi, and one interception. The 35-yarder with 1:47 remaining again trimmed Georgia’s lead to 10 points.

    Beck completed 36 passes, matching Georgia’s record, on 48 attempts.

    Beck finished the first half strong. His 31-yard touchdown pass to Dillon Bell, whose left toe tap at the back of the end zone made the catch count, and 1-yard scoring pass to tight end Lawson Luckie gave Georgia a 27-10 halftime lead.

    Beck opened the second half with a 42-yard scoring pass to Arian Smith.

    Poll Implications

    According to BetMGM, Georgia was favored by 33 1/2 points and could be in danger of falling from the No. 5 spot in this week’s AP Top 25.

    The takeaway

    Mississippi State: The SEC’s last-ranked scoring defense was overwhelmed by Beck and the Georgia passing game. State entered the game allowing an average of 31.6 points per game — Georgia topped that on a three-play drive to open the second half. State gave up 605 yards, a season high for Georgia.

    Georgia: RB Branson Robinson ran for 12 yards and a touchdown before leaving with a right knee injury early in the second quarter. Smart said he did not know the severity of the injury. RB Roderick Robinson has not played this season after having toe surgery, and the loss of Branson Robinson makes depth at the position behind Etienne a concern.

    Up next

    Mississippi State: Returns home to play No. 15 Texas A&M on Saturday.

    Georgia: Plays at No. 1 Texas in what could be a top-five showdown on Saturday.

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  • With a daunting schedule ahead, No. 1 Georgia has easy one against FCS team Tennessee Tech

    With a daunting schedule ahead, No. 1 Georgia has easy one against FCS team Tennessee Tech

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    ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — With a daunting schedule ahead, this is a chance for No. 1 Georgia to do some fine-tuning.

    Call it a glorified scrimmage.

    The Bulldogs (1-0) play their home opener Saturday against FCS opponent Tennessee Tech, which took on a game it has no chance of winning to essentially to help pay the bills.

    Coach Bobby Wilder know what the Golden Eagles (0-1) are up against. The $475,000 paycheck is small consolation for the whipping his overmatched team is likely to ensure.

    “If I was being honest, I would tell you that I’m not thrilled to be headed to Athens, Georgia this weekend,” Wilder said with a faint smile. “So I’ll be dishonest and say I’m very excited to be playing a game in Sanford Stadium in front of 93,000.”

    Georgia opened the season with an impressive 34-3 victory over then-No. 14 Clemson, blowing out the Tigers over the final two quarters after leading only 6-0 at halftime.

    That was just the first ranked opponent for the Bulldogs, who have one of the nation’s most challenging slates. There are road games against No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Alabama and No. 6 Ole Miss, not to mention home contests against No. 14 Tennessee and No. 23 Georgia Tech.

    Coach Kirby Smart insists his players are only focused on what’s right in front of them. He noted that Tennessee Tech nearly pulled off an upset in its season opener, giving up a touchdown in the final minute to lose to Middle Tennessee 32-25.

    “They played a really hard-fought game,” Smart said. “They had a great comeback and I’ve got a lot of respect for the way they played in that game, for sure.”

    Etienne’s debut

    Trevor Etienne is expected to make his Georgia debut after sitting out the opener against Clemson.

    Etienne, a transfer from Florida, was apparently suspended for Week 1 after being arrested over the offseason, though Smart declined to discuss the reason for his absence.

    It will be intriguing to see what kind of boost Etienne provides to a running game that took a while to get going against Clemson. A season ago with the Gators, he rushed for 753 yards and eight touchdowns behind a shaky offensive line at Florida, in addition to 172 yards receiving and another score.

    Season streak

    The Bulldogs have a school-record 40-game winning streak during the regular season, their last such loss coming on Nov. 7, 2020, when they dropped a 44-28 decision to Florida.

    Georgia won its final three regular-season contests during the COVID-affected season, has gone 12-0 ahead of the postseason three years in a row and started 2024 with another victory.

    The only losses during the streak are a pair of setbacks to Alabama in the SEC championship game. The Bulldogs have won 47 of their last 49 games overall.

    “We focus on each game individually,” linebacker Jalon Walker said. “We don’t skip ahead in the season. We don’t backtrack.”

    Portal bounty

    Georgia reaped some immediate benefits from the portal.

    London Humphreys, a transfer from Vanderbilt, had two big catches against Clemson: a 15-yarder over the middle for a key first-down conversion and a 40-yard touchdown in which he showed impressive speed down the sideline.

    “The portal provides you (the opportunity) to go get a guy that’s been successful and played well in our conference,” Smart said. “He’s proven himself as a guy that can make plays, and he was ready when his number was called.”

    Former Miami receiver Colbie Young also had a pair of catches, including a 7-yard scoring play for Georgia’s first TD of the season.

    Super Starks

    Georgia defensive back Malaki Starks appears headed for another stellar season.

    He made a leaping, twisting interception in Week 1 that Smart described as “one of the best defensive football plays I’ve ever seen live in person.” Starks’ versatility in the secondary might be his leading attribute.

    “Malaki can be our best player at five positions,” Smart said. “So it’s more a matter of what’s around him and what’s healthy, working, and what are we going to do defensively.”

    Tech QB

    The Golden Eagles lost their starting quarterback in Week 1 when Dylan Laible went down with an injury.

    Jordyn Potts took over and nearly led his team to a comeback victory over Middle Tennessee, completing 27 of 38 passes for 256 yards and three touchdowns.

    Potts will get the start against the Bulldogs.

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